Summer Mode for an Era’s End (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1914)
The Paris fashion world that thrived during the August of 1914 was rightfully intrigued by the chic creations conjured up by the House of Worth, Drécoll, and Mme Paquin.
A Salute to Susan B. Anthony (Pathfinder Magazine, 1920)
Five and a half months before the 19th Amendment was ratified, granting all female citizens over the age of 21 the right to vote, the editors of THE PATHFINDER MAGAZINE saw fit to pay tribute to Susan B. Anthony (1820 – 1906) – the woman who got the ball rolling so long ago:
She drafted the pending amendment to the constitution in 1875.
A Screenwriter’s Progress (Ken Magazine, 1938)
Yardley, a cartoonist from KEN MAGAZINE, made this four panel yuk-yuk about Depression era screenwriters and the shoe being on the other foot. Truth be told, the story it tells is as fitting in our own time as it was in the Thirties. Nicely rendered, too.
Click here to read about feminine conversations overheard in the best New York ladies rooms of 1937.
Scenario Writers and Plagiarism (Motion Picture Magazine, 1916)
The attached is one from a series of articles that appeared in MOTION PICTURE MAGAZINE penned by a Hollywood insider during the high-fashion days of silent film. The reader will be alarmed to read that even as early as 1916, plot-stealing and other forms of Hollywood plagiarism were in full swing.
A few weeks earlier, a California Representative had introduced an anti-plagiarism bill to Congress.
Click here to read about the Hollywood plagiarism game of 1935.
The Battle of Kenesaw and the Goodness of Colonel Martin (Confederate Veteran, 1922)
Here is a segment from a longer article found on this site that recalled the history of boys who had enlisted in the Confederate cause – this short paragraph tells the story of a Rebel colonel, W.H. Martin of the 1st Arkansas Regiment, who called out to his opposite number in the Federal ranks during a lull in the fighting for Kenesaw Mountain and allowed for a truce so that the immobilized wounded of the Northern infantry would be rescued from a fire that was spreading in no-mans-land.
Etiquette in the Movies (Vanity Fair, 1915)
No doubt, this is one of the funniest pieces you are likely to find on the topic of acting and costuming in silent movies. It was written by Frederick Lewis Allen (1890 – 1954) and Frank Tuttle (1892-1963); both men approached the movies with the low expectations that were probably all too typical of theater lovers at that time. Frederick Lewis Allen is best remembered today as one of the better chroniclers of the Twenties and author of Only Yesterday (1931) while Frank Tuttle would find himself, in a few short years, directing movies in Hollywood. Tuttle was one of the few Directors who successfully made the jump from silent films to sound and continued working; at this writing, he was an Assistant Editor at Vanity Fair.
1918, Fashion, Harper's Bazaar Magazine
Paris Hats by Marie Louise, Lucie Hamar and Lanvin (Harper’s Bazaar, 1918)
Six fashion illustrations concerning the autumn hats of 1918:
Paris is exceedingly critical in regard to hats even in wartime, and the new ones are most interesting. Black velvet of course is rampant, and Marie Louise especially is using much much black panne velvet…
1918, Golf History, Vanity Fair Magazine
Men’s Summer Golf Apparel (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1918)
Attached you will find some kind words promoting brown linen as the preferred fabric for summer golf, yet what is most striking is the accompanying photo of a young rake in his period golf apparel sporting a pair of putees for his time upon the links. It is rare that one finds a photograph of a golfer in putees and one might get the sense that the look never really caught on.
1916, Golf History, Vanity Fair Magazine
The Action-Back Jacket for the Golfing Man (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1916)
Those young bucks who golfed and participated in other field and blood-sports during the early Twentieth Century were the lads who benefited most from the tailor’s craft. Pictured here are details of the pivot-sleeve (later to be called the ‘action-back’): a four button, deep-vented, self-belted, pleated golf jacket with matching knickers.
Also featured is a terribly natty English cheviot golf hat.