Withnail's Coat and I(ontherow.substack.com)

133 pointsby apollinaire6 days ago7 comments

vi_sextus_vi4 days ago
Pictures are 1953 and WWI Scots Guards frocks
https://bid.candtauctions.co.uk/lot-details/index/catalog/11...
https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/91425-scots-guards-unifo...
that "Scottish romanticism" all but evaporated by the turn of the century, so the "typo"?
Actual 1800s SG uniform
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/uniformi-militari--84443180375...
For comparison, the "timeless" Grenadier Guards frock
https://thelanesarmoury.co.uk/shop.php?code=21282
Bonus: Caspar David Friedrich (another appropriation :)
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/152982/an-intro...
matt_eeee4 days ago
I've always loved the blocking in this particular shot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l72yHLiw3H4
It makes you appreciate the amount of effort that goes into getting everything just right in film.
redfloatplane4 days ago
I love it when this kind of thing surfaces on HN. It’s always so enjoyable to have the fractal nature of detail in the world shown to you. Really nice to read as well.
- CyberDildonics4 days ago
  I'm not sure it's a fractal nature of detail, it might just be a vague reference to an old movie.
  - sdwr4 days ago
    Yeah, fractal means you see the same structure, or an equally complex structure, at the smaller scale. This is just details, there's no sustained complexity
    alienbaby4 days ago
    Fractal means that something has a fractional spatial dimension. Ie, a fractal plane filling curve would have a dimension somewhere between 1 and 2
  - redfloatplane4 days ago
    Did you read the article? It's entirely about a concrete artefact from that old movie, down to the kind of tweed, now made by only six people in Scotland. I'm not sure how you come to this response.
    CyberDildonics4 days ago
    Is rare tweed fractal detail or is it just an oddball fact?
    redfloatplane4 days ago
    Maybe I meant that the amount of detail is sustained no matter how close you look? Maybe I was careless with my words? This is unnecessarily pedantic. I enjoyed the article. See you another time, CyberDildonics
    saberience4 days ago
    Don't worry, I completely agree with your original comment and think CyberDildonics is being a bit of a dildo in this case...
    CyberDildonics3 days ago
    I ask reasonable questions and because of that you insult me?
sudb4 days ago
A tangential but interesting takeaway for me from this is that Harris Tweed was at some point in danger of dying out and that it was saved (?!) by now King Charles.
- nntwozz4 days ago
  English royalty does this from time to time, through different means.
  The Duke of Windsor (formerly Edward, Prince of Wales) is credited with popularizing and essentially "saving" or bringing the Fair Isle sweater to global fashion prominence in the 1920s.
- vintagedave4 days ago
  Yes! I hadn't known about Prince Charles' involvement, but its popularity declined drastically in the 70s. Big revival now though.
  Fascinating 'hobby drama' story about tweed here: https://www.reddit.com/r/HobbyDrama/comments/10nps05/fashion...
vintagedave4 days ago
Three thousand pounds for a replica: https://www.andrea-galer.co.uk/withnail-store/mens-withnail-...
The article veers into a loose advertisement for the designer selling replicas.
- ink_134 days ago
  Not so much replicas as the original maker selling additional editions
  TBH if you're the kind of person who wants one might as well go to the source
alienbaby4 days ago
I looked for this coat, or one like it not so long ago. I found Andrea Galer is making them tailored to order for £2-£3k . Something I can't afford unfortunately. If anyone knows if anything passably similar let me know!
balamatom4 days ago
Ah, la culture. It's the enemy's pareksalons this time!
- toed4 days ago
  Par excellence ?
  - balamatom4 days ago
    No; like pantaloons but smart.