SENNIT looks right in city. Barclay, by Stetson, has air vents. $5.
PANAMA, whit traditional crown, by Knox. From about $7.50 up.
SUMMER SNAP BRIM, the coconut straw. Knox. $5.
GOLDEN BAKU, light, porous. Also in darker shades. Stetson. $7.75.
Suits for Sultry Cities, by Gerald McCann
When the thermometer soars, you can go about your business in cool comfort—and look well, too. I, personally, sweat like a pig in hot weather. I find this condition is not unusual; doctors even say it’s healthy. But like many another man who works in a city, in this so-called temperate zone, I have to wear a jacket to hold my job-or even to get a meal in many restaurants.
So I am grateful to the manufacturers who are now producing air-conditioned suits that are suitable for business wear. By air-conditioned, I mean suits that are lightweight and are woven with enough porosity to permit rapid evaporation. By suitable for business wear, I mean that these cloths, whether tropical worsteds, rayons, or mixtures of cotton, rayon, worsted, mohair, etc., are woven in fairly dark versions of the patterns—stripes, checks, and glen plaids—that you find in heavier business suits.
Most business men ought to have at least two of these suits so that one can be hang out to get rid of wrinkles or be sent to the cleaner, while he’s wearing the other. This is a genuine economy because these suits are cut without tricks, wear like iron, and will be as good next year as they are now.
No ice-cream suits, these new ones for summer, but darker, more reasonable-looking for wear in grimy cities. Made by Goodall in various light-weight fabrics. (…)
Obviously, straw hats are appropriate with these suits. And for these pages I’ve chosen several of the most popular shapes. The coconut straw, with pugaree band—patterned or plain—has become the summer snap brim. It looks well in country and city, and its brown color doesn’t soil readily. A reasonable price is $5.
Baku is a crisp straw, very light-weight and porous. Shaped like a coconut straw—pork-pie crown and snap brim—it can serve as an alternate. Stetson’s Wildshire, a golden baku, sells for $7.50.
The stiff sennit is a good city hat, and looks best with fairly dark suits. With a black instead of a colored band, it is also appropriate with dinner jackets. $5.
In panamas, I like the traditional optimo shape—with the ridge through the top of the crown and the narrow black band—which is illustrated. These are worn with all kinds of clothes. If you buy a panama, buy the best you can afford, because this straw, more than any other, exhibits its cost. $7.50 to $25 is the usual range. But Knox has Monte Cristi panamas from $75 to $100.
Tiré du magazine Argosy, juin 1948.
