Very Relaford

MARRIED WITH A RETRO PAD

Married? What? We know; sounds weird, but not everyone will be a bachelor/bachelorette forever. The point is, just because you tie the knot doesn’t mean you have to settle for twin beds, plastic covered furniture, and a picket white fence. Just look at Ronnie and Nancy Reagan (above in their California home during Reagan’s days as governor).

Cool furniture, a wet bar, and built in bookcases is great for entertaining your friends as well as chill time with the one and only. Real estate heir and The New York Observer owner Jared Kushner and his bride, mogul Ivanka Trump spent the first years of their marriage in the digs pictured above at 21 Astor Place in New York. Nothing like your own chic humble abode to keep your mind off of bull & bear markets or Democrats and Republicans shouting at each other.

———————————————————————————————————

BLUE SUEDE LOAFERS

Maybe it’s a little self-serving for us to highlight our own Editor-in Chief Reynolds Graves, but who cares, the guy has substance and style. Here he is in Italy and although there’s a historic landmark in his presence, we can’t help but notice his blue suede shoes. Maybe they express his political leanings (blue states) or maybe he wears them to set himself apart (most wear standard black or brown).

Either way, even Elvis couldn’t wear them with as much effortless ease. With professional stops in the U.S. Embassy in Egypt (pre-Arab Spring) and The White House under his belt, Reynolds proves you can be smart and look cool. -CTW

——————————————————————————

BOBBY’S TORTOISE SHELL EYES

Former U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Senator Robert Kennedy sported his now trendy, but then standard eyewear during some of the most tumultuous times in the 1950s and 60s. RFK didn’t mind being photographed in his specs, unlike his older brother JFK.

From battling union bosses like Jimmy Hoffa, to figuring out a way to integrate the University of Alabama or making deals and suggestions during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Bobby did it all with style and ‘clarity.’

Learn more about Bobby’s glasses HERE

—————————————————————————————————

KNIT TIES in FALL

Knit ties are a long time staple of the Western powers. Sure that sounds dramatic, but true indeed. From British teens in the early 60s to self-proclaimed conservative Alex P. Keaton of America’s 80s sitcom Family Ties, the knit tie is the ideal accessory that exemplifies “It’s hip to be square.”

With the last of the horse races closing out and the beginning of the pigskin gridirons kicking off this Autumn, you can rock the tie that most won’t have. The knit tie is a great accessory for a Fall Gold Cup or Harvard vs. Yale or tailgating with the co-eds of the SEC (best conference in college football).

We’re not pushing this too strongly, but maybe the new Congressional Supercommmittee responsible for solutions for handling the U.S. deficit could wear them as a sign of solidarity; just a thought.

————————————————————————————-

TORTOISE SHELL AVIATORS

Metal frames used to be the name of the game (a la VP Biden), but via the likes of Tom Ford to Paul Walker in last year’s GQ Style Guide, tortoise shell frames (very popular with the Wayfarer style) plus the bad ass feel of the classic aviators are married to create a hybrid like none other for the Summer.

Young staffers on Capitol Hill, the executive branch, or on K Street have been acquiring these for either the beach trip or the casual walk to and from happy hour.

——————————————————————————————————

REJUVINATED RETRO PAN AM GEAR

The ‘Layover’ watch

Pan American World Airways ceased operations in 1991, after dominating the jetsetting airspace for decades. Diplomats, politicians and celebrities, graced the seats of PanAm flights from LAX to Heathrow to Idlewild (JFK Airport) and beyond.

What started out as an air carrier between Florida and Cuba in 1927, became the gold standard of the airline industry before the rise of giants such as United and Delta. During the Cold War era, Pan Am was front and center of power as its midtown Manhattan headquarters (now the MetLife Building) stood as the symbol of American innovation.

Sen. Ted Kennedy and Pan Am during the rise of the ‘jet’ age

It was during the 1950s that they introduced jet aircraft with the 707 (same model used for the original Air Force One jet) in an effort to leap bounds beyond the industry competition. By the 1970s the energy crisis nearly destroyed the brand, but it wasn’t until a hijacking in Pakistan in 1986 and the airline’s crash in the now notorious ‘Lockerbie’ bombing in 1988 that PanAms brand began to really decline. After its bankruptcy in 1991, the majority of Pan Am’s assets were purchased by Delta Airlines.

‘Reversible Weekender Presidential’

Today, a group known as Pan Am Brands, based in Dover NH has revitilized the name and offering a new generation of style and gravitas of the once famed transportation giant. Also, in November 2010, Pan American Airways, Inc. began flying as a cargo only service, with hopes to return to serving passengers later this year.

——————————————————————————————-

BORIS of LONDONTOWN

In 2008, Boris Johnson became the first Conservative Party member to become mayor of London. With that said, he set the standard for mayors to come with his own sense of rumfled style and colourful character.

What makes him ‘Very Relaford’ is his uncontrolled hair, his love for riding his bike to work, and the fact that he doesn’t give a damn about what people say of him.

During Johnson’s 2008 campaign, current British PM David Cameron said, “I don’t always agree with him, but I respect the fact that he’s absolutely his own man.”

————————————————————————————-

PIPES AND POLITICS

Gerald Ford has been noted as a fan of Half and Half Tobacco, not exactly deemed the most presidential of brands, but it get’s the job done.

At an agriculture forum in February 2011, former President Bill Clinton wore a grey three piece suit, a style that hasn’t been worn regularly by a sitting president since the days of Ford. There are certain accessories that have long since left the political scene that we at CR would love to see return.

Pocket squares made their return (they never fully left) in 2005, but Gerald Ford made the pipe classic, even his Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld would smoke one during his press briefings in the 70s.

CIA Director (1953-1961) Allen Dulles

During the Cold War, pipes were common place, seen in the cabinet room as well as undisclosed locations by long serving CIA Director Allen Dulles. With that said, this is CR’s push to bring pipes back onto the political scene….even if it’s just a casual smoke outdoors.

————————————————————————————-

LBJ’s LOCKHEED JETSTAR

In traditional times, the office of the U.S. Vice President was seen as what FDR’s first Vice President, John Nance Garner described as “not worth a bucket of warm spit.”

Garner’s Texas born successor, Lyndon Johnson entered the office after being one of the most powerful Senate Majority Leaders in modern history.

Lyndon Johnson aboard the Jetstar

After helping John F. Kennedy deliver the south in the 1960 election, Lyndon Johnson had a transportation request; his own plane. Prior to LBJ, the vice president borrowed planes already in the presidential fleet. He received the Lockheed Jetstar VC-140, a small jet that could even hold its own against todays G4s and G5s.

the jetstar being dedicated with its original pilot Brig. Gen. James Cross looking on

Once LBJ became president, he still continued to use the jetstar frequently as he loved its speed and fuel-efficiency for shorter domestic trips. A model of the plane was featured in one of the final scenes of the 1964 James Bond film Goldfinger in which it’s sent to pick up 007 to dine with President Johnson.

The president called it “Air Force One-and-a-Half.” After serving as VIP jets for Air Force personnel after LBJ’s presidency, many of the jetstars were dismantled. A few remained and the Johnson Historical National Park secured one of the last planes and is now on display on the landing strip at Johnson’s ranch known as “the Texas White House.”

————————————————————————————-

SAVILE ROW of LONDONTOWN

By C. Todd Williamson, III, Founding Editor

Prior to vacationing in Europe over the holidays, My lady asked me what were the top 5 sites that I’d like to see while in London. I listed the following:

1.) Tower of London (Big Ben)

2.) The SIS Building (home of British Secret Service) - where “James Bond” works

3.) 10 Downing Street -home of British Prime Minister David Cameron

4.) Buckingham Palace

5.) Savile Row.

My 5th choice is in last, but certainly not least order. Of the entourage that I was with, Savile Row was the least known, but to me the most important and globally accaliamed. Which street is resonsible for the suits of the top members of British Parliament or chosen by everyone from David Ormsby Gore (look him up) to the setting of the Beatles’ Apple recording studio?

Yes, you guessed it Savile Row. As recently as 2006 though, the suit designers on the famed street were reaching tough times as they were risking the threat of being priced out of their shops. The Row was accused of falling behind standards as more commercial stores began to open in the surrounding areas near Piccadily Circus. By that time, only 19 clothiers were listed on the street.

I paid a visit and bought a skinny tie from the Italian based Ozwald Boateng, whose clients include: Will Smith, Mick Jagger, and Samuel L. Jackson.

No matter the commmercial “upstarts” on the outer streets, I thought it fitting to stay true to the street buried into the heart and soul of London. I could still hear the dialogue between Felix Leiter and James Bond in the very first Bond film, Dr. No.

“Who’s your tailor?” -Felix Leiter (Jack Lord)

“Savile Row” - James Bond (Sean Connery)

- Dr. No, 1962

Timeless, yet effective.

————————————————————————————-

Daniel Day Lewis to Play Honest Abe on Screen

According to IMDB’s user-created character listings, Lincoln has been portrayed on screens large and small more times than any other president: 246 times, not counting video games (George Washington, a mere 127 times). The recent announcement that Daniel Day-Lewis will play the sixteenth president under Spielberg’s direction is sure to inspire a whole new generation of actors to be fitted for stovepipe hats, just in case.

LES ENFANTS S’ENNUIENT LE DIMANCHE

The Children are Bored on Sundays with Elijah Wood and Shirley Manson (link for video short)

FRAME JOB

Gerry Beckley has some peculiar enthusiasms. A founding member of the ’70s Cali-rock band America, he spends most of his days on the road reviving ‘‘Sister Golden Hair.’’ And each morning, like clockwork, he photographs the view from his hotel-room window — a ritual he’s kept up for about 15 years.

Wherever Beckley happens to be — a United States Air Force base in Japan, a street stall in Ecuador — he’s prowling for vintage treasures: classic tennis sneakers (Dunlop plimsolls), wristwatches (Bell & Ross) and especially eyeglasses made in the 1950s and 1960s by American Optical and others of that thick-framed ilk. ‘‘My tastes tend toward the archival,’’ says Beckley, 58, who has become so sophisticated about design that he can talk shop with an expanding clutch of artistically inclined friends, including the minimalist architect John Pawson and the fashion designer Steven Alan.

‘‘Gerry came in the store and said, ‘I’m a fan of what you do. I have a band you might have heard of called America,’ ’’ Alan recalls. ‘‘He even sent me a greatest-hits CD.’’ The designer and musician have become good friends, and the Steven Alan outpost in TriBeCa is now stocking a small batch of vintage frames hand-picked by Beckley, many with period accents like comfort-cable temples that hook around the ear (above right; $140 without lenses, $200 with tinted lenses; at 103 Franklin Street).

Beckley says collecting vintage eyewear goes way beyond the vaguely anachronistic impulses of, say, an Urban Outfitters devotee. ‘‘It’s not just saying, ‘Let’s all wear Buddy Holly glasses!’ ’’ he says. ‘‘It’s understanding the difference between what Buddy wore, what Onassis wore, what James Dean wore.’’

————————————————————————————-

GATES: THE BEST IN A LONG TIME

Late in 2007, a year into his tenure as George W. Bush’s secretary of defense and just over a year before the end of Bush’s second term as president, I asked Robert Gates if he’d thought of staying on in the next administration. Many Republicans and Democrats were hoping he would, seeing him as a moderate professional sweeping away the shambles left by his predecessor, Donald Rumsfeld. But Gates seemed uninterested, even hostile to the notion. “The circumstances under which I would do that,” he replied, “are inconceivable to me.”

Over the next several months, he repeated the line to other inquiring journalists. He carried around a key chain with an electronic screen that counted down the number of days until he could leave Washington (a city he clearly disliked) and retire with his wife to their lakeside home in the Pacific Northwest.

And yet, when President-elect Barack Obama asked him to remain at the Defense Department’s helm, Gates instantly agreed.

More from Foreign Policy Magazine’s profile of Gates

————————————————————————————-

BILL MOYERS

During the administration of Lyndon Johnson, Bill Moyers was in most terms: ‘the man.’ The Oklahoma native was first appointed by President Kennedy as the deputy director of public affairs for the Peace Corps. Prior to that, Moyers served as a staffer for LBJ during the 1960 Kennedy/Johnson campaign.

After the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, Moyers became special assistant to President Johnson from 1963-67. During that span he served as White House chief of staff where he was the legislative brains behind LBJ’s “Great Society” and most notably as White House press secretary where he handled reporters as Vietnam escalated. (He would later leave the administration over disagreement with Johnson over the war.)

Moyer’s would go on to turn around the Long Island based newspaper Newsday as publisher. He now serves in the role that he is most known for as host of Bill Moyer’s Journal on PBS.

————————————————————————————-

SPERRY TOP SIDERS

C. Todd Williamson, III

One weekend while my lady was off to New York working on a film script, I decided to help myself to a day in Georgetown. Whenever we’re there, she likes to drag me to my favorite part of town and hand select skinny ties and other accessories to wear around town or to to the office.

So I decided to venture to M Street and see what I could find with my ‘own eyes.’ In the shoe section of Urban Outfitters, I came across the classic Sperry Top Sider boat shoes, created and perfected in 1935 in Lexington Massachusetts by Paul Sperry.

Off of sheer memory, the last time I wore a pair was a version picked out by my mother at the age of six. (The women throughout my life have great taste.)

Since purchasing them, I haven’t been able to take them off. They’ve seen mileage from a policy conference in Mississippi to a party at a friends vacation house in the Poconos proving that one can be comfortable and stylish in the act of work and play.

Cheers to comfort…

See more HERE

————————————————————————————-

Schwood Wooden Glasses

-Via Selectism- While we have mentioned the Schwood line of handmade frames before, we finally get a chance to take a hold of them for ourselves here in Las Vegas. The model above is a new collaborative effort with Atlanta’s WISH shop. They are coated with a thin layer of shellac. If you prefer a more natural finish, you have options.

Club Relaford

Rooster Talk

Relaford Relations

Very Relaford

LES ENFANTS S’ENNUIENT LE DIMANCHE

The Children are Bored on Sundays with Elijah Wood and Shirley Manson (link for video short)

FRAME JOB