Cary Grant

[Guest]

What features makes the suit in North so iconic in your view?

[Guest]

I've said it before and I say it again: nothing - just like the man says, Roger Thornhill's middle initial is 'O' which stands for 'nothing'. It is iconic because people keep going on and on and on about it - but there's nothing special about this suit - is there? If you think there is, say what you mean!!!!!!!!
NJS

[Guest]

I like the color.

RWS

[Guest]

I like the color.

RWS

I humbly concur. Perhaps it is merely a visual effect relating to the color processing of the film, but something about the color of that suit seems to elude reproduction in "real life." And it strikes me as a lovely, haunting sort of shade that I would very much like to reproduce.

-gherrmann

[Guest]

It seems to me that the suit was made to be anonymous: George Caplan doesn't exist and CG is mistaken for him and so he wears a suit that an anonymous man would wear when he mistaken for a non-existent one. Seems to me, anyway.
NJS

[Guest]

Such anonymity suits (!) the traditional sartorial ethos of the eastern seaboard of the United States, at least from Massachusetts through Virginia: to be dressed well, draw no attention to what you wear. 'Sort of a republican Beau Brummell.

[Guest]

Such anonymity suits (!) the traditional sartorial ethos of the eastern seaboard of the United States, at least from Massachusetts through Virginia: to be dressed well, draw no attention to what you wear. 'Sort of a republican Beau Brummell.

RWS

[Guest]

If you can think of a better looking suit, anonymous or not, worn with such great style and ease, please post a picture.

[Guest]

If you can think of a better looking suit, anonymous or not, worn with such great style and ease, please post a picture.

Easy, for me anyway:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images ... 55&s=books

The perfect gray flannel DB worn perfectly. I have this suit, or something very close, and would glady abandon all others in its favor.

oldog/oldtrix

[Guest]

If you can think of a better looking suit, anonymous or not, worn with such great style and ease, please post a picture.

Easy, for me anyway:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images ... 55&s=books

The perfect gray flannel DB worn perfectly. I have this suit, or something very close, and would glady abandon all others in its favor.

oldog/oldtrix

[Guest]

In Urdu and Punjabi there is (apparently) a description of a 'stirrer' as being 'the devil's spoon' - I know this because a speaker of these languages once applied the phrase to me!! I'm just joking about the CG suit: didn't they used to say; 'Everyone wants to be Cary Grant' and didn't he add - 'Even I want to be Cary Grant'...
NJS
PS I am not sure whether I need to explain 'stirrer' - someone who provokes others.

[Guest]

I think that the Astaire suit is indeed very nice.

Perhaps we could start a thread and post pictures of what members consider some of the iconic suits and outfits.

Collecting such images on one thread would be fabulous and quite instructional.

[Guest]

'Very nice' is a bit of an under-statement. In this suit, does one detect the hand of Frederick Scholte? There is sometjing very special here.
NJS

[Guest]

I recently ordered a gray flannel suit with Astaire's in mind.
It came out nothing like the original. Some of that is my fault for not being built like Astaire, but most of the fault is because I didn't bother to communicate to the tailor what I wanted. I did end up with a perfectly nice gray flannel suit, though.

dopey

[Guest]

I have been involved in other various threads on the Lounge regarding Grant's NNW suit. It is similar to the suit that he also wore in Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief. I like the suit's understated simplicity, from its almost indescribable gray/blue hue (which I have unsuccessfully searched for) to it's perfect drape. I like the higher armholes, slightly elongated coat length, coat pockets without flaps, and high waisted side adjuster single pleated trousers. Perhaps I most like how effortlessly Grant pulls off the ventless back look and that he draws attention to this simple, yet perfect suit by not wearing a pocket square.

The ventless back of the jacket is a look rarely seen today and certainly not a classic East Coast look. I also like how classy the look is when paired with another Grant/Hitchcock classic look, the grayish/silver understated tie and the point collar white shirt. This look could take you from the cornfields of Indiana (actually filmed in California) to the funeral in To Catch a Thief, while all the while still looking good.