I’ve been wearing a pair of cargo shorts that are now much too big for me. Yesterday I got some roofing adhesive on them, so I decided it’s time to get some new shorts. I went for Carhartt 10" ‘Rigby’ shorts, as I’m kind of over cargo shorts.
I got to thinking about shorts lengths. In old movies from like the 1930s, boys wore ‘suit shorts’. i.e., they wore a jacket and tie, with matching knee-length shorts. (It was weird when I went back East in the mid-'80s and saw men wearing ‘suit shorts’. Nobody did that in L.A.) I remember back in the '70s that the shorts basketball players wore were rather short. Now they extend to just below the knee. Thomas Magnum wore very short shorts; but those were UDT shorts and that went with the character.
Shorts seem to have gotten longer in the past couple/few decades. ‘Jams’, ‘board shorts’, ‘cargo shorts’… I liked the way board shorts looked in the early-'90s, but I prefer shorter shorts because I’m not making a fashion statement. But speaking of fashion, do you think shorter shorts will ever come back in style?
Huh… because I’ve seen the opposite. Shorts got long in the late 90s, early 2000s, but are trending shorter again - especially in the last 5 years. At least that’s what I’m seeing at The Gap or J.Crew.
From time to time, I’ll see a person walking along in a flowing, voluminous garment. I turn, expecting to see a lady wearing a pretty dress…nope, just a guy in basketball shorts.
The trend is definitely going in the direction of trimmer and shorter. The skinny jeans on men look has influenced general trouser snugness, and this has migrated to shorts too. And length is now often something one can choose (you mention 10"), giving options for shorter rather or longer.
However, I do think we are a long was from Magnum style “disco shorts” becoming mainstream. One would always see short/tight men’s shorts in some circles, if one knew where to look.
Back in the before-times, we were talking with another couple and my gf asked where he got his shorts, explaining that I needed slightly longer shorts, otherwise, when I sat down, my boobs got exposed.
The other couple looked at me, puzzled, so I pulled up on my short’s hem and showed my Sailor’s Dream tattoo (Greg Irons art), which involves a topless woman.
I’m of the age where OP* branded corduroy very short shorts were the height of fashion when I was in High School & just into college. At least in L.A. I think I had every color they made and wore out a couple generations of 'em.
I agree with others that shorts are now slightly shorter than, say, 3 years ago when they were about at their ugly stupid almost ankle-length max. But the amount of shortening so far is just a tweak, not a trend.
Amazing coincidence …
The other day I was yakking with a bunch of neighbors of varying ages who were about half women. We were talking about clothes and changing fashions for some reason, then I said something like “I wish shorter men’s shorts would came back like in the old days.” That set off a real chorus of "Eewww!"s from all the assembled women, both young and ancient. And pretty well killed the conversation. Oh well.
So Johnny, you and I may get our wish some day, but on the other hand we may be surprised at who’ll be checking out our booty after we get them.
* Ocean Pacific but everyone pronounced it "Oh Pee". Their logo was the letters "OP" embroidered near the hem. They got started with shorts but soon had a whole line of summer wear for originally just boys / men then eventually girls / women too.
I gave up few years ago when I noticed some NCAA football players were wearing “pants” above the knees, and NBA players’ “shorts” came below the knees.
I spent a lot of time in rugby shorts in the 70s and could not accept it when men began wearing coolots and peddle-pushers and calling them shorts. My legs need some air.
Please get rid of the extra-long shorts! I don’t mean you have to go back to Magnum PI shorts (with long tube sox!) but no more of the flabby basketball shorts that come to mid-calf. They’re still the norm here in MN. It’s either those or cargo shorts, which always look like they’ve been wadded up under a pile of dirty clothes. The pocket flaps are always crumpled and bunched up - I get it, I wouldn’t iron them either. They have to come up with knee length shorts that are in between the skinny jean and the baggy leg.
The “fashion trend” that I really hate is a pair of the long, flabby basketball shorts paired with ankle socks that are slipped into the athletic sandal (black or white rubber with one strap over the top of the foot). In the winter, here in MN, I’ll see that outfit topped with a big puffy winter jacket.
The current rule of thumb I have heard is the rule of ⅓. Measure the length of your leg. The length of the shorts leg should be ⅓ of that. And/or 2-3 inches above the knee.
I do notice that US short length tends to be several years behind European short length. US guys - this is what you will be wearing in the next three or four years:
That’s pretty much what I’m wearing now. I’ve got a pair of George shorts on. They go down to about an inch above the kneecap when standing, and cover about 2/3 of my thigh while sitting. If I curl up so that my knees are up against my chest, the shorts cover about half of my thigh.
