14 September 2011

If You Weren't A Model You'd Be...



A Gay idea of what it's like to be straight.
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13 comments:

Oyster Guy said...

A couple of days ago I was puzzling over some bizarre menswear ads in an advertorial magazine put out by Harry Rosen. I can only conclude that the marketer's presumption is only gay men, women, or very young men buy menswear.

The jacket and ties thing at the beach is bizarre too. Nixon was roasted for being photographed wearing black dress shoes on a beach in Cali. He was trying to intimate the Kennedy ease of white oxford-khaki shorts-espadrilles walking the dunes while while gazing into the misty distance. Nixon's black shoes told the truth about the authenticity of the moment. Now it comes full circle.

I am eagerly awaiting an after action report on the DF Jr. auction from you. Did you see the Maureen Dowd piece on the newly released Jackie O interview? I think it would be a good subject for a Trad post.

14 September, 2011 13:54
tintin said...

Oyster Guy-
Great comment. You left out that Nixon was carrying a metal detector on the beach.

14 September, 2011 14:16
Anonymous said...

If you weren't a model you'd be...an industrial designer. Brilliant.

14 September, 2011 14:33
Anonymous said...

Now gay men are being blamed for inaccurate images of straight men??? Kind of ironic, since the reverse has been the case forever. Don't be a fag, dude.

14 September, 2011 16:01
Main Line Sportsman said...

Another caption could be: What an affected Lower East Side Hipster- Wanker wears to the Beach after Labor Day.....

14 September, 2011 16:15
tintin said...

Anon- Why not. It's not ironic but it is a reflection of change. It's equal footing. And don't call me dude.

14 September, 2011 16:21
tintin said...

Anon- It wasn't right for straights to do it and it isn't right for gays to do it. And it sure as hell isn't right for Perry Ellis to do it. It wouldn't take much to turn this into a parody on SNL.

14 September, 2011 16:48
Anonymous said...

Anon - Tintin is spot on. Gay men have been doing a good job of presenting inaccurate images of straight men and women in general for as long as this industry has been taking photos of models.

14 September, 2011 17:41
LPC said...

Why do we think these guys on the beach are supposed to be straight? I'm confused.

14 September, 2011 20:23
Alice Olive said...

Ha - love all the debate here.

Is there any reality in these campaigns? Aren't they supposed to be aspirational, no matter whom they are targeting, be they gay, straight or bi (to quote Gaga)?

A campaign that was set in my own reality of sitting in a cubicle in front of a computer all day wouldn't rouse me to spend anything...

14 September, 2011 21:41
Bebe said...

Wow, somebody got his jockstrap in a twist. This is gay? or straight? Looks to me like the usual 20-something male models posing and cavorting for the camera in whatever collection the corporate apparel company is trying to hawk for the season. Pick a location, show up, throw on some duds, take the pix. Please don't go all psychosexual on me!

When he was alive, Perry Ellis designed shirts, sweaters, and jackets of excellent detail and line- but he was never Trad.

BTW Pres. Nixon's beach was San Clemente, and he walked in front of his beautiful Western White House (as it was termed at the time), Casa Pacifica. The photo referred to was taken in winter, and he was not wearing a suit but a windbreaker, an open neck shirt, and pants (only a Californian knows how chilly it can be in our wintertime). He was wearing leather shoes, but, since he liked those leather/crepe sole walking shoes (I have a pair from Alden), he very possibly was wearing those. As a boy, Dick Nixon had plenty of beach time in Laguna and a couple of other Orange County beach towns. So, in leather shoes or young bare feet, his toes wiggled in the sand honestly.

15 September, 2011 06:57
tintin said...

Main Line- That wouldn't fit. Space wise and other wise. I don't see this as hipster. You need a guy out in the woods with a beard and flannel shirt and bow tie as a lone steel guitar is cued on on the sound track.

Perry Ellis isn't about the hipster who'll pay $900 for KY sourced cordovan made into 14" logger boots. In fact, I'm not sure what Perry Ellis is about anymore and that's a shame. I was a big fan of the prep w/a twist aesthetic they were doing in 1986. Around '87 or '88, they were doing some amazing outdoor stuff. High end LL Bean and Britches Outdoors. "Tasty" as the youth of today would call it. Or, awesome.

Anon 17:41- There's a dishonesty that comes through here. And the pretentious Q&A. Maybe the ability to smoke this out comes with age.

LPC- You're confused? I'm confused by your comment.

Alice- I don't care if people fuck Coke machines (as long as I can watch), there are honest ad campaigns out there. Oddly, they seem to be more the lux brands. Hermes isn't selling a life style through a manipulated commercial for perfume or cologne. Look at their advertising and it is what it is. To be sure, in large format and beautiful color but there's no sense of Ralph Lauren's, "Wear my cologne and be a WASP."

Mr Rebozo- I'd argue PE borrowed from Brooks Bros and did a brilliant job of updating without insulting the source or his customer. I'll post proof next week in several ad campaigns I have from the '80s.

Dick was wearing wing tips on the beach. And he also cheated enlisted men at cards when he was a JAG attorney who spent all of WWII stateside. Honestly.

15 September, 2011 09:28
Anonymous said...

FYI: Nixon did not "spend all of WWII stateside" served in combat support logistics in the Pacific Theater and rated two battle stars on his PTO campaign medal. Hate to see you have that ARCOMM rescinded for failure to check facts. Just sayin'.

"Nixon completed Officers Candidate School and was commissioned as an ensign in October 1942. His first post was as aide to the commander of the Ottumwa Naval Air Station in Iowa. Seeking more excitement, he requested sea duty and was reassigned as the naval passenger control officer for the South Pacific Combat Air Transport Command, supporting the logistics of operations in the South West Pacific theater. After requesting more challenging duties, he was given command of cargo handling units.Nixon earned two service stars (sic) and a citation of commendation, although he saw no actual combat. Upon his return to the US, Nixon was appointed the administrative officer of the Alameda Naval Air Station in California. In January 1945, he was transferred to the Bureau of Aeronautics office in Philadelphia to help negotiate the termination of war contracts, and he received another letter of commendation for his work there. Later, Nixon was transferred to other offices to work on contracts and finally to Baltimore. In October 1945, he was promoted to lieutenant commander. He resigned his commission on New Year's Day 1946."

24 September, 2011 18:33

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