My father used to love only western movies. Saturday afternoon was a ritual: second show – at 16 0′ clock – cowboys, redskins and horses. The fate of those poor beasts was a source of worry (“do they hurt themselves when they fall down?”). Till, on a rainy saturday, in full grey Milanese autumn, was the turn of “For whom the bell tolls”, an old picture show – precisely from 1943 – inspired by Hemingway’s novel, with Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman. I was used to spaghetti western, as easy as they were boring, and I was not prepared for a dramatic western at all. I cried so much that from then on I refused to go to the cinema with him, and only this year I made peace with western thanks to Tarantino and his Django. The modern cowboy played by Jamie Foxx captivated me, but I haven’t recovered yet after the goodbye scene between Maria (Bergman) and Robert (Cooper): the bracket has already closed.

Many men wish they could look like someone else. There’s who prefers Steve McQueen, or Marcello Mastroianni; who dreams to be Jude Law, or Colin Firth. They are male audience’s favourite actors, so I gather that their classic style is the successful one. It’s not a coincidence that styling’s simplicity and shapes’ linearity are the common denominators of avant-garde designers’ collections, except for rare cases. Advertising campaigns and “strong” window fittings are ideas’ displays that strenghten the image’s media power but, in those same shops that propose that creative level destined for selected connoisseur, there are suits dedicated to timeless demand. Choose your attire paying special attention on modernity (“classic” is not sinonimo of antique, but you can’t keep on wearing the long jacket if now it has shortened), and, above all, try to be nothing else that yourselves. Marcello Mastroianni in 1979 on the set of “La città delle donne”, shot by Tazio Secchiaroli.

Choosing what to wear on a mountain summer holiday can be more complex than you think. The habitués know what to do, but random tourists never know how to pack.”Is it going to be cold in the evening? And what if it’s not going to be sunny during the day? What shall I wear?”. A simple advice for those less accustomed: when in doubt bring more options, expecting to layer your clothing.
This year two historical brands, Lacoste and Colmar are 80 and 90 years old, respectively, so why not to celebrate the anniversaries by opting for a remarkable wardrobe? Traditional formal, practical elegance: you can’t go wrong. If I may, I’d like to suggest a destination: Ortisei in the Dolomites. At the Adler Balance Hotel especially, connected with the “historical” but more recent Adler which has been decorated in modern contemporary designs, you will get to enjoy an amazing outdoor swimming pool and fantastic relaxing Spa treatments. In the picture the Adler Balance Hotel in Ortisei.

Forever Rock.

“I remember when rock was young”…sang Elton John in Crocodile Rock. This song is fourty years old but sounds younger. It sounds so up-to-date, that the word “rock” usually recur, especially in fashion shows’ reviews to describe (often improperly) fierce, strong and youthful attitude and fashion. A very successful style between young people, that keeps on being liked by much older men, those who maintain a style of dress consistent with a borderline way of life (at least in appearance). Fashion designers John Richmond, Ennio Capasa (Costume National Homme), Hedi Slimane (ex Dior Homme, now Saint Laurent Paris) and Roberto Cavalli are some of those that stick to rock appearance; others, in a more or less manifest and irregular way, deal with the subject mixing classic clothes with the black leather perfecto and pointed toe boots, as Balmain did for several seasons. Elton John’s outfit (right), who launched the song with the LP “Don’t shoot me I’m only the piano player” in 1973, conveys the idea fairly well. Elton John in a picture by Norman Parkinson taken from the book “Bespoke: the Men’s Style of Savile Row”.