# Style Of Clothing That Is Best Accentuated With A Porkpie Hat? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 11, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554 "2011-05-11T19:05:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/21 "2011-05-13T11:34:36Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > I thought that was the whole point of a porkpie hat? You’re thinking of a Fedora. Porkpie = [Thelonius Monk](http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.awakeinmydreams.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/thelonius-monk.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.awakeinmydreams.com/page/15%3F92395cc8&usg=__ZfoklxcmBysi59oCGB2PX8TcN7E=&h=300&w=225&sz=13&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=on2eicSkQDu5aM:&tbnh=145&tbnw=114&ei=GBfNTcydGsjIgQf2pMW4DA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dthelonius%2Bmonk%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26rlz%3D1T4GGLL_enUS388US389%26biw%3D993%26bih%3D793%26tbm%3Disch&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=468&vpy=110&dur=251&hovh=240&hovw=180&tx=115&ty=123&page=1&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0)/ Jazz Cat ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/22 "2011-05-13T11:51:48Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > [This is how I imagine you](http://www.armstrong.com/content2/flooring/images/61022.png), Beezer. He looks strikingly similar to Sammy Davis Jr. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/23 "2011-05-13T13:13:34Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > You’re thinking of a Fedora. Naw, I was thinking of Joe Pantoliano in The Sopranos. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/24 "2011-05-13T14:05:14Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > He looks strikingly similar to Sammy Davis Jr. It’s an Armstrong flooring ad. They have a whole series of them with old celebrity lookalikes with the tag line, “it only looks like the real thing.” I love them. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2011, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/25 "2011-05-13T18:55:56Z")
Have we really covered the best suggestions? If so, anyone care to regale us with some stories of any past or present situations where they were snappily dressed (awesome hat must be included, otherwise you weren’t _that_ snappily dressed)? ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2011, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/26 "2011-05-14T05:36:19Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > other colored dress pants (not suit pants) > [@Myself](#): > > Is there actually a difference besides cost? And I do mean that seriously, I’ve never particularly worn much of anything besides jeans. I do have a few pairs of dress pants for job interviews, but is there a significant difference between dress pants and suit pants? I noticed no one actually answered this, so I figured I’d requote it to see if I can get some clarification. Yes I’m young/naive about such matters. ---
**Author:** ![Philliam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/philliam/32/3011_2.png) [@Philliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philliam)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/27 "2011-05-14T18:51:43Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > - Lose the suspenders… > - Heavy-soled shoes like Doc’s, or Chuck Taylors > - Clean jeans or khaki’s > - White t-shirt > - Either a dark-colored knit sweater vest - wear just over the t-shirt - or a loose, comfy, plaid blazer - again, just over the t-shirt - or a cool short-sleeve (bowling shirt or the kind worn by Larry David or Charlie Sheen on their TV shows) - or a denim button-down shirt worn as a jacket and left mostly unbuttoned… > - do you wear glasses? Black plastic frames can work… > > This is basically what I wear as a gigging guitar player - I have a stingy-brim black hat that works… No wonder now why I’m not pulling any chicks at my gigs… who knew the bass player shouldn’t wear a beanie? ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/28 "2011-05-14T20:40:32Z")
A porkpie hat is correctly worn with a faded blue seersucker suit, and a card marked “Press” in the hatband. You work as a reporter, but most of your stories wind up spiked because they are all about various monsters that you encounter in the course of your week. Oddly, each week, you encounter different kinds of monsters. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2011, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/29 "2011-05-14T22:13:36Z")
Did someone think you were “Popeye” Doyle or something? ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/30 "2011-05-16T05:57:32Z")
Thought of another useful question: _where_ can I find some or most of these items? The blazers and bowling shirts more specifically. Fashionable pants I can find, but blazers and bowling shirts are not things that have ever caught my eye previously so I know pretty much nothing about where to find them. Obviously the internet would work, but right now I want to be able to try these types of things on at least get a general feel for how they’d fit so I know my size. Can’t do that on the internet at this stage just yet. Already have ordered a pair of Doc Martens, as a nice update to the thread. Related to my previous paragraph, I may have gotten a size off from what I need. I guess we’ll see when they get here on Tuesday. :smack: > [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > A porkpie hat is correctly worn with a faded blue seersucker suit, and a card marked “Press” in the hatband. You work as a reporter, but most of your stories wind up spiked because they are all about various monsters that you encounter in the course of your week. Oddly, each week, you encounter different kinds of monsters. I’ll see what I can do about a career change. 😉 Also, just want to bring some questions back to focus: > [@Me](#): > > Is there actually a difference besides cost? And I do mean that seriously, I’ve never particularly worn much of anything besides jeans. I do have a few pairs of dress pants for job interviews, but is there a significant difference between dress pants and suit pants? ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/31 "2011-05-16T06:32:26Z")
Suit pants are dress pants that match more-or-less precisely the jacket of a two-piece suit. I’ve found them to be on average a little nicer than most fancy pants, but I have some nice fancy pants as well that didn’t come as part of a suit. He may seem like a self-conscious wannabe gangsta stooge, but Marc Ecko (his company, really) makes good stuff for men, like wool dress pants, that has a little bit of flair to it. I think I got a pretty nice bowling shirt at Ross or Marshall’s – one of those places – last summer. I love those kinds of places – good if you just want a flashier pair of shoes or some jeans that would normally be like a hundy over across the way. I’d guess any department store would have anything you’d need or want as well. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/32 "2011-05-16T06:37:31Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > He may seem like a self-conscious wannabe gangsta stooge, but Marc Ecko’s Actually, having seen him in multiple interviews, he seems like a very down to Earth guy. Though sometimes his clothes, or maybe the most common people that wear his clothes, give him the image of being a wannabe gangster douche. Marc himself seems to be quite a good guy. And yeah I figured department stores would likely carry what I’m looking, just was wondering if anywhere specific carried better/larger selections of the sort of stuff we’ve been discussing. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/33 "2011-05-16T09:49:17Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > Thought of another useful question: _where_ can I find some or most of these items? The blazers and bowling shirts more specifically. Fashionable pants I can find, but blazers and bowling shirts are not things that have ever caught my eye previously so I know pretty much nothing about where to find them. Kohl’s usually starts carrying bowling shirts about this time of year. Once you know your size, [here is bowling shirt central](http://www.daddyos.com/retro/retromen.html). ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/34 "2011-05-16T12:34:02Z")
The best clothes to go with a porkpie hat are your traveling, or “goodbye”, clothes. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/35 "2011-05-16T17:39:02Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Kohl’s usually starts carrying bowling shirts about this time of year. Once you know your size, [here is bowling shirt central](http://www.daddyos.com/retro/retromen.html). Thank you so much for that link. My bookmarks increase by one. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/36 "2011-05-16T18:00:16Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > Thank you so much for that link. My bookmarks increase by one. Oh yeah, sorry; I have bought a few from that website, too…shoulda linked to it. There are a few sites like that. Flyclothing, too: [http://www.flyclothing.com/FlyMen-c-258.html](http://www.flyclothing.com/FlyMen-c-258.html) ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/37 "2011-05-16T18:03:08Z")
Which Docs did you get? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/38 "2011-05-16T18:12:19Z")
[This is a good look](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGUX1JXo1QI&feature=related) ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/39 "2011-05-16T20:29:04Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > I was about to voice my concern over this. No I’d rather not end up as a Hipster Douchebag. That’s several miles backwards in being fashionably bad ass. How do I say this without completely threadshitting - you’re starting out with something my husband and I refer to as a “douchehat.” I think you have to embrace your inner douche and just go with it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2011, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554/40 "2011-05-16T20:34:01Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > How do I say this without completely threadshitting - you’re starting out with something my husband and I refer to as a “douchehat.” I think you have to embrace your inner douche and just go with it. 🙂 Fucking douchebags ruin everything they touch. It will be my mission to restore the hat to its former glory. A little more seriously, I live in a small enough town to where the Hipster Douchebag scene is either small or completely nonexistant. So with the right combination of class and humility (and lack of bees), I can make this style work and be respectful again. EDIT: **WordMan** : Thanks for that link. Wheels are in motion. **filling\_pages** : [These.](http://www.dmusastore.com/p-2062-1461.aspx) Thoughts? The title of the page says “Women’s Dr. Martens…” which is disconcerting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/style-of-clothing-that-is-best-accentuated-with-a-porkpie-hat/581554.md?page=3)