Style Icons: Male »John Hughes

Everyone my age was deeply saddened to learn of the sudden passing of the man who gave a mainstream voice to contemporary teenage angst, woe and hilarity. John Hughes left behind so many iconic characters and scenes that will forever be ingrained in our collective memory that it's easy to forget his later creative drought.

Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pretty in Pink?my god, the man was a genius. Our hearts go out to his family; I know we're all deeply grateful for his amazing legacy.

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Posted on August 17, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Bill Clinton

Straight from the AP wire:

“The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, pardoned two jailed journalists after meeting with former President Bill Clinton, the state news agency reported.”

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Posted on August 10, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Merce Cunningham

merce cunninghamMerce Cunningham, worlds “greatest living choreographer”?died last week, a few months after celebrating his 90th birthday and seeing to a Legacy Plan defined as “a comprehensive road map for the future of the Cunningham Dance Foundation, as envisioned by founder Merce Cunningham.”

I have never seen one of Cunningham's pieces in person, though many clips on youtube can enlighten one to what he's all about, and even today it's pretty avant garde.

An extensive obituary detailing his career and life can be read at the New York Times. Be sure to view the slide show to see him as a mad looking genius sharing the stage with Mikhail Baryshnikov on his 80th birthday.

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Posted on August 3, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Queen

Queen was just massively amazing and sometimes I forget that. A friend's recent trip to Marsaille where he was surprised to encounter this statue got me thinking on their awesomeness again though.

Freddie Mercury and Brian May were particularly spectacular in their ostentatiousness, but the group as a whole was unreal. Any google search will cough up numerous mind bending images. I've posted only a few of the best I've come across over on RC.

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Posted on July 27, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Bert Stern

bert sternAside from this week's documentary movie pick, the delightful Jazz on a Summer's Day, photographer Bert Stern is most famous for The Last Sitting, the memorable last photos taken of Marilyn Monroe before her tragic death. We'll forgive him the strange choice to recreate the shoot with current troubled actress Lindsay Lohan for sheer gall.

He is also behind many iconic images of Elizabeth Taylor, Twiggy, and Audrey Hepburn as well as portraits of Sue Lyon for Lolita.

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Posted on July 20, 2009

Style Icons: Male »The Hanson Brothers

hanson brothers slap shotNot to be confused with the Oakie teenie boppers, these Hanson Brothers are all about busting heads and drawing blood. The center piece of the beloved underdog sports movie Slap Shot, the brothers are over-zealous child-like hockey dudes that bring fame and attention to Paul Newman's failing west Pennsylvania team. Every time they're on screen, whether picking a fight with a snack machine, yelling in the locker room, or just playing with toy cars, I couldn't help but laugh. While the film is more of an underground classic, it's known and loved by most anyone that's seen it.

The brothers were played by the real life Carlson brothers, Steve and Jeff. Third brother Jack's hockey career conflicted with shooting and Dave Hanson, whose pro hockey nickname was “Killer”, got the gig.

If you too are a fan, local designer and Brix Picks fave Built By Wendy was inspired by the characters and made this awesome tee with emblazoned with their visages.

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Posted on July 13, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Gareth Pugh

gareth pughDo you like your hard edged fashion in black and white and shades of gray? Do you like your skinny Central Saint Martins “l'enfants”, “terrible”? Do you take drama over comfort? Do you do whatever Beyonce tells you to? Then you might be a fan of Gareth Pugh, the little it-boy who gets off on distorting the human form with inflated dresses and synthetic hair.

I do hope though that his recent blast of more mainstream attention via Miss Fierce could possibly lead to some more commercial paths. Not just because I dream of buying a space age high shoulder padded checkerboard dress from Target someday for $40, but because (according to Wikipedia) the poor guy is making no money and just got kicked out of his squatters hole. Talk about suffering for your art… until of course he takes over at Dior Homme.

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Posted on July 6, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Michael Jackson

michal jackson youngI think everyone was shocked and astonished by the sudden passing of arguably the most famous man on the planet. While Micheal Jackson may not have always represented the best about American pop culture, back in the day when I was growing up, he certainly seemed to… for a little while. I saw him perform with the Jacksons during 1984's Victory Tour (my brother, then a baby, slept through the whole thing) and it was exciting beyond belief.

From the iconic red jacket to the single white glove, from the pop perfection of Off the Wall to the thrill of seeing the Thriller music video for the first time, whatever one might think of the later years, it's hard not get sentimental about a man who could bring the world to its knees in joy with two seconds of dancing across the stage.

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Posted on June 29, 2009

Style Icons: Male »The Cockettes

the cockettesOk, ok, so there's nothing new about a drag queen and even the most queenliest men I have known have often labeled the practice “just too gay” but if you are in any way a fan of the avant garde, performance art, living outside the mainstream, vintage costume, extravagant style, and glitter you owe it to yourself to familiarize yourself with the Cockettes. They were psychedelic, hippie drag queens whacked out on LSD with a penchant for Victorian lace, sequins, and any pre-war fashions that could be stolen from thrift stores.

Their reign was brief, from an impromptu singing and dancing performance with huge layered costumes and eventual nudity, to the toast of the San Fransisco freak scene, they ruled their world until drugs, snobby New Yorkers, and aids brought them down.

To learn all about them and be visually blown away by all the footage of their performances, watch the great documentary simply titled, The Cockettes (available on DVD and Netflix). I took the liberty of capturing just a few of the stimulating images here.

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Posted on June 22, 2009

Style Icons: Male »Fabio

FabioWhy do I mention it now?

Because I happened across the photo of the fabled meeting of the man that I mentioned in my previous entry. Do enjoy!

Here's what I said back on 2/12/07:

My family and I actually met Fabio at a strip mall book signing tour he was on to promote his self written romances “Pirate”, “Viking”, and “Rogue”. And yes, I have a singed copy of each along with a photograph of me with the hunk.

I have to say, I saw Fabio in a whole new light that day as he stayed extra hours to make sure that every lady got a signature and a hug or kiss. Since then he's earned even more of my respect with his phenomenal album, Fabio After Dark, and his part in the sadly defunct oxygen show Mr. Romance.

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Posted on June 15, 2009