Fedora

For other uses, see Fedora (disambiguation).

A fedora that has been pinched at the front and being worn pushed back on the head, with the front of the brim bent down over the eyes.

The fedora is a soft felt hat that is creased lengthwise down the crown and pinched in the front on both sides. Similar hats with a C-crown (with an indentation for the head in the top of the crown) are occasionally called fedoras. The term fedora was in use as early as 1891.

Beginning in the 19th century, the fedora came into use as an upper-class clothing accessory. Hats that resemble the soft felt version are often called fedoras even if they are made of straw or twill.

Background

The word fedora comes from the title of an 1882 play by Victorien Sardou. Princess Fédora, the heroine of the play, wore a hat similar to a fedora.

In the early part of the twentieth century, the fedora was popular in cities for its stylishness, ability to protect the wearer's head from the wind and weather, and the fact that it could be rolled up when not in use. The hat is sometimes associated with Prohibition-era gangsters and the detectives who sought to bring them to justice.

The popularity of the fedora has resulted in a large variety of styles being available. Fedoras can be found in nearly any color imaginable, but black, grey, and tan/brown are the most popular.

In the United States, fedoras were considered an essential part of the suit and of business and formal attire. Most men did not go outside without wearing one.

In Hollywood movies of the 1940s, characters often wore a fedora, particularly when playing private detectives, gangsters, or other "tough guy" roles. A trench coat was frequently part of the costume, a notable example being Humphrey Bogart's character in Casablanca or The Maltese Falcon. The fedora is also widely recognized with the character of Indiana Jones.The fedora is closely associated with film noir characters.

Like the bowler hat, the fedora fell out of usage and popularity during the late 1950s-early 1960s; the hat began to lose favor even earlier on the West Coast, which is known for its more casual clothing. The early 1950s switch from large lapels and ties to thin ones, resulted in shorter-brimmed hats, and this likely played a role in the fedora eventually being deemed a non-essential item. Also playing a part was the shrinking automobiles of the mid-50s, which often made it difficult to wear a hat while driving. Fedoras have staged something of a comeback as of the 2000s. This trend seems to be expanding particularly fast in the rock and metal communities, where artists such as Pete Doherty have been seen donning fedoras at concerts and live performances. Since the early part of the 20th century, many Haredi Jews have worn black fedoras and continue to this day.

The demise of hat use by American men was quite abrupt. One hypothesis explaining the sudden shift places the date for the change as 20 January 1961 when John F. Kennedy chose not to wear a hat to his inauguration. The speculation is that men decided if the President didn't have to wear a hat, then they didn't have to put up with the bother of doing so either. By reason of this myth, it is thought to be easy to date a picture that shows groups of American men as before or after 1961 by the proportion of hats worn. There is ample photographic and journalistic evidence of President Kennedy indeed wearing a top-hat to his inauguration ceremony, only removing it when he gave his speech.

Etiquette

A fedora made by Borsalino

Traditionally, when a man doffs this hat, he grasps a fedora by the crown. If there is a strong wind it is acceptable to anchor a fedora using the "wind trolley" found on better fedoras. This elastic band can be taken off the crown and wound through the button hole of a suit lapel. Hats, including the fedora, are typically doffed indoors, except in public areas such as lobbies or elevators. If a man wearing a fedora enters into a conversation with a lady, custom dictates that he doff his hat.

Variations

• In the United Kingdom a fedora is also called a trilby. They typically have a shorter brim and the back of the brim is distinctively more sharply upturned as a result.
• The Porkpie is also a variant on the fedora.
• In the Archie Comics series, the character Jughead Jones wears a modified fedora. Triangles were cut off its brim and it was flipped up and pinned with a boy's favorite pins.

Logos/signage

• The Red Hat logo features a red fedora on its Shadow Man logo. In addition, the Red Hat community-oriented distribution of Linux is called Fedora.
• The newsreader Forté Agent uses a person wearing a fedora as logo and icon.
• Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis uses a pair of walking legs under a fedora as their production company's logo (Flyte Tyme).
• ZootFly prominently features a yellow fedora on its logo.
• A brown fedora is one of the trademarks of the Indiana Jones films.
• A black fedora is often worn by Synyster Gates of Avenged Sevenfold, a metal band of the late 90's to present.
• The lead singer of Three Days Grace, Adam Gontier, often wears a fedora during their concerts.
• In Hubbard's fiction, the Marcab Confederacy had a custom of "wearing fedora hats". It has since become a "trend" amongst the group "Anonymous" to wear them at protests (see the Marcab artcle for explanation).

External links

• Hat etiquette