Club Obi Wan

First you must understand that my wardrobe consists mostly of safari type shirts. In all colors. I shop mostly outdoor wear stores, online, Sierra West, Cabelas, Orvis, etc. I probably own over 30 shirts, all with the safari look, and I love multiple pockets. Preferably with flaps over the pockets, with no buttons showing, but those are hard to find since cabelas dropped their adventure line. several years ago. But I digress.

Anyways, I stopped at a store yesterday on my way back from the post office for a soft drink, and of course had my hat on the old head. Never leave the house without it. This new cashier, commented, "wow, you look like you are going on a safari!!" She said it very nicely. I have never had this comment before! And I loved it.

The only other comments I get is generally at the post office, when the old time clerks there, who know me well, (they see me every day) will at times, holler out, "hey, he's the guy who made the Indy hats for Harrison!" Being in the South, this will always get folks talking to me, while I wait in line. Most of the nice comments come from older gentlemen who always have a story to tell about hats, and how they all used to wear them. It makes the waiting in line a nice experience.

I can't recall the last time someone made a comment of me being Indy, but if they do, I have a quick come back. I just say that I made the hats for the last film, and I am advertising my hats. It changes the temperment of the comment right away! But most will find, as you reach my age, most folks won't make the Indy comment. Maybe they expect a guy pushing 60 to wear a hat. Fedora

The only time I get a comment these days is when I'm NOT wearing a hat, so I think you have a point there, Steve.

Regards! Michaelson

Usually when I get a comment it comes from the older generation. My favorite is the time I was shopping and an old timer came up to me and said "Nice fedora, son." He went on to say "There are two things I tell everybody, Don't touch my hat, and don't step on my boots." He proceeded to give me a wink and went on with his shopping. I thought to myself "Now there is a man who gets it."


Beaverlid

Steve, are you sure you don't make cowboy hats? Within the last week or two, while wearing one of my AB's out, I've had one little kid ask if I was a cowboy and overheard another say, "Look! He's a cowboy!"

I only seem to get cowboy comments from small children, and this got me thinking. I bet the only experience little kids have with larger brimmed hats come from watching cowboy movies or playing cowboy. Some of them look a bit young to be that familiar with Indy, much less anything from the Golden Era. Tell a kid the hat harkens back to the 1930s and he'll look at you like you're from another planet. They have no connection to it. Same thing with old school gangsters, they don't know it. Cowboys, however, are a completely different thing. THAT they understand and know, so when they see a hat with a taller crown or larger brim, they instantly associate it with being a cowboy hat, whether it is one or not. That's my theory, anyway. That, or maybe I need to stop wearing chaps and spurs in public.

binkmeisterRick wrote: Tell a kid the hat harkens back to the 1930s and he'll look at you like you're from another planet.

I may try that next time I get the chance.. sounds like a fun experiment.

Sort of like the time when I was 12 or so and the family was traveling, stopped in a restaurant in Ocala, Florida. I went up to the counter, with a dead serious straight face and asked how much further it was in to NYC, that someone at the gas station told us it wasn't too far. The rest of the family had gone to the restroom, and couldn't figure out why they got stares once they came out and we ordered.

Randy

Classic. In the case of little children, if they ask me if I'm a cowboy, I've come to engage them in conversation.

Child: Are you a cowboy?

Me: No, but the hat kinda looks like it could be one, doesn't it? It's actually like a hat your grandpa might have worn

I had a wonderful chat with a kid on the train home from work one day who thought I was a cowboy (the MkVII bag must've added to the opinion) and I just went with it. Why burst a little kid's bubble? His mom had the biggest smile and it ended up making my day.

Gosh I really wish I could buy one of your hats.
Maybe not even just for the INdy factor, but the idea that it's so classy, like how they used to always wear suit like hats in the 30s.. quality beaver blend hats like you were explaining.
If you weren't swamped with INdy hats I'd probably buy 2 or 3.

Ah Bink, the same thing has happened to me once with kids. I was in a local cafe, with a friend. At the next table was a family of 3, with one being a child about 4 or 5 years old. I heard him ask his mom, "mom, IS that a REAL cowboy?" I got a big kick out of it.

But like Michaelson, if I leave my hat at home(seldom) I get "where's the hat?" remarks from the places I stop on a regular basis. Or better, "I didn't know who you were at first, without your hat" As I walk away, and they get to see my balding spot, they probably think, "that guy should have worn his hat!" Fedora

The best some of seem to get is "Are you really a hillbilly?"

LJ

The other day I was walking into a store and a group of teenage rednecks walked by and one exclaimed; "Look its Abraham Lincoln!" I have a pretty short temper and normally I may have approached him or said something back, but that time I just figured I'd let his stupidity speak for itself.

The other day someone said "nice Top Hat."

Long John Tinfoil wrote:The best some of seem to get is "Are you really a hillbilly?"

LJ

Shore Nuff! Gonna cut up the holler to ma still and cork a bottle uv white lightnin'

Randy

Why just today at work, while not even wearing my AB, I had to go to my desk to get something to show a customer, so he saw were I sit. After we were done talking he commented, nice fedora you have there. Always brings a smile to my face when someone actualy know what there called.

Croft

Yesterday I got two "Howdy"s from two seperate groups of kids. Then I was at 7-11 and had this dude who works there tell me he really digs my cowboy look. What the heck is wrong with these people? Do I need to be carrying a briefcase and wearing a necktie for these idiots to tell the difference?

Another thing I've noticed, living in Detroit as I do, is that I see countless black people everyday wearing awesome fedoras, yet I don't think they get any gruff about it or accused of being a "cowboy". A lot of them will compliment me. Yet my fellow whities can't get over it. What gives?

My thoughts on this are a double-edged sword. Sometimes I wish that men's hats would become wildly popular among the masses again. But if that were to happen I fear that I might lose interest. Not to sound snobby, but my feelings on the subject are akin to having a band you really like, but then they go mainstream and become popular. You kind of resent everyone else's fandom. Then the interest fades a bit. I know that sounds like a bad attitude, but I'm just being honest.

theinterchange wrote:cork a bottle uv white lightnin'

I can't believe I'm saying this cuz it seems so "only a nerd would know the difference" but it's not:

HOW THE #### DO THEY NOT KNOW THE DIFFERENCE between a fedora and a cowboy hat

Because they're not exposed to them the same way as we are. I'm sure someone could come up to any one of us and yell "How the heck can you not know the difference between X and Y?!" It's a matter of perspective, really. Fact of the matter is that the majority of wide brimmed hats seen in the US these days are cowboy hats. Kids are so far removed from having seen or been exposed to fedoras as such. Heck, do you remember what life was like before microwave ovens? I most certainly do, but I'll wager a bet that a good number of folks around here never knew what the world was like without them.

What I find ironic is that we look to the fedora as a time when men who wore such hats held themselves with a certain amount of etiquette and manners. We want to emulate that era. Yet so many of you are the first to scream your heads off at people because they don't know the difference between a cowboy hat and a fedora. So much for that idea, I suppose. I guess I'm just an idealist.

I may call myself a hat snob, but I am not a snob. If a kid calls me a cowboy, I'll smile and maybe nicely talk to him or her for a moment. If an adult says something snarky, I'm the better man and let it roll off my back. Life is too short, folks.

I don't think its just the wide brim that makes people think its a cowboy hat - its the colour brown. No one has ever made the cowboy comment about my grey (moonstone) Akubra. I normally get gangster comments instead. But brown is a country colour and most people don't understand or care enough about hats to know the difference. Lets face it, we can all come across as idiots to people who know more about something than us. How many of us know the difference between all the different types of ladies clothes. Whats the difference between a dress and a frock? I'll laugh if anyone answers that question

Oh, the temptation...

I have to admit that I think it's funny that brown is considered a "country color" when most of the cowboy hats I see are black, white, or silver in color. I guess perception varies per individual, too.

Aside from a few halloween parties, I've only worn my Indy gear for conventions. So really, I've only had one or two comments but one was pretty funny. Last year, for SDCC I was staying in a hotel a few miles from the convention center and had to take the trolley to get there. While on the trolley, in my Indy gear, I saw a small family, dad, mom and young son, probably 5. They seemed to be talking amongst themselves and then the little guy sheepishly approached me and said "are you the real guy from the movie or are you just dressed up?". I just smiled and said, "no, I'm just dressed up..." I guess my sunglasses lead him to believe I was a celebrity or something

You mean you're NOT really Indiana Jones? Those type of experiences alway make me smile, even if the kid thinks I'm a cowboy.

binkmeisterRick wrote: You mean you're NOT really Indiana Jones? Those type of experiences alway make me smile, even if the kid thinks I'm a cowboy.

You been out partying in your Marty McFly gear again?

In Miami, I get the "Nice cowboy hat!" comment a lot. Do you know what my response always is? "Thanks! Glad you like it!"

The fact is that any comment like that is a positive one. Someone went out of there way to compliment you on your hat. Very rarely do I get a "Nice fedora," though it has happened. I even had a guy ask me "What do you call what you are wearing on your head?" He was sincere too! I very kindly explained what a fedora was and let him hold it and see what I was talking about.

Loads of people don't really know about hats but know of hats. Wearing a grey hat I usually get a "You look like Bogie!" and when I'm wearing a brown hat I get a "You look like Indy" or "Crocodile Dundee." Black hats I normally get "You look like Al Capone!" But that doesn't make them bad comments. I take each and every one of those as a positive thing.

Rick, your right. The reason I wear a fedora is because I feel like we should all be more like the men of yesteryear...real men, from the way I dress to the way I act. I wore a long sleeve Safari shirt the other day while moving furniture and boxes into my new place and someone asked me why I was "all dressed up" to move. I guess what I think is casual is dressy to some, but you know what? People are always complimenting me on my sense of style.

I don't like that others don't know about hats or dress in jeans, t-shirts, and flip-flops to go to church, but it doesn't mean I'm better.

Dave

Kt, I'm just glad I got my boots back from you.

Dave, I agree with you, a compliment is a compliment, even if they call it a cowboy hat. I've been pretty awful in the past when it comes to receiving compliments, but I've learned over the years that it's okay to say "thank you" instead of deflating the sincerity of the comment.

_ wrote:Oh - I know about all this stuff, but I still wear jeans to church. T-shirt too. Kelly gives me a hard time about the t-shirt, but our priest never has. Afterall - he wears flip-flops to church. What's in your heart is more important than what's on your back. I've never had to look to what I'm wearing to feel good or confident. Never understood those who do...

Hey, I practically live in jeans. I love a good pair of Levis. I just dont' like to wear a t-shirt out of the house unless I have a long sleeve shirt worn unbuttoned over it.

Dave

I guess I must be wearing my fedora a lot these past few years. The other day I walked out of the house with a baseball cap on, and when my 15 yr old saw me was taken aback. I asked him what was wrong, he said he wasn't used to seeing me in any hat but a fedora.

Hey, I practically live in jeans. I love a good pair of Levis. I just dont' like to wear a t-shirt out of the house unless I have a long sleeve shirt worn unbuttoned over it.

Yeah but but nothin' beats a pair of starched Wranglers...

Got called a cowboy this afternoon by another little kid. I was wearing a grey AB, so no, I don't think the color of the hat has anything to do with it.

DR Ulloa wrote:

_ wrote:Oh - I know about all this stuff, but I still wear jeans to church. T-shirt too. Kelly gives me a hard time about the t-shirt, but our priest never has. Afterall - he wears flip-flops to church. What's in your heart is more important than what's on your back. I've never had to look to what I'm wearing to feel good or confident. Never understood those who do...

Hey, I practically live in jeans. I love a good pair of Levis. I just dont' like to wear a t-shirt out of the house unless I have a long sleeve shirt worn unbuttoned over it.

Dave

I alternate between jeans and khakis for daily wear. I never wear shorts out in public, only around the house or jogging and such.

I've gotten a few redneck comments behind my back, but I'm ok with it. The few negative comments folks have made to my face, I made them uncomforable by looking them in the eye after they said whatever they did.

Randy

The only thing that bothers me about the cowboy comment is that I wear my fedora with a 3 piece suit, tie, cuff links and smart shoes, all colour co-ordinated. I should look like a gent. I did get a very loud-mouthed feral say something to his girlfriend (but loud enough so it was obviously for my benefit). He literally went on and on and on as he walked down the road "I thought I was gonna see a black and white TV with Ned Kelly, or Al Capone. I must have stepped into a time warp cos no one in the right mind would wanna look like that..."

Apart from the very inaccurate Ned Kelly comment I was pleased that he recognised the old style and more importantly I was proud to be different from idiots like him.

If he makes such an accurate identification of your outfit, I'm betting that deep down he isn't "in his right mind" either

Regards, Geert

I get the cowboy comment all the time when I visit my wife and her class of four year olds at school, and that isn't all that unexpected. But when a 30-something friend said something about my "nice cowboy hat", I figured she was due for a history lesson!

Snapbrim76 wrote:I did get a very loud-mouthed feral say something to his girlfriend (but loud enough so it was obviously for my benefit). He literally went on and on and on as he walked down the road "I thought I was gonna see a black and white TV with Ned Kelly, or Al Capone. I must have stepped into a time warp cos no one in the right mind would wanna look like that..."

I'm willing to bet that Buttercup you speak of was most likely carrying on in such a dramatic fashion like that because a moment earlier his girlfriend probably mentioned to him how nice you look.

Anyway, you guys got me feeling guilty about my attitude. I suppose I should appreciate compliments, but it does still bother me when folks go out of their way to be snarky just to impress their friends. And whover said above that it's all relative to people's exposure is pretty much correct. I lived in Arizona for almost 6 years, and never once in that time did anyone ever confuse a fedora for a cowboy hat.

At school I have to keep telling them that it is not a cowboy hat and that in fact it is a fedora and their response "what that be?" Kids this days nknow nothing about a good hat.
-Jake

I have a kahki tactical vest with lots of pockets. It look like a safari vest, but it's a bit heavier and longer, mainly because it's designed to conceal firearms, spare ammunition, and gear.

I walked into a movie theater wearing my vest and my AB Henry fedora, and the young female clerk behind the ticket counter asked me if I was going on an adventure. I just gave her a crooked grin, and she suddenly got worried that she offended me. Then she started gushing about how much she liked my hat.

I usually get compliments, but of course, the occassional snicker. It makes me bristle the way it may make some kid walking around with his pants hanging halfway off his butt bristle when I snicker at him. To each his own.

On another note, I have decent collection of cowboy hats, and I can tell the difference between a fedora and a cowboy hat. But those differences are largely based on modern stylings, not on tradition. If you watch some period westerns, you'll see lots of cowboys wearing bowlers or hats that look like fedoras, but with wider brims or higher crowns, along with what we now think of as a standard cowboy hat.

My normal attire consists of jeans, with a collared shirt over a t-shirt, and half the time I'll be wearing one of a half-dozen hats I currently own. I'm currently enjoying my latest acquisition; a chocolate-brown cavanaugh. My favorite is still my Fed IV in Moonstone. My other hats will tide me over til my AB arrives...

At a horse show with my daughter, the barrel racer, last month I got a "What kind of hat is that?" from a couple of folks. That was a new one for me, usually I'm wearing a Western style hat like everyone else... Come to think of it, though, when I wandered over to the jumping and dressage rings nobody seemed to know what to make of it.

LJ

Hulkamad:

I carry a Kimber Eclipse Custom II, .45 caliber 1911. It's got a 5 inch barrel and night sights. Sure, it's kinda big and heavy. But it can't be beat for reliability and stopping power. And the weight and long barrel creates a good balance against recoil.

I also have an Umberti .45 Colt single action six shooter, with an old fashioned western designed drop holster and cartridge belt. Unfortunately, that doesn't come out of the closet too often.

Let's keep this focused on hats and the topic of the thread. The Indy gun section is a couple doors down.

Arch Stanton wrote:

Snapbrim76 wrote:I lived in Arizona for almost 6 years, and never once in that time did anyone ever confuse a fedora for a cowboy hat.

I think that exposure probably has a lot to do with it. Here in Texas, no one ever mistakes my grey Fed IV for a cowboy hat, probably because we see cowboy hats every day around here. Less often than non-Texans probably realize, but often enough for people to register the difference. No one has mistaken my black Stetson fedora for a cowboy hat either. Interesting, since I actually converted it from a cowboy hat.

On the Fedora Lounge I suggested that most people don't really *observe* unfamiliar things and just make vague associations instead. "This vaguely reminds me of Thing X, therefore it must actually be Thing X." Once they've come to that conclusion it doesn't even occur to them to look any further. (I say "them" when, in fact, we're all wired like this.)

Just my opinion.

I have on occasion received an Indy comment while wearing a cowboy hat. It cuts both ways.

i was commented on my new uptowner hat a few time s in the week that i have owned it --- once when i was in the grocery stote a lady stiocking the shelves saw me coming down the aisle and she said " hey isnt that indiana jones hat?' i said yes and she replied " you look good in it " --- the next time was hwenb i went thru a drive thru to get something to eat and the girl at the window saw my hat and said " i was going to say you look like that indiana jones guy , but i see buy your shirt it is the hat he wears ", she smiled and i drove off . but i think the more i wear my hat toward halloween i will get comments like " it isnt hallwoeen yet"

I also live in Texas and wear an AB fedora every time I go out (unless I am working in the yard - when I wear a straw cowboy hat). The only time I have been called a cowboy in Texas when wearing my fedora was by a small child riding in his dad's shopping cart at WalMart. I was walking in the opposite direction from them and all of a sudden the kid pointed at me and yelled "Cowboy!". His dad and I looked at each other and just grinned.

I took a trip with my sister, brother and mother a couple of years ago to upstate New York to visit her sister. She introduced us to the local priest (an older man). When she came to me (wearing my fedora) she said I was from Houston. He said, "Of course - I could tell he was from Texas by his cowboy hat." I just smiled, bit my tongue, and shook his hand. Now I would have considered him old enough to know a fedora from a cowboy hat but obviously I was wrong. Especially after we saw vintage pictures of street scenes from the same town showing literally every man wearing a hat and 90% were fedoras.

Most of the time I just get comments like "Nice hat". Some ask where I got it whereupon I get to brag about Steve.

Lately I stumbled on an old picture of me (when I was about 4 or 5) with my mother on a Sunday before church. I guess I was destined to wear a fedora. My dad was in the Air Force and we moved a lot so I have no idea what happened to the hat in the picture. Wish I still had it. Pay no attention to the fancy step to the trailer.



Paul ô¿ô

Fedora wrote: Maybe they expect a guy pushing 60 to wear a hat. Fedora

Yeah! Old people get a total pass to wear fedoras. Getting old rules! .... Great picture thatguyno1, a real kids fedora!

thatguyno1 wrote: Lately I stumbled on an old picture of me (when I was about 4 or 5) with my mother on a Sunday before church. I guess I was destined to wear a fedora. My dad was in the Air Force and we moved a lot so I have no idea what happened to the hat in the picture. Wish I still had it. Pay no attention to the fancy step to the trailer.



Paul ô¿ô

"That"............is a bloody MAGNIFICENT picture

I guess at least the Indy look is close enough to mainstream to get away with in most areas.... I can't say that my Spartan 300 outfit blends in quite so easily...

darthbish wrote:"That"............is a bloody MAGNIFICENT picture

Thanks for the positive comments - that pic was taken around 1951 or 52. Can you imagine the investment that hatter had in blocks for children sizes in addition to adults. Would love to hear Steve's thoughts on that one.

But back on topic. I think some of you are right when you say older men tend to get a pass on wearing a fedora. As Steve already indicated - I get comments when I don't wear the hat. Everyone at the office is used to my hat but sometimes when I leave at lunch I don't wear it because I am not going outside (Houston has an extensive tunnel system downtown with shops and food establishments). Then I get people pointing to their head saying where's the hat??

Paul

Thatguy, your mother was/is a lovely looking lady.

Randy

What a great pic Paul. Thanks for posting that one.

a chocolate-brown cavanaugh.

Ah, my all time fav vintage brand of hat. Never seen a bad one. And I don't generally care for edge treatment, but the Cavanagh edge was really something. Wish they still made hats with this sort of edge. Bogey liked em too.

theinterchange wrote:Thatguy, your mother was/is a lovely looking lady.

Randy

My mother would thank you but she has never owned a computer. She just turned 86 last week. I am going to visit her this Thursday. She lives in north east Louisiana. One of these days I am going to go the extra mileage and try to visit Steve. Would love to see his shop.

Just went out to lunch across the street from the office building and got a smile from a pretty young lady and a "Love your hat" comment from her. Tends to make your day when that happens doesn't it.

Paul