The 1936 musical Swing Time must have played on television recently because I received a couple of queries about the unique neckwear worn with a tuxedo by Fred Astaire. I have to say I’ve never come across this sort of floppy-ended version of a bow tie before. I presume that’s because its tousled and informal appearance looks out of place with the neat and precise nature of formal wear.
Posted in: Miscellanea
Serpens Albus
May 28, 2012
Isn’t that a smoking jacket he’s wearing, rather than a dinner suit? In that case, the floppy tie kind of makes more sense.
Rory Lowings
May 29, 2012
I’ve seen the floppy tie in a couple of the early Carry On films, usually on comedy decadents. I think it’s a hangover from the Regency – early Victorian era, but further research is clearly needed…
Luther Warren
May 30, 2012
Pretty certain that isn’t a smoking jacket, but rather the same 4×2 double breasted dinner suit which Astaire wore in nearly all of his films from the ’30s through to the ’50s.