It was on the set of this film where Steve McQueen appeared wearing the blue tint lensed Persol PO 714 SM sunglasses for the first time. He was a fan of the brand and owned a personal collection. He transformed them into a legendary item. The Italian brand celebrated the actor by recently re-launching the model in a limited edition.
Steve McQueen suits up in Norman Jewison’s 1968 crime caper The Thomas Crown Affair, set in the upper class location of Beacon Hill in Boston. He was looking for a new type of character after his rebel roles from The Great Escape and Bullitt and wanted to change his screen image. Groomed down to the last detail, he emerged as the new Steve McQueen in The Thomas Crown Affair as arbitrage specialist/bank robber Thomas Crown. And once again, a movie elevated everyday clothes to cult status. Because the film, with a questionable narration and underdeveloped characters, is really about the style. And it’s Steve McQueen’s style that I’m talking about. Unfortunately, Faye Dunaway’s clothes, true to the modish 1960s fashion (Theadora Van Runkle was the costumes designer), look dated now. They are sixties excess. Viewed in the context of the ’60s though, Faye Dunaway’s wardrobe makes perfect sense – films that capture the spirit of the times so closely are to be appreciated. So maybe the issue I’m having with the feminine costumes is that the sixties fashion doesn’t appeal to me at all – it’s my least favourite fashion decade.
But then I look at Steve McQueen’s wardrobe, which has stayed relevant to this day, and I remember Domenico Dolce’s quote: “Women are into fashion, men are into style, style is forever.” He might very well have had this film in mind when he said that. Menswear, which is formed of far more classic staples than womenswear, has had little variations in time, apparent only in details, resulting in a linear evolution of a recognizable style. Women’s fashion is much more often subjected to change just for the sake of change.
The pocket watch is Patek Philippe. About the gold Phi Beta Kappa key he had to wear, he said he couldn’t get used to: “My fraternity emblem should be a couple of hub caps hanging from a tire chain.”
In my interview with Richard Torregrossa, author of Cary Grant: A Celebration of Style, he regards The Thomas Crown Affair as one of the most influential moments in men’s style. Ralph Lauren and Tom Ford are of the same opinion. The film is a celebration of male sartorial self-expression. McQueen’s union of complete masculinity and sense of style, as dashing self-made millionaire, is what sealed the film’s enduring appeal, reconnecting men with a classic menswear elegance. Transformed brilliantly into character (he even had his hair cut by celebrity stylist and good friend Jay Sebring), Steve McQueen wears a series of perfectly tailored three-piece suits (their fitted cut anticipating today’s preference for form-fitting jackets) by Douglas Hayward (I previously credited Beverly Hills tailor Ron Postal, based on one of my sources, Caroline Young’s book Classic Hollywood Style, but a couple of readers and more recent research proved to be more accurate). The legendary grey Prince of Wales Glen plaid suit in the opening scene is one of them. A light blue shirt with large mother-of-pearl cuff links is counterpointed by a royal blue silk tie knotted with a dimpled half Windsor and a dove grey square pocket fills the breast pocket.
A slim fit, fine knit, mock neck sweater with contrasting colour details, checkered trousers and suede chukka boots.
McQueen also exercises his casual and sports look he has become famous for, having been proclaimed the “King of Cool”. The suede desert boots, for example, were a favourite style of Steve McQueen’s. The khakis – functional, comfortable and hard-wearing – were also an item that became a menswear staple thanks to Hollywood actors, including Steve McQueen. The navy blouson, or the windbreaker, completes the look (above and below) – neat, simple, casual, comfortable, lightweight and showerproof, smarter than a denim jacket and not as loaded with stereotype as the leather one. Steve McQueen had become an adherent and had worn one when he was photographed riding one of his many motorcycles for the cover of Life magazine in 1963.
He learned to play polo for the role and did all the stunts, like piloting a plane.
A beautiful midnight-blue suit worn with a subtly striped shirt with a collar pin and a four-in-hand-knotted, double-pleated tie.
I like the play of colours going on in the image above. And there’s an idea of a man’s rectangular watch (Patek Philippe) I wouldn’t mind owning myself.
The contrast between the blue pocket square and the green tie is a nice touch.
The straight point collar, a basic staple of the Ivy style. Steve McQueen’s was a champion of the style and his off-screen wardrobe was brim full of Ivy classics. The pin is the passport to the Ivy look.
The mac is the essential raincoat for men.
The tuxedo rounds up his sartorial choices.
And again in a casual outfit. From the looks of the sports footwear, I think he is wearing the Sperry canvas CVO, a classic since 1935, and one of the ultimate Ivy seals of approval, which still holds firm today. He’s wearing a denim jacket.
This beach outfit of Faye Dunaway’s (she’s Vicki Anderson, the insurance investigator who’s after Thomas Crown) is among the very few I like in her film wardrobe. Headscarf, sunglasses, white trousers and beige hand-knit sweater. It’s the simplest and most classic of them all. There is also the casual look below with that raffia market bag and one other knitted pullover-white pants look that I would easily wear today. The eyewear and hats are the only other items that have captured my interest.
Steve McQueen makes even a checked cardigan look cool. He’s wearing another model of Jaeger Lecoultre Memovox watch here.
Steve McQueen’s passion for cars and motorbikes is well known. He helped design this red dune buggy with Pete Condos, an off-road vehicle builder. Another collegiate garment is the chunky Aran knit sweater.
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bibliography: Classic Hollywood Style, by Caroline Young / Icons of Men’s Style
, by Josh Sims / The Ivy Look: Classic American Clothing
, by Graham Marsh and J.P. Paul / the article Crowning Glory, by Wei Koh, discovered via Mister Crew
screen stills captured by me from this Blu-ray edition
Really cool guy. Wish he had more shots wearing combat boots. I could use a role model in style.
Yeah but combat boots outside of battle, and the early 90’s, are not in style. They are by no means a classic or constant staple. The only reason they’re currently in vogue, is because of coming of age 90’s kids are nostalgic.
I’m pretty sure his tailor was Douglas Hayward of Mayfair, and the suits are very consistent with his style. Also, the suits have a very English cut, which means any Beverly Hills tailor is probably out of the question.
Thank you for pointing this out. However, my source for these details was Caroline Young’s book, Classic Hollywood Style, and although I am aware of what other sources state, I will stand by what I wrote, but will look further into this issue.
Great article. Zubair Hossain, above, is correct – Doug Hayward was McQueen’s tailor on this film (and later in he is personal life). The book ‘Sharp Suits’ by Eric Musgrave addresses the fact that Ron Postal received credit for the suits despite the fact that they were made by Hayward (see here: https://bit.ly/2a7LcfF) . Hayward’s work was well-known at the time and the Crown suits are clearly in Hayward’s style but do check out the following sources:
Douglas Hayward website: https://www.douglashayward.co.uk/heritage.php
Financial Times: https://howtospendit.ft.com/mens-fashion/2803-a-twist-in-the-tailoring
Thank you for the details and sources. I will make sure to mention it in my article.
In case you’re wondering, his desert boots are the playboy model from Snaders & Sanders, in all likelihood in snuff suede. Hope it helps.
Thank you for the detailed information. I appreciate it.
”Steve McQueen makes even a checked cardigan look cool. He’s wearing another model of Patek Philippe watch here.” Definitely not! It’s a gold Jaeger Lecoultre Memovox.
Thank you, William, for the information. I always use reliable sources (mainly books, not the internet) when I write my articles, but sometimes mistakes slip.
I disagree with you ,about Faye Dunaway clothes are right time now. I see Rihanna , Beyonce and Amal Clooney. The sixties is a classic timeless look , this look took us out of looking like old women like the 50s. The 60s introduce the Mini , Beatles and James Bond. Faye Dunaway, truly were now.
Hello, Juanita. I very much respect your opinion, but I sincerely can not describe Faye Dubaway’s wardrobe in this film as timeless, except for her trousers look. I can not deny the importance of the ’60s fashion in liberating women from the constrictive clothes of the previous decades, but the shapes, the tailoring are ingrained in the style and aesthetic of this particular decade. And mini skirts do not mean timeless style. The decade that I truly consider much important from the point of view of both enduring style and the liberation of the spirit is the 1970s – not the hippie period, but the minimalist fashion embodied by the likes of Ali MacGraw, for example, in The Getaway, that all-American ease, natural and undone stance. Because her style still serves as a blue print for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Michael Kors and Tommy Hilfiger, and even Gucci (namely Frida Gianinni’s noteworthy last collection for the brand, Spring/Summer 2015). Rihanna and Beyonce… I am sorry, but I do not see them as style role models. I do not believe future generations will pour over images of Beyoncé and Rihanna the way we still do over photographs of Audrey Hepburn, Jackie Kennedy, Katharine Hepburn, Ali MacGraw, and, yes, Faye Dunaway. As for men’s style, that is un entirely different discussion. Womenswear is more a product of fashion which can be defined as frequent change just for the sake of change (the exact reasoning of my arguments against Faye’s wardrobe as timeless), whereas much of the men’s wardrobe has been largely the same for decades. For that matter, I have repeatedly sung James Bond’s style and cultural influence here on Classiq.
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