[Kyle76]

He wrote a famous piece on surgeon's cuffs years ago.

 

[Flanderian]

An elegant and erudite chronicler of American life with a puckish sense of humor.

R.I.P.

 

[SG_67]

RIP.

A literary giant. He will be in the pantheon of great American writers.

 

[Kyle76]

Only here would that be the epithet for one of the, if not "the", most important
literary voices in America of the last 50 years...

Yes, sadly that comes off as dismissive. I'm actually a huge fan and studied his work in journalism school years ago. I've read most everything he's ever written and regard "Bonfire of the Vanities" as a classic and very literary observation of America in the 1980s. He had an uncanny way of getting into the minds of his subjects and letting us in on their inner dialogue and selfish motivations.

 

[paxonus]

He is succeeded in both sartorial and authorial achievement only by Gay Talese.

 

[Charles Dana]

Very sad news. Tom Wolfe did have a long and interesting life. Didn’t Alexander Kabbazz make Wolfe’s shirts?

 

[JLibourel]

Certainly one of the greatest dandies of our era. I regret to say I have never read anything he authored, however.

 

[Mike Petrik]

His phrase “radical chic” has lost much of its currency, but is still trenchant and deserves revival.

 

[Kyle76]

He's also credited with "the right stuff" and "master of the universe", among many others.

 

[Kyle76]

Here's the piece on working buttonholes.

"There are just two classes of men in the world, men with suits whose buttons are just sewn onto the sleeve, just some kind of cheapie decoration, or-yes!-men who can unbutton the sleeve at the wrist because they have real buttonholes and the sleeve really buttons up."

https://andrew1769.wordpress.com/2011/08/04/tom-wolfe-working-buttonholes/

 

[Mike Petrik]

He's also credited with "the right stuff" and "master of the universe", among many others.

Yes, and the "me generation" too.

 

[SG_67]

"Yet this grim stroke of fortune brought Jane little relief.
On the day of Bud Jennings's funeral, Pete went into the back of the closet and brought out his bridge coat, per regulations. This was the most stylish item in the Navy officer's wardrobe. Pete had never had occasion to wear his before. It was a double-breasted coat made of navy-blue melton cloth and came down almost to the ankles. It must have weighed ten pounds. It had a double row of gold buttons down the front and loops for shoulder boards, big beautiful belly-cut collar and lapels, deep turnbacks on the sleeves, a tailored waist, and a center vent in back that ran from the waistline to the bottom of the coat. Never would Pete, or for that matter many other American males in the mid-twentieth century, have an article of clothing quite so impressive and aristocratic as that bridge coat."

Tom Wolfe - The Right Stuff

 

[Oldsarge]

His commentary on Modernist art and architecture probably changed American aesthetics. And, to my mind, for the better! Dismissing Abstract Expressionism and the International School did wonders for the art world, even if it was done over the furious (and plaintive) protests of professional critics. Well done, that man.

 

[Cassadine]

A sad moment, indeed. I'm going to head to my library after nightfall, fetch "Bonfire" and read a few chapters, and get lost in his fantastic sentences.

 

[Cassadine]

"Yet this grim stroke of fortune brought Jane little relief.
On the day of Bud Jennings's funeral, Pete went into the back of the closet and brought out his bridge coat, per regulations. This was the most stylish item in the Navy officer's wardrobe. Pete had never had occasion to wear his before. It was a double-breasted coat made of navy-blue melton cloth and came down almost to the ankles. It must have weighed ten pounds. It had a double row of gold buttons down the front and loops for shoulder boards, big beautiful belly-cut collar and lapels, deep turnbacks on the sleeves, a tailored waist, and a center vent in back that ran from the waistline to the bottom of the coat. Never would Pete, or for that matter many other American males in the mid-twentieth century, have an article of clothing quite so impressive and aristocratic as that bridge coat."

Tom Wolfe - The Right Stuff

Outstanding!

 

[Alexander Kabbaz]

A good friend for almost a half-century. A kind and gentle man. His sketches of shirts to be commissioned were outdone only by the detailed, often humorous accompanying descriptions. Not brown, Alex. BROWN!
I truly miss him and send my love to Sheila. A life well-lived by a man well-spoken. R.I.P. TKW

 

[Cassadine]

A good friend for almost a half-century. A kind and gentle man. His sketches of shirts to be commissioned were outdone only by the detailed, often humorous accompanying descriptions. Not brown, Alex. BROWN!
I truly miss him and send my love to Sheila. A life well-lived by a man well-spoken. R.I.P. TKW

Condolences. It's easy to forget that our cultural heroes are real persons with friends and family. Mr. Wolfe was certainly inimitable. A Man in Full.

 

[Doctor Damage]

(click for large image)

 

[Mr.D]

He worked at our local newspaper in the 1950s.

Too bad we have so few real journalists nowadays.

R.I.P.

 

[eagle2250]

Familiar with but a few of his books and generally bemused by Mr. Wolfe's sartorial choices, I found myself emotionally touched by Alexander Kabbaz's personal recollections of the man in post #18. Thank you for sharing this slice of your life's experience with us Mr, Kabbaz and may the lettered Mr. Tom Wolfe rest in peace.