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musings on men's formal wear from the creator of The Black Tie Guide
Browsing All Posts filed under »Popular Culture«
Gatsby-Esque
Well, the long-delayed release of Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby is almost here and Brooks Brothers is taking full advantage of the film’s lush portrayal of Jazz Age glamour. The latest “lookbook” from the esteemed haberdashers explains: From the designs of double-Academy Award-winning designer Catherine Martin, Brooks Brothers produced all the men’s costumes in Baz Luhrmann’s film adaptation […]
Black Tie vs. Tuxedo: The Great Divide
April 15, 2013
The recent season finale of The New Normal was very astute in its understanding of black tie in today’s world. At the wedding of the two lead characters, the affluent and urbane grooms wore turndown collars with self-tie bow ties and well-fitting tuxedos. Meanwhile, a small-town simpleton guest wore a undersized wing collar and pre-tied […]
2013 Vienna Ball Season: Insider Report
January 28, 2013
Reader Kate from the Washington, DC area wrote to say that she empathized with the challenge of finding classic black tie attire in the U.S. as experienced by a recent Inaugural Ball correspondent. On the flip side, her recent experience in Vienna provides an insight of what a genuine ball should look be like. While I did not […]
Women’s Tuxedos & Tailcoats
January 24, 2013
I have finally delved into the last fringe aspect of black tie not yet covered in The Guide: Women dressing in tuxedos. Or, more precisely, women dressing in men’s evening wear. While there is an abundance of writing about the topic of women and menswear in general, this more specific subject appears to be devoid […]
Justin Timberlake: (Dinner) Suit & Tie
January 16, 2013
Justin Timberlake released his first new single in six years last Monday and although it’s called “Suit & Tie” the associated promotional materials feature a tuxedo. Considering the massive scope of this marketing campaign and its target demographic, one can only hope that multitudes of young men will discover the inherent elegance of the traditional […]
Return of the Downton DJ
January 9, 2013
The third season of Downton Abbey premiered on PBS last Sunday with a record audience of nearly eight million viewers. While there was much talk about changing times at the dawn of the 1920s it was evident that life at Downton is still firmly rooted in the past. Two amusing examples are the negative reactions […]
50 Years of Bond Tuxedos
January 3, 2013
While writing recently about the James Bond design exhibit and the unorthodox notched lapels featured in Goldfinger I started wondering about Bond tuxedos as a whole. Curious to see how they evolved over time I rented the entire series on DVD and have produced a timeline that highlights key developments. For those who are interested […]
Review: “Designing 007” Exhibit
December 29, 2012
I recently visited a traveling museum exhibit of James Bond design and it was black tie heaven. The exhibit is called “Designing 007: Fifty Years of James Bond Style” and was produced in collaboration with the film franchise’s production company which provided unprecedented access to their archives. One room is devoted solely to the evening […]
Skyfall DJ Preview II
September 5, 2012
A recently released set of posters for Skyfall provides a closer look at Bond’s next dinner suit. According to GQ.com it is a Tom Ford “O’Connor” tuxedo, the same one Craig wore as Bond in the Olympics opening ceremony (and which Bradley Cooper wore to the most recent Oscars). It will no doubt be a […]
Bond’s Skyfall Dinner Jacket: Sneak Peek
June 4, 2012
The trailer for the next James Bond film has just been released and reveals that 007 will once again be donning his trademark formal attire. Skyfall will be rolled out across the globe starting October 26. A complete list of release dates can be found at the official web site.
May 1, 2013
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