Gangland Wedding—From The Godfather
Ten years ago more than 2/3 of pictures we would see from weddings would show the groom and the groomsmen, often outdoors and during the day, wearing black tuxedos.
Not that there is anything wrong with this!
“Class,” “Sophistication,” “Snobbery,” however—whatever you want to call it—generally decrees against wearing a black suit during the daytime and is especially against the tuxedo or dinner jacket during the day.
Instead, if one wishes to look quite formal, one should wear a morning coat with charcoal striped pants in place of the matched tuxedo, or a classic suit in a stripe, check, or color.
Fredo in Search of the Inner WASP
To a large degree, in the United States, this belongs to the history of New England WASPs versus urban Catholics, particularly Italians.
A Piped Swallowtail Morning Coat
To wear a tuxedo during the day would be to look like an “immigrant” at best or like one of the wedding party at Don Corleone’s in the Godfather at worst. This type of attire, declared the experts, was quite simply improper and showed a lack of “class.”
In fact, for Godfather II, when the family is trying to take the business in a legitimate direction, costume designer Theodora Van Runkle argued with Francis Ford Coppola to get the family out of black as an expression of their WASPish ambitions.
A Grey Prince of Wales Plaid for the Summer
I personally am all for “class,” sophistication and consciousness. And for manners as well.
That said, the Corleones do look pretty sharp in their tuxes and I see no reason that this look is to be avoided at all costs. I certainly like the look better than most Brooks Brothers suits with the slouchy and boxy fit, and am no fan of American Trad in that sense.
A Window Pane Vest We Tailored
Although I attended Harvard myself, there is a small (or even large?) part of me that would prefer looking like a mobster to looking like a New England upper cruster.
Nonetheless, I am happy to see that, in today’s weddings, the black tuxedo is becoming more and more rare.
Colors and patterns are back. Morning coats are back. Eclectic is back.
We make suits for summer weddings in natural colored linens and raw silks or plaid jackets for fall weddings in colors that coordinate with the falling leaves.
A Bold Morning Frock
For those more formally inclined, we make gorgeous morning coats with charcoal striped trousers, picking up, perhaps, one of the wedding colors in the pant stripe.
Classic Silk Herringbone Suit
None of this is necessarily better.
But it is a much better chance to exercise some of the sophistication that is possible in menswear.
Back in the 1990s, for example, you went to a “fancy” restaurant to dine on steaks or perhaps surf’n’turf or warmed over French-style cuisine. There were only a small handful of expensive tastes available to the American diner.
Today, however, everyone is a sophisticate. Friends sit around and discuss balsamic reductions and how to cook kohlrabi. Fine dining can include flavors from Korea or South America just as easily as from France.
And all of this makes life richer, more reflective—-Even if snobbery can leave a bad taste in the mouth.
Here at Denver Bespoke, building the perfect wedding suit starts with the tastes and interests of the bride and groom and the setting of the wedding.
From this starting point, we sketch ideas and search out the perfect fabrics to build a totally unique look that is styled to your individuality. We love black—but often for a touch of the Victorian, goth or punk rock look.
Every suit that we make is custom tailored here in our studio in Denver, Colorado for clients around the world.
