Category: Jet Age Summer Style
Dominic Cooper as Ian Fleming: Navy Linen Shirt
Dominic Cooper as Ian Fleming in the first episode of Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond (2014)
Vitals
Dominic Cooper as Ian Fleming, former British Secret Service agent and aspiring author
Goldeneye, Jamaica, March 1952
Series: Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond
Episode: Episode 1
Air Date: January 29, 2014
Director: Mat Whitecross
Costume Designer: Caroline Harris
Background
This Monday, May 28, marks the 110th birthday of Ian Fleming, the author who created James Bond based on his own experiences in British naval intelligence during World War II. Fleming’s works have famously been adapted to the screen in one of the most successful film franchises to date, while the man’s own life has been adapted a few times as well.
Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond, is the most recent visual retelling of Fleming’s life, focusing on the period of 1938 to 1952 that included Commander Fleming’s service in the British Naval Intelligence Division during World War II and much of the gambling, girls, and gin that would become a hallmark for both Fleming and his fictional creation. Continue reading
Don Draper’s Plaid Sport Shirt for the Solar Eclipse
Jon Hamm as Don Draper in “Seven Twenty Three”, Episode 3.07 of Mad Men.
Vitals
Jon Hamm as Don Draper, mysterious ad exec and suburban dad
Ossining, New York, July 1963
Series: Mad Men
Episode: “Seven Twenty Three” (Episode 3.07)
Air Date: September 27, 2009
Director: Daisy von Scherler Mayer
Costume Designer: Janie Bryant
Background
“Why can’t you stare into the eclipse? I mean, what’s it gonna do, really? I stare at the sun every day,” wonders Carlton Hanson (Kristoffer Polaha), the philandering husband in Don and Betty Draper’s suburban social set.
After a few dismissive seconds staring through his sunglasses, Don merely responds by asking “You stare at the sun every day?”
The Rum Diary: Gabardine Windbreaker and Chinos
Johnny Depp as Paul Kemp in The Rum Diary (2011)
Vitals
Johnny Depp as Paul Kemp, expatriate American journalist
San Juan, Puerto Rico, Summer 1960
Film: The Rum Diary
Release Date: October 28, 2011
Director: Bruce Robinson
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
“In summary, this airman, although talented, will not be guided by policy,” heralded Hunter S. Thompson’s honorable discharge from the U.S. Air Force in November 1957, a considerable understatement given the iconic writer’s eventual symbolic anti-authoritarian status.
Following his discharge, Thompson tried a few journalistic stints in New York but was fired by Time (for insubordination) and the Middletown Daily Record (for damaging a candy machine) and moved to Puerto Rico in 1960.
Having failed to procure a position with the San Juan Star, Thompson wrote for the El Sportivo sporting magazine… though it folded quickly after his arrival. His experiences in San Juan formed the basis of The Rum Diary, a novel that he penned shortly after his return to the U.S. the following year, although it wasn’t published for more than three decades.
While it would be inaccurate to describe The Rum Diary as a strict roman à clef, its morose, restless narrator Paul Kemp is clearly modeled on Thompson himself, and Thompson’s friend Johnny Depp was naturally tapped to play the role in the film adaptation. Continue reading
Don Draper’s Navy Weekend Sportcoat
Jon Hamm as Don Draper in “Marriage of Figaro”, Episode 1.03 of Mad Men.
Vitals
Jon Hamm as Don Draper, mysterious ad exec and suburban dad
Ossining, New York, April 1960
Series: Mad Men
Episode: “Marriage of Figaro” (Episode 1.03)
Air Date: August 2, 2007
Director: Ed Bianchi
Costume Designer: Janie Bryant
Background
In addition to Mad Men‘s first mention of Dick Whitman, “Marriage of Figaro” includes a snazzy casual outfit for a slick spring weekend in the suburbs.
The first two episodes certainly hinted at the deep layers lurking beneath the man first introduced to us as Don Draper, but it is “Marriage of Figaro” that breaks Mad Men‘s ground in exploring our ostensible protagonist’s isolation and loneliness… a quality that Emily VanDerWerff of The AV Club described as “his essential unhappiness.” Continue reading
You Only Live Twice: Bond’s Pink Shirt in Japan
Sean Connery as James Bond in You Only Live Twice (1967)
Vitals
Sean Connery as James Bond, sophisticated British MI6 agent
Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, Summer 1966
Film: You Only Live Twice
Release Date: June 13, 1967
Director: Lewis Gilbert
Wardrobe Master: Eileen Sullivan
Background
Yesterday was the 86th birthday of the original cinematic James Bond, Sean Connery, so BAMF Style is celebrating with a Casual Friday examination of one of Sir Sean’s final outings as agent 007.
Dr. No and From Russia With Love had been nearly page-to-screen adaptations of the source material. The Bond formula was perfected for Goldfinger and Thunderball, incorporating dazzling cinematic elements and moments reasonably into the intact plot of the novel. You Only Live Twice marked the first major deviation from the source, keeping the general story while removing the more human elements of Ian Fleming’s plot and replacing them with gadgets and spectacle. Continue reading
From Russia With Love – Bond’s Gingham Shirt and Swim Trunks
Eunice Gayson and Sean Connery as Sylvia Trench and James Bond, respectively, in From Russia With Love (1963).
Vitals
Sean Connery as James Bond, British suave government agent and lothario
Berkshire, England, Spring 1963
Film: From Russia With Love
Release Date: October 10, 1963
Director: Terence Young
Costume Designer: Jocelyn Rickards
Tailor: Anthony Sinclair
Background
I’m spending this week with family for a beach vacation, so I wanted to take a look at what James Bond would wear for his own seaside holiday outing.
The first appearance of 007—the real 007—in From Russia With Love finds Bond “reviewing an old case” in Berkshire in the form of Sylvia Trench, a casual fling that he first encountered while gambling at Le Cercle in Dr. No.
Punting man: It’s great sport, this punting!
Bond: (making out with Sylvia) I couldn’t agree with him more.
Sylvia: I may even give up golf for it.
The Rum Diary: Kemp’s Striped Linen Shirt and Jeans
Johnny Depp as Paul Kemp in The Rum Diary (2011), with co-star Amber Heard.
Vitals
Johnny Depp as Paul Kemp, expatriate American journalist and borderline alcoholic
St. Thomas, Summer 1960
Film: The Rum Diary
Release Date: October 28, 2011
Director: Bruce Robinson
Costume Designer: Colleen Atwood
Background
All the balls that Paul Kemp was juggling at this point have begun to fall. His grasp on his job, his shady dealings with PR whiz Sanderson, and his flirtation with Sanderson’s girlfriend. The bottom falls out when Kemp and photographer pal head to Carnival at Saint Thomas in the Virgin Islands after visiting island property for Sanderson’s budding real estate scam.
Bruce Robinson’s script perfectly nails the feeling of the scene as Chenault leads Kemp by the hand to Sanderson’s yacht:
Like walking the plank in reverse, they invade a small drinks party.
Other than the glamorous Chenault, none of the new visitors fit in with Sanderson’s cosmopolitan set. Continue reading
Bond’s Casual Brown Linen in Japan
Sean Connery as James Bond in You Only Live Twice (1967)
Vitals
Sean Connery as James Bond, sophisticated British MI6 agent
Miyazaki, Japan, Summer 1966
Film: You Only Live Twice
Release Date: June 13, 1967
Director: Lewis Gilbert
Wardrobe Master: Eileen Sullivan
Background
For the 00-7th of July, I’m revisiting one of my least favorite films in the James Bond franchise: You Only Live Twice. This movie polarizes Bond fans; some enjoy it for the spectacular action and adventure elements and Donald Pleasance’s iconic turn as Blofeld while others feel as bored as Sean Connery himself seems to look by the formulaic and over-the-top plot.
Even YOLT fans can’t deny that this marked the first major departure from Ian Fleming’s original plots, keeping the Japan setting and several characters intact while replacing Bond’s fatalistic revenge-driven quest with a conventional action piece. You Only Live Twice evidently provided much of the fodder for spy parodies, most notably the Austin Powers franchise, which featured another scarred, Mao-suited villain in his volcano lair full of identically-dressed henchmen and poor marksmen. Continue reading
Don Draper Smokes Hashish in a Cream Silk Sportcoat
Jon Hamm as Don Draper in “A Tale of Two Cities”, Episode 6.10 of Mad Men.
Vitals
Jon Hamm as Don Draper, Madison Avenue ad man
Los Angeles, August 1968
Series: Mad Men
Episode: “A Tale of Two Cities” (Episode 6.10)
Air Date: June 2, 2013
Director: John Slattery (yes, Roger Sterling)
Costume Designer: Janie Bryant
Background
I thought it was appropriate to commemorate the smokers’ holiday of 420 by checking out Don’s first experience with hashish. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Don enjoying the happy plant (remember Midge’s friends in the first season?), but it’s certainly significant for him.
“A Tale of Two Cities” finds Don and Roger with Harry in L.A. The title may lead some to assume that the “two cities” are naturally L.A. and New York, but I believe the second city is Chicago (rather than New York) due to the 1968 Democratic National Convention providing the episode’s backdrop. While police are taking on protestors in the Windy City, Don and company head to a hip Hollywood party… arriving in style in Harry’s beautiful (but unappreciated) red Mustang convertible. Continue reading
Bond Style – Crab Key Summer Attire in Dr. No
Sean Connery as James Bond in Dr. No (1962).
Vitals
Sean Connery as James Bond, cunning and sophisticated British government agent
Jamaica, Summer 1962
Film: Dr. No
Release Date: October 5, 1962
Director: Terence Young
Wardrobe Master: John Brady
Tailor: Anthony Sinclair
Background
Last year around this time, I covered the various swimwear sported by Sean Connery in Thunderball. Today, I’ll be looking at James Bond’s first cinematic beach visit, although his intent was more reconnaissance than leisure.
After a thorough investigation in Jamaica—which included a very bad date—Bond decides that his new target is undoubtedly the evil and enigmatic Dr. No, who has holed up on Crab Key with a small army of disposable minions and a standard megalomaniac plan to take over the world. Continue reading
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