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I like the Rathbone movies, but Jeremy Brett IS Sherlock Holmes.
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How do folks react to your hat wearing?
- Thread starter HamilcarBarca3
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I like the Rathbone movies, but Jeremy Brett IS Sherlock Holmes.
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I like the Rathbone movies but Jeremy Brett IS Sherlock Holmes.
OldStrummer
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I get mixed reactions. Until recently, if I wore a hat at all it was either a running cap or beanie, or a baseball cap. I hate what they do to my thin, wispy hair up top, but I've become even more irritated by what the wind and rain do. So, I've reverted to my youth, when I used to wear those canvas stingy brim fedoras to go golfing and hanging around. I've upped my game a little, so now I have wool hats, fur hats, straw hats and hats of indeterminate origin.
Those who know me generally give me compliments. I've had more than one person remark that I've inspired them to start wearing hats (although I haven't seen much proof of this, yet). On the other hand, when I'm in the grocery or out shopping, I get a number of glances, as though I were out of place in my hat.
When I was born, just about every man wore a hat of some sort. We can blame John F. Kennedy for going bareheaded and changing the fashion. Now, it seems the only hats we see are the baseball cap. Even golfers these days wear them. And guys wear them indoors, or -- my major dislike -- reversed. In my opinion, if you're wearing a baseball cap backwards, you'd better be catching!
Those who know me generally give me compliments. I've had more than one person remark that I've inspired them to start wearing hats (although I haven't seen much proof of this, yet). On the other hand, when I'm in the grocery or out shopping, I get a number of glances, as though I were out of place in my hat.
When I was born, just about every man wore a hat of some sort. We can blame John F. Kennedy for going bareheaded and changing the fashion. Now, it seems the only hats we see are the baseball cap. Even golfers these days wear them. And guys wear them indoors, or -- my major dislike -- reversed. In my opinion, if you're wearing a baseball cap backwards, you'd better be catching!
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@OldStrummer
Some days ago, I saw the grandpa and grandma of one of my classmates on the supermarket-parking lot. He wore a classic frenchmen-flatcap, backwards!
Some days ago, I saw the grandpa and grandma of one of my classmates on the supermarket-parking lot. He wore a classic frenchmen-flatcap, backwards!
suitedcboy
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I wear hats out every day. I get a comment every now and then. If I'm bare-headed I ALWAYS have someone make the comment, "where's your hat?".
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Or perhaps they're simply surprised to see someone wearing something other than the ubiquitous ball cap. Or they like the way your hats look on you, but are too shy to tell you; maybe even a little envious that you would "dare" to wear such hats when they themselves don't have the confidence to do so.
Oh, and I agree with Fruno. There were a number of contributing factors that led to the decline in hat wearing; JFK has unfairly become an easy donkey to pin that tail on.
OldStrummer
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JFK was a pivotal figure of the era, and with his boyish good looks and full head of hair, it's easy to say he was the cause of the dropoff in men's hat wearing. I agree he wasn't the singlemost cause, but I daresay he contributed to the change.
As for folks being envious, there may be one or two, but I think most of the looks are more of surprise. You're right about the baseball cap -- no one generally notices a man (or a woman) wearing a ball cap. Except for my objection about wearing them indoors, at the table, maybe even in church. @Redfokker's comments notwithstanding, I don't think I look particularly good in most hats.
But I'm beyond the point of caring. I learned many years ago that it's none of my business what other people think of me.
As for folks being envious, there may be one or two, but I think most of the looks are more of surprise. You're right about the baseball cap -- no one generally notices a man (or a woman) wearing a ball cap. Except for my objection about wearing them indoors, at the table, maybe even in church. @Redfokker's comments notwithstanding, I don't think I look particularly good in most hats.
But I'm beyond the point of caring. I learned many years ago that it's none of my business what other people think of me.
Dlaniger
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Tukwila
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Egad. The horror! {{{{shudder}}}
scottyrocks
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There are discussions galore here about the dropping off of hat wearing, and the general consensus is that it was already in full swing about a decade before JFK became POTUS.
The 1950s was a decade of huge changes, and the reduction in hat wearers was well under way throughout that decade.
In the UK the discarding of hats was underway from the mid 1930s.
With respect to the question of this thread: I have never received any reaction when wearing a hat or cap for practical reasons (with an overcoat or raincoat or for sun protection) but don't wear headgear otherwise.
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I think, the modern cars after WW II did it. With the flatter, faster and more elegant cars, it was not more "normal" to wear hats, for practical reasons.
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If I'm not mistaken, sales charts indicate the drop off began in the 30s and accelerated after the war.
Sent directly from my mind to yours.
jackfyddle
New in Town
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I wear fedoras and western hats daily and I always hear
“ Great hat!”
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“ Great hat!”
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
avedwards
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I bought my first car nearly two years ago. Since then I've worn a hat much less when I've been out and about because all too often I find that a hat is superfluous if I'm only wearing it from wherever I park my car to my destination. I wouldn't be surprised if the increase in car ownership had a similar effect in the late 1940s and 1950s.
The other major factor I see is the trend towards clothing becoming more casual, especially for young people.
scottyrocks
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Yes it began in earnest after the war, but the '50s really ramped it up.
Take, for example, movies. I feel there is an almost distinct line drawn when it comes to hat-wearing in films across that line. In the forties, most films featured men in fedoras. In the fifties, not so much.
The film that marks that line, for me, is Sunset Boulevard (1950). Bill Holden and not a hat in sight. Also, the feel of the film was different from much before, and paved the way for the '50s feel that continued through the decade, afaic.
Now, I don't claim to know the cause and effect. Did societal habits cause the films to change, or was it the other way around? I suspect that, as today, its a give-and-take both ways, with stars and 'The Boys' leading the way most of the time.
Yes, more people had cars after the war, but they were still, for the most part, pre-war designs with high roofs and separate fenders, if not running boards. The fifties began real changes for autos, with lower rooflines, with less room for hats (although still plenty of room). More and more people could own cars, and the invention of the suburb in the late 1940s accelerated the car-to-building trend, with unprecedented growth through the fifties.
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This is the main reason I often find myself questioning whether or not I should wear a hat, or question why I did. For example, last Sunday my wife and I spent Easter with family. I brought a hat, but only wore it while walking between our respective houses and my truck. As such, during the five to six hours we were away from home I wore it for a total of maybe five minutes. So when I stop to think about it, I wonder, "Why did I bother?" And I can imagine men in the 30s through the 60s thinking along similar lines. "I don't need a hat; why wear one?"
I can't disagree, but I think those changes started earlier in the 1940s. Military aircraft designers from various countries were constantly seeking ways to make their "fighter" planes more aerodynamic and faster before, during, and after the war, and auto manufacturers followed their lead. The changes were more subtle during the 40s when car manufacturers had to be more conservative because of the war effort, but after the war when the U.S. was able to get back to the business of building businesses they were in a better position to put what they had learned to good use.
splintercellsz
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Was wearing this 1910s Eakle to dinner for my birthday. As the staff did the usual and sang the tune we all know, one of the members said i have a really sharp and cool hat. unexpected, but always welcome
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Hey when you're cool, you're cool.Was wearing this 1910s Eakle to dinner for my birthday. As the staff did the usual and sang the tune we all know, one of the members said i have a really sharp and cool hat. unexpected, but always welcome
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