Very Important in a Martini, 1955

...with all the distinguishing tailoring features including welt seams, stitched edges, hooked vent and plain front trousers.

Source:

Cornell Daily Sun - 12/1/55

The Greatest Pants for Summer Wear, 1955

(click to enlarge)

Source:

Cornell Daily Sun - 4/21/55

The Ivy League Look Goes National, 1955

Back to School -

The Ivy League Look Goes National

When the collegian hits the campus this fall, he'll find a distinct Ivy League Flavor - no matter what section of the country he's in. Regional customs, climates and sporadic fads still allow plenty of variety in campus wear. But the New England B.M.O.C.* - with his over-all conservative, well-groomed look and his careful attention to offbeat detail - will be seen on campuses from the Sierra Nevada to the Appalachians.

*Big Man On Campus




Old Favorites, New Eastern Touches on Campus

A freshman is almost always afraid of looking like a freshman. He finds out quickly that, as far as his clothes go, little things mean a lot. But he - as well as the bona fide upper classman - will be on safe ground with a wardrobe built along the lines shown in these pictures. Some of the best sellers are firmly entrenched favorites, others are new, but all will be seen on U.S. campuses this fall.




Source -

Look Magazine - 8/23/55

Viyella Jacket, Saks Fifth Avenue, 1955

(click to enlarge)

Source:

The New Yorker - 11/12/55

For People of Inherent Good Taste, 1955

From April to August 1955, Glenmore Distilleries Company ran a sartorially splendid series of advertisements for its whisk(e)y brands in LIFE magazine, with artwork by Alexander Ross.

Although not exclusively clad in Ivy apparel, the dapper gentlemen depicted here display some familiar elements: natural shoulders, button-down collars, club collars, narrow ties, narrow lapels. All while heartily enjoying their alcohol and the company of other nicely-attired gentlemen.









Nothing screams "good whisk(e)y" better than locker room drinks with a man sporting just a towel.


Of note: The distilled spirits industry did not use women to advertise their products until 1959, and Glenmore was, reportedly, the first to break with this tradition.

Good news for sportsmen, 1955

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Source:

The New Yorker - 11/12/55

Mufti Muster, 1955

(click to enlarge)

New civvies come in khaki and o.d.

The two newest colors in male clothing this fall are khaki and olive drab -- colors which men swore 10 years ago they were taking off for good. Although the new mufti looks as military as a salute, it is an outgrowth of the khaki and olive green cotton suits which "Ivy look" wearers (LIFE, Nov. 22, 1954) have take up as a summer alternative to charcoal flannel. Manufacturers have now expanded their selection, and light tans and muddy greens appear in sports car clothes, jackets, raincoats, business suits. A peacetime platoon of college students and young businessmen (below) shows how closely the outfits match up to 3rd Infantry uniforms (left). In their civilian status, khaki and o.d. will probably be worn by conservative males with white shirts and black knit ties, but more venturesome wearers may prefer checked shirts which are also new for town.

Source:

LIFE magazine - 10/24/55

Yale, Through the Years

Skull and Bones 1861

Crew, Freshmen, Class of 1907

Crew, 1907

Crew, 1910

[Notice the change in collar style from 1907 to 1910]

Golf team, 1929

1935

1940

1942

Whiffenpoofs, 1949

Debate Association officers, 1949-1950

Pierson College, 1950

1955

Berkeley College, 1957

1958

1962

1962

Amy Solomon, the first woman to register at Yale, 1969


Yale Chauvinist Pig, tie for the 30th reunion of the Class of 1940 in 1970

1971

Source:

Yale University Library - The Manuscripts and Archives Digital Images Database (MADID)

The Ivy Look, A Brief Synopsis, 1955

Source:

Pittsburgh Press - 8/26/55

Botany 500, 1955

(click to enlarge)

Source:

I can't recall. If this image is yours please let me know.

The slim line in slacks takes over, Talon, 1955

(click to enlarge)

The slim line in slacks takes over

Biggest single trend of '55 in men's clothing is the natural slim line from head to heel. This clean, straight cut completely replaces the rippling roominess of yesteryear's sportswear - puts your full-cut slacks among the family antiques. The time is ripe. Put on this lean, attractive look in dress slacks and inexpensive washable pants. You'll find that the good buy in any price bracket is equipped with the equally streamlined Talon trouser zipper.

Brooks Brothers, After-Five, 1955

(click to enlarge)

Source:

LIFE magazine - 2/7/55

[Ed. note: A single-button shawl collar jacket "of red, green or yellow with trousers in 13 different colors"? I'm certainly glad that this didn't take hold.]

Ralph Nader (was not an Ivy fan)

"Nader was considered by many of his classmates to be a "grind" at Princeton. Not only did he study hard and do well on his assigned courses, but he also audited extra classes just because he loved to learn. This did not endear him to his classmates, but, then again, he was not very happy with them, either. He thought that many of them were too content with the "Gentleman's C" grade average and too preoccupied with what clothes they wore, what cars they drove, and who their friends were. Some of his peers thought his reluctance to join in conversations about such interests meant that he was shy. He wasn't shy, he just didn't care to waste his time talking about matters that were of no importance to him. His friends knew that if he started talking about politics or social issues, he could go on endlessly.

Most of the young men on campus dressed the same way: tweed jackets, white shirts, khaki pants, and white buckskin shoes. This bothered Nader, who thought that this conformity showed a lack of individuality - just the opposite of the "think for yourself" way in which he was raised. One day, to protest the sheep-like dress code, Nader went to class in a bathrobe and slippers."

Source:

Ralph Nader: Man With a Mission, by Nancy Bowen


[It must be mentioned that every time I've seen Nader he's been dressed in a rather conservative suit, button-down or forward point shirt and a rep or foulard tie; he must have relented later in life].

Brooks Brothers, Madras, 1955

(click to enlarge)

Some of the East's goods have made the passage to the U.S. in roundabout fashion. Cottons from Madras, India were made into sports clothes in the British West Indies for U.S. resort-goers during the '30s and have grown increasingly popular over the years. The murky but colorful plaids are being used by designers in more formal styles for town wear this summer. Woven by cottage workers in southern India, the best cloth runs somewhat in washing and is called "bleeding madras."

Source:

"East Brightens West", LIFE magazine - 5/16/55