The Interview | The Rake

These days, the sad reality is that print magazines are dropping like flies. I for one appreciate the tactile sense of seeing words and photos beautifully laid out on printed paper. I also appreciate the irony of me saying that through my blog via your computer monitor. The good news is, while print is retracting it certainly is not dead. And with the recent launch of the men’s magazine The Rake, there is actually reason to be excited. I got an opportunity not long ago to pose a few questions to The Rake editor Mr. Christian Barker about what exactly makes The Rake tick. Our Q&A after the jump.

Steve McQueen in Sports Illustrated

It might just have to be all motorcycles all week. I certainly get fixated on a subject from time to time, but this was too good to not post. While researching On Any Sunday I read a few things about this 1971 issue of Sports Illustrated with Steve McQueen on the cover. Next thing you know, my copy from eBay arrived at my door in amazing condition. So I thought it would be good to scan the article for your reading pleasure. There is a great little story about dirt bikes and Dennis Hopper on page 61 that is worth checking out. I could only imagine what it would be like to run into those guys on the street.

Just the Facts Please

I like the way the magazines work in Japan. The focus is generally on still-life product pages and not on cluttering up the layout with pesky stories. I had a chance to make it to the bookstore and pick up some new magazines from Japan. Since I am feeling crunchy these days, I really enjoyed the outdoor product pages in GO OUT. A lot of The American List brands are represented throughout the book. Enjoy!

Gratuitous Photos of Jennifer Aniston

This morning I awoke to photos of the beautiful Ms. Aniston in my inbox. Seems the people at GQ had sent them over just to torture me. As a response I have done the only logical thing I could think of — turn the torment on you. The reaction to my photos of Ms. Connelly the other day was mixed (for the record, I stand convinced that she has great legs), but there is no arguing with Jennifer. The January cover has taken patriotic to a whole new level.

Just a few further thoughts:

• God bless GQ and Michael Thompson
• That’s a Black Fleece tie on the cover, not that anyone will notice the tie
• You can read the interview here
• Screw buying the famous Obama issue of The New York Times, buy the January issue of GQ and lock it up for prosperity
• Those pictures get bigger if you click on them…

Feeling Patriotic and Presidential

If three makes a trend, two down and one to go. Seems W and Vanity Fair are feeling patriotic presidential this month with Tina Fey and Blake Lively cloaked in the stars and stripes. The choice here is obvious, but I will say that I enjoy Tina Fey on 30 Rock. I think Blake has a TV show too, although I could be wrong. These covers remind me of this.

From the Free & Easy Archive

The August, 2007 issue of Free & Easy includes one of my all time favorite articles from the Japanese publication, a buyers guide for dogs. I can see someone like New York Magazine doing this sort of feature (actually my pal Rosecrans wrote a much more logical piece on the topic in 2007), but not with the endearing absurdity that only Free & Easy can produce. After seeing this issue it became clear to me that the magazine is just a guide-book to living like an American. That was also the same day that Free & Easy — with all its quirkiness — became my all time favorite magazine, after Vitals of course.

The Business of Wearing Hats

There is an excellent guide to buying and wearing hats in the new issue of GQ. Interesting to see that Manhattan’s JJ Hat Center was featured prominently. You may remember back in June when CBS Sunday Morning did a segment on hats and featured the same store and incidentally, the exact same salesman. The handy guide from GQ basically breaks down everything you need to know to wear a hat without looking like you just got off a flight from LAX. Much respect to GQ for making the guide without including pictures of Justin Timberlake or Brad Pitt.

My good friend Mark wears a hat frequently with a suit and ends up looking very smart. When well done, there is no better accessory. Take a look at Don Draper if you don’t believe me.

1958 Newport Jazz Festival

A week or so ago I was graciously invited to The Trad’s apartment for cocktails. Upon my arrival a Dark ‘N’ Stormy was immediately handed to me and I was ushered to sit and chat in the living room. The Trad, being the tasteful gentleman that he is, was watching Bert Stern’s classic 1959 documentary Jazz on a Summer’s Day. Having never seen the movie before, I was completely taken by what was on the screen. A few days later the film would be the subject of my first post on the Men’s Vogue Index blog. The story can be seen here: ACL on Men’s Vogue

Many thanks to The Trad for the drinks and the inspiration. Below: Still images from the film.

DETAILS | Fall Fashion Issue

It seems to me that American menswear is at the peak of its popularity. Maybe it is the weak dollar or all of the interest workwear or just all of the raw talent that is being flushed out of New York right now. Any way you look at it, this fall is the season of American style. Look at D&G from AW08, that collection surprisingly looks like it would work well in New England, in the sixties. Going through the September DETAILS I was loving all of the classic American style in the issue. It started out with a great still-life feature called Born in the USA — which basically epitomizes my personal style. The front of book continued with a few pages on “How to Pull Off American Style” which is pictured below. The issue also highlights the ongoing, and very successful Gant and Jeffrey partnership and there is a page on new designers which features two of ACL’s very talented friends Antonio Azzuolo and Richard Chai.

GQ | Fall Fashion Issue

Fall is coming, fall is coming. I keep saying it and last week another meteorological sign of autumn appeared, the September issue of GQ. The fall fashion issue — with one James Franco on the cover — features copious amounts of tweeds, wools, corduroy, suits, cashmere, not to mention loads of football coverage. My favorite section of the issue is the four page chunky knit story. I’m counting the minutes until sweater / football season is upon us…

The Nautical Adventures of Men’s Vogue

It is pretty obvious that Alex Carleton — the man behind the Maine-based brand Rogues Gallery — has great taste. The gentlemen at Men’s Vogue took a trip to Cape Elizabeth, Maine to give us a look into Mr. Carleton’s beautiful home. As one would expect, the house is littered with nautical-themed artifacts collected over time. Seeing this home gives me a greater appreciation for the the Rogues Gallery collection — knowing the inspirations and authenticity of the guy at the controls. Impressive to say the least.

August DETAILS | Rules of Style

Our friends at DETAILS put together another great Rules of Style with Consuelo Castiglioni, the forward thinking creative director of Marni. As I have said before, these types of Q&As are hard to do in an interesting manner, but DETAILS is on a roll. Some of my favorite bits from Ms. Castiglioni:

5. Shoes define the kind of man you are. They should never be too trendy or showy but lean toward the classic. There are a lot of ugly shoes out there, and they can ruin even the most sophisticated attire.