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Some Interesting Articles On Fashion

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Oh Don, I Mean Jon

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Do you dress as well as Jon Hamm?

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You could after you read this.
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“Jon Hamm Is Back on TV—But He Never Left the Style Game”

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Jon Hamm is returning to the small screen in "Your Friends and Neighbors."

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And once again proving why he’s one of Hollywood’s most watchable leading men.
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But while his acting chops are undeniable,
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Let’s not sleep on his real-life superpower:
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An off-camera style that commands respect.

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We know him best as the sharply suited Don Draper.
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But Hamm’s real-life wardrobe proves he’s no one-trick pony.

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Whether it’s a tailored casual look at an event,

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A refined overcoat on the street,

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Or his famously smart eyeglasses and sunglasses,

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Jon consistently delivers timeless, masculine sophistication.
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Not bad for a kid from St. Louis.

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This is personal branding through wardrobe—without trying too hard.

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Your wardrobe is your message before you ever speak.

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Think of it as the ad copy to your brand.
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You’re a walking commercial.
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Jon Hamm gets that.
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Pro Tip: Find your personal brand.

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Wardrobe Wisdom Sale of the Week

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Up To 30% Off Check Out The Sale

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A SINGULAR TAKE ON FASHION

Jacket Style Spotlight: A-2 Flight Jacket

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By Eric Langlois

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In 1931, the US Army Air Corps replaced its short-lived button-front A-1 jacket with a zipper-closure jacket naturally designated the A-2. This waist-length horsehide jacket was designed as a summer flying jacket, with a lightweight cotton lining and knit wool cuffs and waistband to keep out the wind in an open cockpit. Due to the relatively small amount of aircrew in the peacetime army at the height of the Great Depression, few people would have anticipated the A-2 jacket’s rise to prominence as arguably the most iconic flight jacket of all time.

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The A-2 is a deceptively simple design, without tapering, gussets, or pleats. This simplicity made the A-2 easy to manufacture, while giving it a classic look that has remained current for nearly a century. The shoulders have sewn-down epaulets, intended to hold parachute straps in place, and a storm flap covers the front zipper. The shirt-style collar and flapped front patch pockets, both of which snap down, are the main accessions to military discipline, designed to look as crisp as possible. Larger patch pockets or additional side-entry “handwarmer” pockets were suggested, but the Army brass vetoed them because they didn’t want pilots walking around with their hands in their pockets “like thugs or truck drivers.” The original design called for dark Seal Brown hide, but over time that would change.

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By 1940, war had broken out in China and Europe and the US Army was beginning a buildup in anticipation of entering the Second World War. The first peacetime draft began in that year, pulling thousands of men into the Army Air Corps, soon to be renamed the Army Air Force. Many of them would need to be outfitted with flight gear, and the Quartermaster Corps issued two large purchase contracts for A-2s. The number of jackets ordered in 1940 eclipses the total known amount ordered before that year. The volume of production meant that requirements were relaxed, and jackets began to appear in russet leather as well as seal. In 1940 cowhide was allowed under new specifications, and goatskin was also allowed the following year. While most manufacturers had previously specialized in flying clothing or at least outerwear, J.A. Dubow Mfg. produced more than 70,000 jackets during the war, despite primarily being a baseball glove manufacturer in peacetime. By the end of wartime production, roughly 700,000 jackets would be produced.

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The A-2 was phased out as an issue item in 1943 as the Army attempted to replace it, first with a joint Army-Navy leather jacket, then with the B-10 and B-15 jackets made from alpaca-lined cotton twill. This didn’t end the A-2’s use, as aircrew continued to wear their jackets as long as possible. Well into the 50s, Air Force pilots can be seen wearing A-2’s outside of flying duties, and they brought their jackets into civilian life with them.

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The A-2’s ubiquity in 1940s media, as well as the simplicity of the design, meant that civilian producers began to put out A-2 style jackets. These jackets and the surviving originals would be worn for decades and used in films and television shows about the Second World War. Steve McQueen’s jacket in The

Great Escape has been identified as a Rough Wear manufactured jacket which was re-dyed by the Quartermaster Corps some time before it was acquired by film costumers. For modern productions like Red Tails, Masters of the Air, or the Catch-22 miniseries, costume departments have made prominent partnerships with the top echelon of reproduction A-2 manufacturers, like Eastman Leather Company or Aero Leather Clothing.

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An interesting quirk of the modern civilian reproduction market for A-2 jackets is a result of the slavish dedication to producing accurate replicas of original contract jackets. Due to the maker’s dedication to their craft (and also as a result of the high prices they can command) these jackets are made with perfectly matched hides that are free of many natural imperfections. This was not a luxury that Cable Raincoat Co. or Rough Wear were able to afford in 1942, when they were pumping out as many garments as possible to outfit the thousands of men flooding into the Army Air Force. Wartime jackets were not always delicately crafted and perfectly matched, resulting in irregular grain and contrasting stitching which can look unusual to the modern eye. Arguably, a high-end modern reproduction could be higher quality than the wartime jacket that it was based on, but quality and value are in the eye of the beholder. Leaving aside the high-end reproduction market and the sheer amount of World War II media that features the A-2, the design’s popularity in the civilian world kept it current through the 80s despite being out of issue for forty years.

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In the mid-1980s, the US Air Force began the Project Warrior initiative in an attempt to improve morale among service members. One officer, Colonel James Mosbey, spotted a photo of a WW2 fighter pilot wearing an A-2 jacket and wondered why the Air Force had ever given it up. As part of Project Warrior, Mosbey believed that the A-2 could serve as a status symbol and a source of espirit de corps for the Air Force. He and some friends chipped in ten dollars each to buy a reproduction A-2 from the Air Force Museum gift shop and presented it to their general, suggesting that the A-2 could be re-introduced as a private-purchase uniform piece for fighter pilots, as a reminder of their shared history. Their suggestion was passed on up the chain of command, where it was decided that it could be worn by all combat ready aircrew and missile crew, and that it would be an issue item rather than private purchase. Starting in 1988, goatskin A-2s first made by Avirex, then by Cooper Sportswear and its successor company US Wings were issued to qualified service members and will remain available for the foreseeable future.

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In 1993, Air Force Magazine called the A-2 “The Jacket That Lives Forever” in an article detailing its return to military issue. Between the three-and-a-half-decade tenure of the reintroduced A-2 and the devotion the design has from hardcore and casual fans, that’s a pretty accurate name for it. Alongside the Navy’s G-1 and the jet-age MA-1 designs (about which more in later articles), the A-2 stands as a flight jacket that has eclipsed its own military background to become a staple garment in its own right.

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Do You Need My Help?

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• Have you ever found yourself staring at the closet not knowing what to wear?
• Do you need help with coordinating pieces?
• Do you constantly struggle putting an outfit together and want to turn that confusion into confidence?

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Then let's talk about how we can improve your look.

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Reginald V. Ferguson

Follow me on LinkedIn, YouTube or my Podcast​

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