A reader question:
Dear Muffy,
May I ask a question please
Having just watched the film "Bullitt" for the umpteenth time, it made me aware how much I was influenced in my youth by film actors/characters and their clothing. Steve McQueen was a particular favourite in anything as he was a very cool individual, but there were other films and characters that were an influence. Were any readers similarly influenced and if so by which film actors/characters.
Kind regards
Cary Grant. He was as suave, smooth, sensitive, and strong as they come.
ReplyDeleteI've been watching a lot of old movies lately. Hitchcock in particular. Cary Grant had great range - comedy, suspense, some characters as you describe, others who were fairly flawed. A definitive leading man for his era, certainly.
DeleteRedford in Three Days of the Condor and Spy Game; Matt Damon in Talented Mr. Ripley; Chris O'Donnell in Scent of a Woman; James Bond - particularly Connery, Dalton and Craig, really anyone in Dead Poets Society, Making the Grade or the films of Whit Stillman.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say Tom Ripely (Matt Damon) and also Freddie Miles (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) from the same movie. I would add the two main characters (I don't remember their names) from Call Me By Your Name and although not a "character" from a TV show, the late Mark Shields when he was on Shields and Brooks every Friday on the PBS News Hour.
DeleteFor a great laugh (and some era-specific sartorial costuming) check out the SNL parody skit of Dead Poet's Society: "Farewell, Mr. Bunting"
DeleteI fancy gallivanting around town on a daily basis (in my classic 240) dressed in the enchanting frocks of Miss Scarlett O'Hara.
ReplyDeleteEveryone knows about Clark Gable delivering a powerful blow to the undershirt business, but he also had an effect on the cut of dress shirts. Self-conscious about his massive build and large hands, he had his shirts made to rise higher on the neck and lower on the hands. Another influential actor was Fred Astaire, akin to Cary Grant in the influence he exerted.
ReplyDeleteThat's true and it all comes down to a single scene. In the movie It Happened One Night, there is a scene where Clark Gable appears shirtless. He felt that there was no graceful way for him to take his undershirt off during that scene so he simply didn't wear one.
DeleteDustin Hoffman’s character Benjamin in The Graduate was a huge influence on me when I was a kid. All that college-age angst to look forward to (I was 11 when I first saw the film). The “correct” clothes worn by Benjamin were a prominent feature in the picture and I wanted to dress just like him. Another major influence was that sublime brash red Alfa Spider. The timeless Simon & Garfunkel soundtrack still moves me. When I play those tunes in my Subaru Outback on the way to the local market the music transports me onto Highway 1 flying up the California coast in that cool Alfa…
ReplyDeleteGreat choice
DeleteThe original Alfa Spider was beautiful but it was a rust bucket and suited to warm, sunny countries. The driving position was also very Italian, uncomfortable unless you have long arms.
DeleteSir Edward Fox drove a white Spider as the stylish but ruthless assassin in "The Day Of The Jackal". His one button jacket looked like it was made by Huntsman on Savile Row.
I second (or third) Cary Grant: in particular, Hitchcock's "To Catch a Thief" and "North by Northwest." The men's and women's styling is phenomenal in both movies , although Grant looked great in every movie he made. I read that he often wore his own clothes on screen instead of costumes. Jimmy Stewart was perhaps not quite as stylish as Grant, but the two actors make a dapper pair in "The Philadelphia Story." Hugh Laurie looks great, if a bit dandy-ish in the old "Jeeves and Wooster," and High Fraser can wear tweeds and flannels with the best of them in "Poirot." This is not a specific actor/character, but I like the men's clothing in the new "All Creatures" (the old one too, for that matter). "Foyle's War" and the new "Father Brown" also feature the classic men's style that influences me.
ReplyDeleteI particularly liked the way Robert Hardy dressed in the original series of All Creatures. Apparently he wore his own clothes after the first series
Delete@tjmataa That's interesting to know. Hardy was glorious in that role.
Delete@Sartresky He really was. I cannot watch the new series (which is filmed just a few miles from us) because I don't think anyone can fill the roles as the original cast did
DeleteNobody, NOBODY wore a suit or clothes for that matter, like Cary Grant. I know you said "film", but I thought William Freemarket Buckley was the coolest. His hair was always a mess, he slept in his suit, the knot in his tie was up by his ear half the time. I miss that cat.
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend Woody Allen's interview with Buckley, whom he practically worshiped despite their political differences. It's a pleasant conversation between two very intelligent and humorous men who really enjoy themselves and each other. It's almost as good as Woody's interview with Billy Graham.
DeleteIs there a more evocative 4 minutes of film than Grace Kelly and Cary Grant’s “fireworks” scene in To Catch A Thief?
ReplyDelete"I have a feeling that tonight you’re going to see one of the Riviera’s most fascinating sights."
DeleteFaye Dunaway's scene with her chess piece in the original Thomas Crown affair was pretty evocative as I recall.
DeleteClint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. I liked the clothes and like Steve McQueen he was a very cool actor
ReplyDeleteMe too. Eastwood's Harris tweed jackets looked great. Frank Sinatra was the original choice to play Dirty Harry but he pulled out. I wonder how would have dressed in the role.
DeleteSimilarly, McQueen made the Harrington jacket cool again. He looked great in Aran jumpers and Sanders' Playboy chukka boots.. His Barbour motorcycle suit is iconic.
Roger Moore was the most stylish and charming James Bond.
Both Steve McQueen and Paul Newman turned down the part of Dirty Harry.
DeleteI did not know that and would love to know your source(s). Steve's performance in Bullitt shows that he could have been a great Dirty Harry. Did McQueen and Newman turn down the part before or after Sinatra? Frank's promotional poster for Dirty Harry can be found easily on the internet. He could have started filming before pulling out
DeleteIt's out there on the net Ken, but I'd heard about it years ago. I suspect it was after Sinatra pulled out. Apparently McQueen didn't want to play another cop after Bullit which I think was a wise move but yes he would have been a great Dirty Harry. Not sure about Paul Newman though.
DeleteJohnathon Quail Higgins
ReplyDeleteExcellent choice.
DeleteMcQueen!
ReplyDeleteMetropolitan and Barcelona, set “not so long ago…”
ReplyDeleteHarold Lloyd and W C Fields nailed the look
ReplyDeleteI'm a sucker for the safari clothes worn by Redford in Out of Africa and Ford in Indiana Jones.
ReplyDeleteGable in Mogambo & Wayne in Hatari.
DeleteDiana Rigg/Emma Peel. I *still* want a Lotus Elan.
ReplyDeleteDare I say, David Niven... an individual with savoir faire, integrity, and a quiet sensibility (sartorial and character-related) that encompassed both his professional and personal lives. The same assessment can be applied to James Stewart - my father's favourite actor. They didn't call them the greatest generation because they needed to be heard... their actions spoke significantly louder than the screeds coming from the other fellows' leadership. Both Niven and Stewart also appeared to take one of my favourite Americans, Will Rogers', always applicable sayings to heart: “Never miss an opportunity to shut up.” More's the pity fewer people follow that sage advice these days...
ReplyDeleteB.
Certainly NOT/NOT a hot cheesy Putin! Though, a hot cheesy poutine certainly can hit the spot... ;)
DeleteWhile not a major John Wayne fan, his wardrobe in The Quiet Man was wonderful, and the breadth of wardrobing in A River Runs Through It was great.
ReplyDeleteMr. Redford... Barefoot in the Park and obviously in The Way We Were..., of course Mr. Ryan O'Neal in Love Story
ReplyDeleteIn his personal life Bob Hope was always dressed as stylishly as Cary Grant was in movies.
ReplyDeleteNot quiet the theme of this site, but I always admired Richard Gere in American Gigilo.
ReplyDeleteI do not know that they actually influenced me, but I certainly admired Peter O'Toole in How to Steal a Million, Cary Grant in the most famous suit ever, worn in NXNW (sorry, Austin is holding SXSW), Rex Harrison in The Reluctant Debutante, Jimmy Stewart in Bell, Book, and Candle, and Eddie Murphy in Trading Places.
ReplyDeleteCertainly Grant and Niven. I learned more about Gary Cooper and appreciating him after reading Bruce Boyer’s book.
ReplyDeleteAnthony Hopkins and Christopher Reeve in Remains of the Day and Anthony Hopkins in Howard's End. Classic. Timeless.
ReplyDeleteSteve McQueen in "The Thomas Crown Affair" and Pierce Brosnan in the remake.
ReplyDeleteYes! The remake is one of my all time favorites. Such a comfortable life.
DeleteI wrote a piece for the Ivy Style blog several years ago about Cary Grant’s clothing in “North by Northwest.” His clothing in “High Society” also. David Keith in “The Lords of Discipline,” a movie I have not seen since the 80s, probably. Anything from “Dead Poets Society.” Leaving the most preppy, Captain Frank Furillo in “Hill Street Blues,” and, even further, I’m sorry, still a little cowboy at heart, the old TV westerns. JDV
ReplyDeleteBoth Katherine Hepburn and Grace Kelly imprinted on me as a child and young adult and though they were both cut from a very different cloth, when you got down to it, they were both strong minded women who expressed themselves well through their choices both personally and aesthetically.
ReplyDelete"I SPY" TV series, Season 1, 1965-66
ReplyDelete"I SPY" TV series definitely. All series.
ReplyDeleteSir Alec Guinness as John Le Carre’s George Smiley in the BBC series “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy” and “Similey’s People". He dressed like an upper class English gentleman, classic and understated. A Google image search reveals his sartorial choices.
ReplyDeleteMy favourites were the Savile Row suits, Chesterfield overcoat, an Austrian “Hubertus" Loden coat and a duffle coat with wooden toggles. They were worn with cashmere scarves, a bowler hat, a beaver felt trilby and tweed flat caps.
Gary Oldman’s Smiley looked a bit scruffy to me.
@Ken I have been waiting years for this to be available for streaming in the US but no luck. I guess I will have to watch it on YouTube.
DeleteThey are available on Dailymotion - just search Google videos.
DeleteThank you, Ken!
Delete@Ken -- in case you are still following this thread -- I watched the BBC Tinker Tailor and it was fantastic, and I agree about the clothing. Tonight I start Smiley's People. Thank you for the recommendation.
DeleteI loved the Tinker Tailor film, but agree that Oldman's Smiley was a bit scruffy. Then again, that's Gary Oldman...
I have always admired the production design and in some cases the clothing in Woody Allen’s films.
ReplyDeleteI generally look like Anthony Michael Hall's character in Sixteen Candles. Sans denim, add boat shoes. If I lived in a colder place, I'd be more aligned withTommy Townsend in Metropolitan.
ReplyDeleteJeremy Brett in the BBC Sherlock Holmes.
ReplyDeleteMy sisters and I worshipped Katharine Hepburn's no-nonsense casual style, especially in the polyester-infested 1980s. We all also loved Molly Ringwald from the Pretty in Pink thrift store princess era, and we loved Daphne Zuniga in the "Sure Thing" movie. Her clothes were exactly what we wore in 1980s New England...she would know as she graduated from high school in Woodstock VT which used to be a such a classic town (now overrun with tourists).
ReplyDelete