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Originally Posted by
rnoldh 
Good idea and thread Bill.
+1
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Originally Posted by
rnoldh I'm a big fan of TCM movies from the 1930s and 1940s. It is very obvious that DB suits were much more common and in fashion then than now. It even seems like the vast majority of suits were DB then.
Yes, even candid photographs from this time period confirm that at least 50% of the men wore DB suits.
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Originally Posted by
rnoldh I wonder if a sartorial historian like Sator, FNB, or perhaps Will or Manton would provide an explanation why DB suits were so popular back then. Was it just the vagaries of fashion? Or were there other factors too?
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Originally Posted by
Film Noir Buff I don't know that there was a single reason. Seems the younger English guys wore them because the walrus moustached set that sent them out to die in Flanders did not. Mustve been fun to wear those vulgar double breasted's while the monocled set were scandalized by terms like right-o and 22-skadoo.
Then they were imported by the Duke of Windsor, who was his set's poster boy, over here. Maybe the depression solidified the style because it was more cloth to cover up the feeling of vulnerability. The style has more buttons and covering which has a connection to control. The people who could afford to get dressed up could afford to spend the time to get dressed up; and then button and unbutton their suits all day.
You might have had to pay slightly more for the DB suit's extra cloth (The 3 piece was also popular at this time so maybe it was the same idea). At a time when the high life was vaunted and elegance/formality were in vogue, movie stars emulated aristos and the movie goers emulated the Stars.
And while more formal to American eyes, the DB has the odd duality of being youthful and a bit supercilious. I have the image not only of the uptight wearing it but also the hero with a spring in his step and the girl on his arm, the gun toting gangster and the precocious bookworm.
In some ways the movies of the 1930s are what united us and defined the American attitude and character for the modern age. It is interesting that this suit, the DB, could be in some ways the most American of suits and yet the most alien of outfits for the common man.
Many insightful points here.
I also think men embraced DB suits in the 1920's-40's for several practical reasons.
Shirts were still considered underwear. It appears that (at least in polite society) one was not supposed to reveal anything but the cuffs, collar and a small area below the collar. Vested suits hid the dress shirt effectively. The photos I recall seeing from around 1900 consistently show men with three-piece-lounge suits. This would include men from bankers to construction workers.
The DB suit, like the vested suit, also hid the dress shirt. But, a DB uses less fabric than a vested suit. A DB suit provides one layer instead of two. That explains why DB suits are often promoted as summer resort wear in Apparel Arts. That one layer is (slightly) cooler than a vested suit.
To gain comfort, I bet the modern, young man of the 1920's - 1930's was pleased to discard the vest, just as men would discard hats in the 1950's and ties in the 1960's. I don't think most pre WWII guys were ready to accept the two piece suit (at least in the city or polite circles), since it would reveal their shirt, so they went for the DB.
A DB suit (with no vest) is less expensive and less difficult to make than a three-piece suit. Anyone into bespoke suits will know about the significant additional cost of a vest. In the Depression era people would have saved money by getting a 2 piece DB suit.
It also takes a great tailor to fit a vest properly. Off the rack vests rarely fit anyone--if you think a RTW DB usually doesn't look good, try a RTW vest! Too long, too short, too baggy, too tight, wrong proportion in relation to the rest of the suit, etc..
During WWII, there were laws rationing cloth. Vests were affected by the rationing. I'm pretty certain that DB suits with vests were outlawed. This always reminds me of the character, Sidney J. Mussburger, played by Paul Newman in the movie
The Hudsucker Proxy. Mussburger is a slimy corporate VP in NYC in the late 1950's. He consistently wears three piece DB suits. At first I thought it might have been a mistake by the costume department. But really it shows he so nasty he chose to wear three piece DB suits after they were fashionable, and presumably after they became illegal and unpatriotic!
BTW, I think DB suits with vests are fine--if it's really cold.
Also, I have a big collection of 1930'-40's vintage ties, and most are very short, say 48"-51". I don't think this was an issue to men of any height, because they had vests and DB suits to cover up most of the tie.
Do DB balzers count? 
Who unbuttons their DB? One of the reasons I like them is that I button the jacket once in the morning when I put it on and unbutton it once in the evening when I take it off.
