Esquire’s Complete Golden Age Illustrations:

[Flanderian]

This is the 2nd and final part of Esquire, October 1947.

 

[Fading Fast]

This is one of the nicer illustrations we've seen in the, as you noted, declining quality of post-war Esquire.

 

[Flanderian]

This is one of the nicer illustrations we've seen in the, as you noted, declining quality of post-war Esquire.
View attachment 283441

Yes, very nice, I think! And an example of some sterling content still remaining. This by Robert Goodman who has drawn in several styles since beginning publication in Esquire, and by about this time had become its first Art Director.

Among the remaining illustrators, I think I find Leslie Saalburg's work most consistently satisfying, not least because I prefer much of the style of the clothing he chooses to illustrate. And I'm really impressed with and fond of the more recent Karl Milroy who creates very eye catching compositions without sacrificing the aesthetic integrity of the individual items of apparel.

 

[Flanderian]

This is part 1 of 2 for November 1947.

 

[Flanderian]

2nd and final part of Esquire, November 1947.

 

[Flanderian]

These are the December 1947 Esquire illustrations.

May those that celebrate the day have a happy Thanksgiving!

As many likely know, the last 3 Thanksgiving themed illustrations are by the incomparable illustrator, J. C. Leyendecker. And though they did not originate in Esquire, I took the liberty of including them in honor of the holiday. They likely first appeared in The Saturday Evening post, for which Leyendecker was long a star illustrator.

 

[Tiki Tom]

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours too. I enjoyed the holiday illustrations. 2020 has been a bit of a car wreck. This thread —to paraphrase Casablanca— has helped “take the sting out of being occupied.”

 

[Flanderian]

These are Esquire's January 1948 illustrations.

 

[Flanderian]

These are Esquire's February 1948 illustrations.

 

[Jhon Johnson]

Hello to everyone. I am new and young, so I hope to draw inspiration from classic menswear. The images give me a sense of wholesome nostalgia that I never had. Anyway, are the images scans from the magazines, or digital copies from the internet? This is a good basis when downloading high-res images from the website as the image months are known. Cheers.

 

[Flanderian]

Hello to everyone. I am new and young, so I hope to draw inspiration from classic menswear. The images give me a sense of wholesome nostalgia that I never had. Anyway, are the images scans from the magazines, or digital copies from the internet? This is a good basis when downloading high-res images from the website as the image months are known. Cheers.

Fashion changes constantly, but style is forever!

Boy, what a trite cliche, but also a truism. Well designed clothing that flatters the wearer, will still look as good, and make the wearer look as good as it did 20 years, or more, after it was fashionable. While you wouldn't be fashionable, properly fitted and chosen, wearing the same clothing depicted from 1936 could still make you look great!

To me, one of the differences between clothing with great style, and mere fashion, is that truly stylish clothing is never extreme, never exaggerated. While sadly, for those who attempt to venture beyond trainers and T-shirts, most of what I see today I regard as parody.

The images are from actual issues of Esquire magazine. Since digital technology is comparatively recent, their original form must have been hardcopy. But at some point, unknown to me, they must have been scanned, digitized and stored, and eventually became available on the Internet.

I included (With many typos! ) in post #1 of this thread a brief, and I'm sure incomplete, history of Esquire's origins, should it have been of interest.

 

[Jhon Johnson]

Fashion changes constantly, but style is forever!

Boy, what a trite cliche, but also a truism. Well designed clothing that flatters the wearer, will still look as good, and make the wearer look as good as it did 20 years, or more, after it was fashionable. While you wouldn't be fashionable, properly fitted and chosen, wearing the same clothing depicted from 1936 could still make you look great!

To me, one of the differences between clothing with great style, and mere fashion, is that truly stylish clothing is never extreme, never exaggerated. While sadly, for those who attempt to venture beyond trainers and T-shirts, most of what I see today I regard as parody.

The images are from actual issues of Esquire magazine. Since digital technology is comparatively recent, their original form must have been hardcopy. But at some point, unknown to me, they must have been scanned, digitized and stored, and eventually became available on the Internet.

I included (With many typos! ) in post #1 of this thread a brief, and I'm sure incomplete, history of Esquire's origins, should it have been of interest.

Yes I agree. In an age where dressing up without batting someone's eye means wearing a polo shirt, it is important to dress well. I asked because you can download high-res photos of these images in the classic esquire website archive (2600x3640 pixels) but there is a limited amount of "free" articles until you hit a paywall that can be bypassed anyway. I notice stroller suits disappear after the war as people revert to business suits. (Strollers are very underrated, and I plan to get one in the future.) Thanks again.

 

[Flanderian]

Yes I agree. In an age where dressing up without batting someone's eye means wearing a polo shirt, it is important to dress well. I asked because you can download high-res photos of these images in the classic esquire website archive (2600x3640 pixels) but there is a limited amount of "free" articles until you hit a paywall that can be bypassed anyway. I notice stroller suits disappear after the war as people revert to business suits. (Strollers are very underrated, and I plan to get one in the future.) Thanks again.

You're very welcome, sir!

 

[Flanderian]

These are Esquire's March 1948 illustrations.

 

[Fading Fast]

Really nice suit on him. To scale, I'd say she has about an 8" waist. If you didn't live through the era, or catch the tail end of it as I did, the headwaiter thing would seem odd, but for a brief window in restaurant history, they seemed to be important and wielded a surprising amount of power in their modest universe. But they are mainly gone today; replaced by "hosts" and "hostesses" who are the nice people that greet you, but they are nothing more than a speed bump on your way to the table.

 

[Flanderian]

Really nice suit on him. To scale, I'd say she has about an 8" waist. If you didn't live through the era, or catch the tail end of it as I did, the headwaiter thing would seem odd, but for a brief window in restaurant history, they seemed to be important and wielded a surprising amount of power in their modest universe. But they are mainly gone today; replaced by "hosts" and "hostesses" who are the nice people that greet you, but they are nothing more than a speed bump on your way to the table.
View attachment 286050

Ah!! Civilization lost! Whiffs of Escoffier and Le Guide Michelin recede into the past. A proper Maitre d'hotel and formal European service replaced by McCuisine.

Not with a bang but a whimper.

As recently as the mid 80's I could dine at lunch on the Upper East Side at Le Bourgogne East on an $8.00 prix fixe 3 course menu of muscles that had been steamed in white wine and fine herbs and was served chilled with horseradish and cream, then chicken francaise, with mouse au chocolate for dessert. And the friendly but precise Maitre d'hotel, who with the chef was an owner, would assure all at your table received impeccable but unobtrusive service.

 

[Fading Fast]

Ah!! Civilization lost! Whiffs of Escoffier and Le Guide Michelin recede into the past. A proper Maitre d'hotel and formal European service replaced by McCuisine.

View attachment 286227

Not with a bang but a whimper.

As recently as the mid 80's I could dine at lunch on the Upper East Side at Le Bourgogne East on an $8.00 prix fixe 3 course menu of muscles that had been steamed in white wine and fine herbs and was served chilled with horseradish and cream, then chicken francaise, with mouse au chocolate for dessert. And the friendly but precise Maitre d'hotel, who with the chef was an owner, would assure all at your table received impeccable but unobtrusive service.

As a kid out of college in the mid-'80s, I saw some of that exact world when I went on business dinners with the higher ups. But you could feel that that world was fading as the new, more "in", restaurants didn't work that way at all, but the old famous ones still did. I'm glad I had a brief window into that now-gone period.

 

[Tiki Tom]

Now, I’m a bit disappointed if the wait staff doesn’t scare the bejesus out of me. Good times.

 

[Flanderian]

Now, I’m a bit disappointed if the wait staff doesn’t scare the bejesus out of me. Good times.

Bitte, Herr Ober!

Der handkase mit musik. Mit Zwiebel, und Kummel, und Paprika. Und mit Baurenbrot.

 

[Nobert]

Now, I’m a bit disappointed if the wait staff doesn’t scare the bejesus out of me. Good times.