The Tuxedo Tradition

Harley Hooper is the owner of Harley's clothing store for men located in Tyler, with a second Harley's now located in College Station. Harley's is the recipient of the prestigious Uptown Downtown Award presented by MR Magazine. The store has also been awarded numerous Best Of Awards as voted by the readers of BSCENE Magazine.

What is the history behind the tuxedo?
Tuxedos started back in the 1800s because the military always had full-dress uniforms for parties and formal occasions. The laymen didn't quite fit into the into the look. So, tuxedos started as a type of uniform for special parties and royal events in England. Everyone dressed for these parties, and the tuxedo came along as the formal way to dress for the person who was not in the military or part of the government.

What are the basic types of tuxedos?
There are three types of tuxedos (three types of collar styles) that set apart the differences in dress in the last 100 years or so. The traditional tuxedo of the '30s, '40s and '50s was the peaked lapel; however, it hasn't been the traditional tuxedo of the '80s, '90s and 2000s. The original tuxedo in America was the peaked lapel. In the '30s and '40s as people began to dress up in tuxedos more, and we had show business [Hollywood] a whole new type of formal attire evolved. They started reaching out and doing things like shawl lapels and double breasted shawls. Since that time, really none of these tuxedos have ever gone out of style.

In the last 30 years, traditional tuxedos in America were thought of as notch lapels because everyone was wearing notch-lapel suits and not peaks or shawl collars. People naturally felt more comfortable and were drawn to a notch lapel-style tuxedo. If you are not sure what style to wear, do a notch lapel because that's what traditionally people have worn for years and years in the U.S. and England.

Is the tradition of the tuxedo changing with non-traditional weddings?In the last 10 years, because of non-traditional weddings, destination weddings and so forth; tuxedos have taken on a whole new role. The young people of today have added some spice to the tuxedo by adding color vests – hence the non-traditional tuxedo emerged. Now whether that's right or wrong, I'm not the one to make that decision. I think it's fine on a destination wedding to wear whatever you choose to wear. Whether that be a linen suit or a black tuxedo with a pink tie, it doesn't really matter because it's your occasion. It's your decision and at a destination wedding there's not normally 150 or 200 guests. It's typically only close family and friends.

What about the tie & vest versus the cummerbund & bow tie?
Cummerbunds and bow ties were the tradition from the '30s through the '60s, and all the way into the '90s. Everyone wore black [bow ties] to the opera, the symphony and to all the plays and formal events in New York and other large cities. They wore cummerbunds for two reasons: it held up your pants and looked formal. It was also functional because gents kept their theatre and opera tickets tucked in the grooves or pleats. That's why 'grooves-up' is the proper way to wear a cummerbund.

The traditional younger people of the '90s and of today have kind-of gotten away from cummerbunds because to them, it looks sort-of traditional and old fashioned. The more sophisticated, older gentlemen in their '50's, '60s and up typically wear a [cummerbund and bow tie] because that is the way they were brought up. That is the sophisticated way to wear them.

Self-tied bow ties have always been our preference here. You can buy a pre-tied tie – and it looks like a pre-tied tie, but self-tied bow ties give tuxedos a little bit more personality. It is also a little more of a status symbol to tie your own bow tie because they are not easy to tie. … And the only time you would ever wear a cummerbund is if you are also wearing a bow tie.

What is your fool-proof guideline for wedding tuxes – the standard by which one can never go wrong?

The church wedding is a traditional wedding, which normally is black and white. You'll never ever go wrong with black and white. It's the traditional way, but it's also the right way. There has never been a presidential wedding or a royal wedding or anything like that in color, and there probably never will be because the traditional wedding – the proper wedding, is black and white. It doesn't mean we are advocating that you have to do a black and white wedding, but if ever a question: black and white is the way to go because it absolutely is the right way. Now, adding your own personality to the wedding – no problem!