Original article published 28 June 2013
I am in the process of rewriting and revising old articles about James Bond’s outfits that need a refresh and expansion. All former comments are preserved below.
In The Man with the Golden Gun, James Bond wears a sporty silk-blend suit to bear the heat in Macau and Hong Kong. The suit is made of a semi-solid fine herringbone in a pale colour. This suit presents the same dilemma that the North By Northwest suit does—sometimes it looks blue, and sometimes it looks grey. The film’s colours look very different on the VHS and original DVD release than they do on subsequent releases, but the colours do not look true to life in any home release. Colour grading, film stock and lighting can all significantly affect how colours appear on screen. Promotional stills don’t confirm any colours, though they often lean blue. Roger Moore wore this suit in several public appearances outside of The Man with the Golden Gun, such as in a 1977 Nationwide interview on the BBC for The Spy Who Loved Me. In this well-lit appearance, the suit looks decidedly grey, though the suit could still have a slight hint of blue to it.
Due to its slubiness, fabric looks like a silk blend, and Bond wears a lot of silk in this film. It could be the popular Italian blend of wool, silk and linen, or it might just be a wool-and-silk blend. This isn’t the most comfortable suit to wear in a hot and humid climate because neither silk nor the herringbone weave makes this suit particularly breathable, but the suit’s texture and pale colour both give it an appropriately tropical look.
The suit’s tailor is also called into question. Roger Moore says in The Man With the Golden Gun‘s DVD commentary that Angelo made this suit, but it has Cyril Castle’s unmistakable cut and style. The suit’s style matches that of another Cyril Castle suit made for the film that was auctioned at Christie’s in 2009. The Man With the Golden Gun is the last film that Cyril Castle tailored Roger Moore for, and Angelo Roma would tailor Moore for his next few films, including The Spy Who Loved Me.
Cyril Castle tailored this jacket in his unique flavour of English tailoring, with two buttons in a medium-low stance, a swelled chest with a little drape, a suppressed waist and a flared skirt. The shoulders are narrow and softly padded with gently roped sleeve heads. The lapels appear to be around 3 3/4 inches wide, so they’re a medium-wide width, but they look wider because the shoulders are so narrow. The jacket is detailed with slanted flap pockets and deep double vents, which were popular in the 1970s while also following a traditional English style. The cuffs are flared with kissing ‘link’ buttons, with back-to-back size-27L buttons. The buttons are made of mid-grey polyester, which are intended to blend in with the suit. Polyester buttons were commonly used by the best English tailors of the era for their plain look and vast colour selection. They were not a means of cost-cutting, as they would be today in place of buttons made of natural materials.
The jacket has the sporty feature of swelled edges, which means the edges of the front, lapels, pocket flaps and breast pocket are stitched about 8 mm from the edge. The hand stitching on the edges of this jacket is done in a more noticeable way than usual with a darker thread, and the stitches are spaced about 3 to 5 mm apart to draw attention to it. Edge stitching in English tailoring is usually very subtle, but the bolder method here gives this jacket a more Italian look. The swelled edges and the cloth would make this suit jacket work well as an odd jacket with cream or dark grey trousers.
The suit jacket has a boldly patterned lining in white with a large dark blue paisley pattern. Bold linings were fashionable at the time, and Bond wears many jackets with bold linings in the early 1970s. Patterned linings can show through light-coloured and lightweight suitings, so they must be chosen with caution. Because this jacket has a herringbone weave, it means that the lining won’t show through.
The suit trousers have a darted front and a subtle flare to the leg from the knee. They have no side pockets but instead have two large cash pockets at the base of the waistband on both the right and left sides of the trousers. It likely has two rear button-through pockets, matching other trousers in the film. With this suit, we see the rare occasion when Bond uses his trouser pockets. The trousers also feature stitching at side seams similar to the swelled edges on the jacket, to contribute to the sporty look and maintain continuity across the suit.
Bond wears the trousers with a black leather belt that has an oval centre-post buckle, likely from Gucci, who also provided Bond’s shoes and the luggage that he carries when wearing this suit. The belt is flashy for Bond, especially since this is the first film in which Bond wears belts with his suits.
The ivory cotton voile shirt from Frank Foster is an excellent choice for the hot and humid climate of Hong Kong. The shirt has a high semi-spread collar with long points, a classic English style that’s fashionably but tastefully up-sized for the 1970s. The cuffs are a two-button cocktail cuff. Moore’s cuffs from Frank Foster in The Man with the Golden Gun are a significantly different style than Sean Connery’s cocktail cuffs from Turnbull & Asser—Moore’s cuffs are deeper and have the buttons spaced further apart, have a more contoured shape and have a less-rounded turnback. Moore has trouble on a few occasions with the shirt cuffs getting stuck outside of the jacket cuffs while wearing this suit, which his button-down cocktail cuffs in The Persuaders! avoided. The shirt’s front placket has its two lines of stitching placed close to the centre, so the stitching runs under the buttons. There are two darts at the back of the shirt for a more contoured fit through the small of the back.
The matte navy tie has a rough, slubby texture that suggests it’s made of shantung or raw silk. This isn’t the kind of tie that draws attention to itself, but its texture means it isn’t short on character. It’s less formal than most ties because it lacks sheen, and it’s a stylish complement to the sporty suit. Matte ties like this are also good with linen suits, as well as with blazers and sports coats in all sorts of materials. The tie is tied with a four-in-hand knot.
Bond wears black slip-on shoes from Gucci with a squared apron toe, stylised ‘G’ side bit detail and black soles. His socks are dark, possibly black to match the shoes.
The colours of this outfit, if not the styles, recall some of the outfits that Sean Connery wore as James Bond, particularly the light grey suit in Dr. No and the grey herringbone suit in You Only Live Twice. Had Moore worn a light blue shirt with this suit instead of ivory, he’d look even more like Connery. Though most of Moore’s looks in The Man with the Golden Gun diverge from Bond’s previously established style, especially the double-breasted suits and striped shirts, this is one look that brings Moore closer to Bond’s roots. While the outfit is of its time in many ways, it’s not overly fashionable and still could easily be worn today if the trouser legs were straightened out.
Now Pay Attention
| SUIT | |
| Tailor | Cyril Castle |
| Fabric | Light grey or light blue-grey contrast herringbone silk blend |
| JACKET | |
| Front buttons | 2, medium-low stance |
| Lapels | Medium-wide notch |
| Shoulder | Soft with roped sleeve heads |
| Breast pocket | Welt |
| Hip pockets | Slanted, flapped |
| Vents | 2 |
| Cuff buttons | 2 back-to-back |
| TROUSERS | |
| Front | Darted |
| Support | Black Gucci belt |
| Front/side pockets | Cash pockets under the waistband |
| Rise | High |
| Leg | Flared |
| Hem | Plain |
| SHIRT | |
| Shirtmaker | Frank Foster |
| Fabric | Ivory voile |
| Collar | Semi-spread |
| Cuff | 2-button cocktail |
| Front | Placket |
| TIE | |
| Brand | Unknown |
| Fabric | Navy raw silk |
| Knot | Four-in-hand |
| SHOES | |
| Shoemaker | Gucci |
| Style | Black side-bit slip-on |
One of Moore’s best “fashionable” 1970’s suits – not to mention the perfection which is Foster’s shirt (large collar or otherwise, it does its part perfectly).
As always, expertly cut by Castle, and the color offsets any of the fashion-forward trends applied here. Not sure I’m keen on the slightly bowed lapels, but it’s only obvious in the taxi shot.
Looks as if the pants have fallen a bit during said taxi shot – even with Rog’s raised shoulder, I would have expected less space between the belt and the upper button. It’s not as if the button stance is unreasonably high either.
-Kurt
This is one ot Moore’s finest fitting suits of his bond tenure. I think that bit of drape suits his physique better than clean. The trousers appear to fit much better around the thighs too. Whenever he wears more sporty/cavalry trousers they seem a bit tight. This suit with the shirt and tie is pure sartorial bond. It can obviously be dated to early 70s but then that’s just fine.
I have seen stills of this suit from “The Man with the Golden Gun” which show Moore wearing a navy tie with polka dots which actually gives the whole outfit a bit more bounce (for want of a better word).
Yes, beautiful. And Maud Adams complements it very well too!
Looks lovely in general. The colour, lapels, and collar all stand out.
Only thing that looks off (to me) is the length of the jacket sleeves. Seem quite short. Maybe it’s just the pictures.
Otherwise very nice.
“Only thing that looks off (to me) is the length of the jacket sleeves. Seem quite short. Maybe it’s just the pictures.”
They seem about right in the first screenshot, but the second does show the right sleeve pulling up a bit more than I’d anticipate.
Any chance the cocktail cuffs are latching onto the sleeve lining and pulling it up?
-Kurt
That could happen, or the shirting could be just a bit rough and the sleeves rode up. I have had it happen to me with Oxford shirtings.
This has always been one of my favorites. It does show a few signs of its time, but its so nicely cut, I’d be proud to wear something like it even today. Never been crazy about the lining, obviously. I had thought that this was the suit with the bright paisley lining, but the second picture seems to suggest that I’m wrong.
You’re right, Chris – the sleeves do seem a little short.
This is one of my favorite Moore looks. I’ve always thought that Moore looked his best in The Man With the Golden Gun, and I certainly don’t blame him for keeping a suit like this for personal use!
Kyle, interestingly, this wasn’t the only suit from TMWTGG that Roger coveted but this one he obviously succeeded in getting home and dry after filming wrapped. He refers in his book “Bond on Bond” (recommended by the way and a very entertaining read) to a suit from that movie which he particularly wanted and which was used in the final scene (I assume the final scene filmed, so I’m not sure which suit this was?) and him taking great care that the garment wasn’t harmed in any way during shooting the scene. Finally, dusting himself down and congratulating himself at securing his prize he was the recipient of a dose of liquid from above dropped down on him by Cubby Broccoli as a joke and therefore scuppering his chance of “acquiring” this particular suit for the future!
It was the blue one with red lining worn in the “I’ve lost my charm” scene
It was the Blue Beirut suit that Sir Roger was keen to keep after filming, when Cubby ruined it with his “joke” after the final scene. Poor Roger…
It’s interesting how much Gucci is seen in this film. Bond’s belt, shoes and suitcase! Furthermore, both Goodnight and Miss Anders are using Gucci handbags too. Yet I have never seen any commercial ads or tie-ins connected to the film?
R. Sterling/James, thanks for the info. That suit was my suspicion anyway and I can only, as always, complement Sir Roger on his impeccable taste. It was a beautiful suit and in fact, a Marine Blue is one for my future wardrobe! It’s one look that seems to have achieved universal approval here (not always easy!) and definitely due a revival.
That is another beautiful suit, as is the charcoal one that the waxwork James Bond is dressed in that he steals at the end of the film. Wouldn’t mind getting my hands on either one of them. This one by Richard James reminds me a little of the marine blue suit in Beirut:
http://www.mrporter.com/product/333115
It is interesting to read about the relationship between Cubby and Roger Moore, they seemed to be great friends as well as business partners. It seems to me that Moore would definitely be the easiest Bond actor to get along with, due to his good humored personality. By most accounts both Connery and Craig have been described as “dour.”
Superb colour and Roger never looked better.
I am surprised no comment has been made on the jacket lining.
Very nice, though I too am not a fan of the slightly bowed lapels. Reflective of the era without being overwhelmed by it, perfectly cut. That lining is something!
Pure elegance and almost nothing to critique here. Sir Roger at his sartorial best.
Flared trousers aside, I think we could realistically see Daniel Craig wearing something similar to this in his next outing if the costume designers would allow Tom Ford’s to dress the character in his signature style.
Isn’t the tie he’s wearing in the youtube link from the “where’s Fekkesh” scene in The Spy Who Loved Me? I think it is.
Like the suit, perfect for the era and location. Lining, briefly glimpsed, is a bit loud but we’ll forgive him.
It’s a very similar tie. The colours look different, or just the colours on that video have been muted considerably.
I think that’s just the lighting, it is definitely the same tie, he wore it quite a bit promoting the film (I’m sure they had mutiples). I don’t know about anyone else but my love of striped silk ties is entirely down to Sir Roger.
As usual, agreed, James. And of Frank Foster shirts too!
One of my favorite suits from one of my favorite films of the series and certainly one of Moore’s best. The cut is trully excellent. Minus the flared legs (and the lining of course..) and with slighlty smaller lapels, this suit could easily be worn today, although I don’t know whether this colour can be found off the rack. The Cyril Castle cut of the first two Moore films as well as the Dimi Major one for Lazenby belong to the sartorial highlights of the series IMO.
Superb cut for the suit. In fact, curiously, the whole look (colours association and details) looks like a 70s-reinterpretation of the “Connery look” -I know some people will find it controversial, but whatever-, with more twist. Silk suits are indeed very nice, like the ones in Moonraker and in FRWL.
I just find this fancy lining out of place. I know you appreciate this feature Matt, but I think it’s rather a flashy option to show that your suit is bespoke. I think the opened buttonhole of the sleeve is more discreet, even if it serves no purpose at all.
I wonder if the fabric could have been one of those terylene wool blends–given the sheen– that were then produced by Dormeuil and Scabal back in those days. They were rather pricey fabrics.
I believe the sheen is from silk, considering the slubs.
I can’t believe this suit gets a free pass from pretty much everyone here when Daniel Craig’s Skyfall suits are generally torn apart. If you tried wearing this suit today you would be laughed at, it’s just as much of it’s time as Craig’s short jackets and slim lapels. It’s well tailored (although I’ve never been a huge fan of the drape cut) but that doesn’t excuse the extremes to which this suit is clearly influenced by 1970s fashion. Sorry, I don’t like it.
What do you find “laughable” about this suit? Personally, I find it to be one of the best suits from the entire series.
Mark,
I don’t agree that this suit is extreme, but it is clearly of its era. I do agree that one would look a little odd wearing this suit today (a controversial belief here, I know). And some of the Bond actors get a lot of slack on this blog, while others can seemingly do no sartorial right.
If Daniel Craig were born thirty years earlier and playing Bond in 1981, would we be praising his “timeless fashion”? If Roger Moore were born thirty years later and playing Bond in Skyfall, wouldn’t his demonstrable fashion forward sense from his pre-Bond days lead us to believe he would be wearing suits at least as trendy as the suits in Skyfall?
The suit has a style and cut of its era which you either like or don’t like. The colour and fabric are what make it so appealing, in my opinion, and is still the sort of suit you would find in Paris , Rome or Madrid today. You would really struggle to find that sort of thing in the UK today because we Brits are innately conservative and a little shy of looking more flamboyant than normal. For a Latin, the look would be absolutely normal.
Comsol,
I agree – this is one of the best outfits in the entire series – except for the flared pants it would be excellent even today.
Slightly wider lapels and angled pockets on an otherwise timelessly well-cut suit define an extremity?
Gee, I hope you didn’t see the safari jacket.
-Kurt
More than once on this blog people have expressed a fear of being “laughed at” if they wore a particular style of suit – who exactly are they afraid will laugh at them? The fashionistas in their shrink-wrapped suits or the slobs in their t-shirts and cargo shorts? Those are the kind of people who ask “what are you all dressed up for?” and here are the answers they deserve: http://asuitablewardrobe.dynend.com/2011/11/why-are-you-so-dressed-up.html
Afraid I may have to disagree regarding if we went backwards and/or stopped experimenting. There have been plenty of exaggerated looks in terms of silhouette and details both on and off the runway, post 1970s. The problem is that most of those things are not visually beneficial to the wearer, especially taken to the extreme. Case in point, the flared trousers in TSWLM when Bond gets the Lotus. They are so flared they cover his shoes and put too much visual weight low to the ground making the silhouette look worse and drawing the eyes away from the face.
The 1970s were unique in that such wild fashions went mainstream for a time (then again look at the past 15 years of shrunken suits). However, the conservatism in dress of the early 1980s was probably more of a return to the reality that the average consumer is more comfortable in a narrow range of fashion than a retreat from experimentation. On the surface, 1980s Moore’s outfits look bland compared to what came before and to many that’s perceived as boring. However, I don’t think they are bland just more in line with what most people will be willing to wear and thus more timeless.
I do concede that the retreat from unique little details such as the link cuffs is a loss. But then again how common were such things in the first place? Probably not very. But it’s the sort of thing that was, and still is, available bespoke; if one actually wants to wear unique things, fashions be damned.
The Moore’s suits in “The man with the golden gun” are fantastics!
The best of the Roger Moore’s wardrobe as Bond.
But what is a “darted trousers”?
Is a sort of compromise between pleats and flat front?
And what serves darts in front ?
To begin and keep the line press of trousers?
Cyril Castle puts a dart in the front where the main pleat is on pleated trousers. More often darted trousers place the dart further to the side in front of the pocket. The dart serves a similar fucntion as pleats do: to provide the much needed fullness across the hips. It’s often necessary for a good fit for trousers worn at the waist. True flat fronts are often the compromise to have something cleaner at the cost of comfort and fit. Flat fronts are only ideal for someone with a lack of hips.
Dear Matt,
About the lining (BTW I love it!) I think there is a similar one on Connery’s light grey Vegas suit in DAF (see the wig in the pool scene).
I must admit I love that outfit. I also see it as an update of the Connery-Bond look.
I had to wear a suit on Saturday to interview candidates at my local business school (and alma mater) and quickly found what to wear upon seeing your blog: my light grey 2-button suit with slanted pockets, lapels on the wide side, flat front tousers and horse-bit loafers complemented with a white shirt and navy tie. Thanks to your blog I had my little Roger Moore moment!
Regards from France
Mark, while I fully respect the fact that you don’t care for this particular suit, I think it’s fair to say that only Daniels Craig’s most recent, “Skyfall” suits were, as you put it, “torn apart” on this blog. This is due to the fact that they just don’t fit him correctly. I only speak for myself obviously but these and Daltons 1989 suits, therefore, were the least successful examples of tailoring in the entire Bond series and while I don’t care at all for any of them I don’t see anything to laugh at. Apart from bad manners, laughing at how someone else chooses to present themselves is a sign of insecurity on the part of the person laughing.
As FS correctly points out above this style of suit is not all that far removed from Tom Ford’s signature style and he dresses the Bond you admire. So, would you still find it a cause for mirth if Craig wore a similarly styled outfit?
Kyle, I agree with your impression that Moore would be the easiest of the Bond actors to work with and, I think, his likeability and the enjoyment they had working together wasthe main reason that he stayed in the role for so long. Moore claims it was because Broccoli couldn’t find another actor who would work as cheaply as him! The man’s affability, charm and innate gentlemanliness shined out when he played the role and this made him, in my book, the most entertaining of the on screen Bonds.
Completely agree with you, David. Matt too pointed out some similarities of the Tom Ford style with an outfit Moore wore in the 70s -a 3-piece suit with wide peak lapels, perhaps a long rear vent, of a blue-grey colour I think. Quite a flamboyant style, exactly like Tom Ford’s style -and not at all like the suits of Skyfall, who lack that flamboyance a lot. About Roger Moore, well, having never met him, I will not risk a judgement about him being more or less easy to get along with than an other actor. But I must confess I feel the same way about some actors I admire -not Bond actors by the way.
I think this is one of Moore’s best looks. The fabric is unique without being flamboyant, and the colours are classic film!Bond.
As for the debate on the details, wider lapels are a terrific look on Moore since they help to downplay his broad chest. They’re a lot better than the narrow lapels he wore in the ’60s, which were really unflattering. As for the flares, they could always have been taken in once they went out of fashion.
Funny, I always thought wide lapels were good on slim or skinny people too, since they help making the chest looking more full, more “occupied”. But I agree that these wide lapels are also very flattering to Moore. As a matter of fact I don’t find them very wide, just on the wide side of classic. But they are surely wider than Connery’s 60s suit lapels, even in Dr No. Moore wore slimmer lapels again in the 80s that looked very nice on him too. Perhaps it’s the combination of drape + skinny lapels + narrow trousers that doesn’t look good.
What is your opinion about “wide” lapels, Matt ? Do you think they flatter some people more than others ?
This is one of my favorite outfits. Marvelous cut, with great, subtle, soft grey color. The lining is great, very original. The suit can be seen here :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT0rr3gaqWI
Thanks for the link Adrien. She was a popular singer at that time. The tie he’s wearing here is the one I mentioned having seen in my first comment above. I find it gives the outfit more flair than the plain navy in the film.
Thanks, Adrian. Great look at the suit.
As an aside, I did not know that Roger Moore spoke fluent Italian. Given this fact, I supoose it’s not too much of a steetch to assume that he had an affinity for Italian culture, which sheds new light on many of his sartorial choices as Bond.
His wife was Italian and he spent a lot of time there. It would explain the Angelo Roma suits in the late 70s, and perhaps he choice to go with the somewhat Italian-inspired Douglas Hayward.
Matt, not forgetting the choice of footwear and accoutrements (Gucci in LALD and subsequently Ferragamo). Foster’s shirt style (as opposed to a rival shirt maker like T&A for example) which he produced for Moore has a certain Italian flair too with their tall, spread collar style.
These lapels are not particularly wide,but rather on classics side.
The tie is too much wide in my opinion.
Same suit with a more moderate classic tie would be better.
Is the tie,not the lapels in 70s fashion.
The lapels are too wide to be considered classic, so are the pocket flaps and flared trousers. Also, I think swelled lapel egdes are for blazers and casual linen suits only, not on a suit like this. Other than that, I love this suit and the cut is, as said, perfect. It’s not Bond, but beautiful non the less, as is all of Moore’s clothes in the series.
Couldn’t it be pick-and-pick ?!
Yes, it could be pick-and-pick. I mentioned it’s a semi-solid, which pick-and-pick is an example of. I’ve long suspected this could be a pick-and-pick herringbone, but it’s just an educated guess.
One of Bond’s best outfits and it’s an example of why Cyril Castle was Roger’s best tailor.
I was wondering about the shoes he was wearing with this outfits and after looking at them, frame by frame, they appear to be dark brown Gucci horsebit loafers.
They look dark brown after he was shadowing Miss Anders…
https://ibb.co/n7UoqR
https://ibb.co/nrGZVR
…and the horse-bit is only barely visible when he’s walking through the hotel room.
https://ibb.co/kbnPVR (notice the shimmer, a clear shot of the horse-bit)
https://ibb.co/bMBUx6 (a comparison shot showing how easy it was to miss that they’re horse-bit)
https://ibb.co/muZGc6 (an alternative shot)
Regarding your comment on it being herringbone pick and pick, I doubt it. It doesn’t appear have the texture that herringbone does.
https://ibb.co/bWvHjm
Another thought, the shoes could be the same loafers he wore with the cream casual outfit, lending some realism to his wardrobe.
I just had a closer look, and the shoes are black side-bit (not horse bit) slip-ons. The shoes are a different style than what he wears with the cream casual outfit. The shoes with the cream outfit are the classic moccasin-style loafers with the full horsebit while the shoes with this suit are a dressier apron-toe style.
I could have sworn his tie in this scene was black. Or some shade of dark grey.
Its really hard to find such dark Navy blue ties today!
Hello Mr. Spaiser, The suit works well with the location. I was always a fan of this specfic suit, but I have a question. Do you think Mr. Lazar’s suit is cream and also is it appropriate for the setting?
I could be mistaken, but Roger appears to be wearing this suit in a 1975 episode of, “What’s My Line?” with him as the “mystery guest. The excellent Thunderballs Twitter feed had a link to it recently, and a search on YouTube will come up with the episode. Roger appears at the 14:35 mark.
This is the same suit he wore for this TV appearance correct:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6u5FUEJ-nw
Yes, that is the same suit.
Yet another fab suit that shows 1) it was possible to dress well but still with the times in the mid-70s 2) TMwtGG is far and a way Moore’s sartorial high-water mark 3) It might be the last great set of Bond clothes, period. If you doub this, consider: Moore’s ensembles mostly fall apart for the rest of the 70s (his Spy tux and military uniforms being the exceptions) and his 80s costumes are one long depressing trip through an early 80s men’s store in Jacksonville Florida, with one foot permanently in the 70. Dalton tried to bring style back (in his first film) but the OTR “tailoring” was poor, and Pierce Brosnan went from dressing like Michael Scott’s older brother to “meh, fine, okay” by the end. And for all of his influence on men’s suiting, Craig’s era is mostly a boy’s tight suit failure–want to revisit his mid-2000s “Everybody Loves Raymond” casual dress period anyone? So yeah, you think about it, The Man with the Golden Gun was the cinematic Bond’s last hurrah as a clotheshorse to emulate.
Then again, outside of almost secular sartorial circles and exclusive groups, if not outright clubs or cliques, ever since the 1980’s, dressing of the old days had been snubbed, largely, by endorsements of fashion statements, “casual” outfits, and generally a demoralized population and society with a demoralized dress code. Promotion of endless and meaningless consumerism, idolatry, and emphasis on what trends and perception of others, not the self, have been the drive for simple, understated, but elegant, and representational of an individual’s quality and morality to be excluded from dressing behaviors of many, if not outright ridiculed.
We made some progress to revert many of these depravities, during the 2010’s up to before 2021. It was already somewhat an uphill battle. But now, it’s a 90 degrees mountain, with little to no room for climbing equipment.
I find it quite funny that Jacksonville is used as the example par excellence of, well, non-excellence. Amazingly literary Bond actually visits Jacksonville, albeit very briefly, in Live And Let Die.
In a slight defense of 1980s Roger Moore’s outfits, the return to conservatism in dress was the trend at the time as Matt has pointed out in various posts. The trouble is that it’s hard to see staid conservatism as fun to emulate; looking perpetually appropriate but not standing out is not what clotheshorses seek to do. That’s not to say the outfits from that era are all bland, but they are certainly subdued compared to what came before.
I think it’s a damned shame we all went backwards when it came to being adventurous in clothing and haven’t quite recovered since then. No, the 1970s were not perfect in every way for fashion. However, I miss the freaky and androgynous looks by Mr. Fish and others, the experimentation with silhouette like flared trousers, the little details like the flared link cuffs on Moore’s suit here. There were also a lot of great ideas for flattering women’s bodies, such as Anya Amasova’s dress in TSWLM. (I still want it replicated for myself.)
Giselle, I meant to reply to your comment but it looks like somehow what I wrote wound up responding to a 2013 comment up the thread.
It did get me thinking though, the current look of tailored jacket and trousers has been effectively unchanged since the end of WWII. Look at this picture of Eisenhower.
https://d.lib.ncsu.edu/collections/catalog/0013470#?c=&m=&cv=&xywh=1924%2C-190%2C4385%2C5815
Fit notwithstanding, no one would be surprised if they saw a man dressed that way today; contrast that to the outfit the woman next to him is wearing. 80+ years of effectively the same thing. On the other hand, if we were to show Eisenhower a picture of someone from the 1880s, the results would not have been the same.
There are many reasons for this; certainly film’s ability to propagate styles of the time the film was shot is a big one. But I feel another reason is simply that the 2 (or 3) button tailored jacket and trousers combo is just so optimized.
Lee,
Honestly, it’s just an easy, humble, and workable combo. You don’t feel out of place or uncomfortable in that setup. Part of the reason why I would probably never wear double breasted suits. When you put something on, it has to make way for you, not for it.
To reiterate Matt’s article about the complex simplicity of Sir Sean’s outfits, and how I also feel when I put my Anthony Sinclair’s suits on me, its that the suits leads to me, and me alone. It lets me speak, and my voice is from me, and mine alone. In other words, a little unhinged as it sounds, I dominate not just the room and/or the event/attention, but I also have control over my appearance. At college and/or work, this was extremely effective.
This is also why I don’t dress too flamboyantly, or at all. Call me out as much as you want, but I prefer to have the situation under my control and command, with the least effort possible. I reckon many would have wanted it as much as I do.
A Cyril Castlr suit in this or very similar cloth was on Savvy Row about a year ago but there was a stain that kept me from buying.
Yeah, I remember they had about 5-6 suits from Castle with that link button cuff, and most of them had a beautiful fancy lining. The suitings were a bit too 70s for my taste though, but quite fancy. Many silk blends. Plus many blazers in colorful jacketings (light blue, peach, pink…)
I bought two of the ones in more conservative colours but due to the brittleness of mohair one tore at the trousers… but luckily it’s a plain tan jacket so it could actually work as an odd jacket. Just annoying bc I thought I’d landed on a summer suit. Also got a couple of blazers that didn’t have the link cuff (they did have a turnback cuff though!)
It’s a good lesson bc I’ve always had this notion of wearing my clothes for decades but now I know never to get mohair. (I think mohair is really cool but I can’t rationalize getting a brittle cloth with the costs of bespoke.)
Kamal,
I think a good bespoke tailor who also works alterations will be able to help, especially if it’s a lighter color. Also, yes, mohair gets tricky. I feel as though it needs to be steamed so much more than other fabrics. I have a bunch of Dormeuil cloths, and I might just need to discuss with my tailor on how to get it right. Frankly, with older, vintage mohair, best you treat it with steam extensively before pressing and put it to service.
That’s the thing, Travers. I did all that!
So as cool as mohair is I don’t think I’ll be using it for anything I commission. I always go for the most hard wearing option.
Kamal,
In terms of hard wearing hot weather, only two names come to mind – Escorial tropical (mix or pure) and mock leno (both Dugdale and Minnis). Otherwise, I don’t know what’s happening with the mohair supplies since 2018. I guess, for black tie outfits, they will do, but constant breakages of the fibers sound like a liability.
Even then, again, Escorial made everything different when I found out about it (2016). Got a length made into a spring/summer three piece that had lasted me through thick and thin. I know it’s expensive (duh), but I still recommend it.
Ha, I meant “cool” as in the cloth looks cool and has some cultural cachet, not the summer cloth element.
I would rather deal with being overly hot than spend bespoke money on summer cloth. Maybe I’d feel differently if I had a lot more money.
Kamal,
I mean, on average, you’re already paying more for mohair cloth, which, at my analysis, with retail pricing, is not at all worth it. Fresco and mock leno are worth their prices, and they’re not even that expensive. Escorial, youll pay more, but it’ll be an investment worthy its weight in gold.
Otherwise, now I get you, but I’m in the strict school of dressing simply, appropriately, and elegantly. The colorful stuffs, I’ll leave it to anyone else. You can’t even make me wear anything “cool looking” or “flamboyant”, or both, at gun point.
Mohair doesn’t cost much more than fresco, and it looks much different. If you want the look of mohair, it’s worth paying a little more for it. Escorial costs tremendously more, and while it’s a much better value than cashmere, I don’t think it’s worth it.