Coming Soon: 'The Dearborn' by Optimo Hats. . .

The Dearborn by Optimo Hats of Chicago.

Sadly, there is a school of thought out there, personified by the blog/website Put This On, that guys who wear hats in the 21st century look like "dicks." Their word, not mine.

That attitude is really too bad. A properly fitted, decent looking hat (and I don't mean backwards baseball caps or those cheap, hipsterish Hawaiian Punch porkpie and trilby hats from the local shopping mall that sit on the top of your head) can add a certain amount of flair, panache, or even gravitas to your appearance. Especially the right kind of hat when worn with a trench coat, or other long overcoat. Yeah. Just like in those old cynical, pessimistic, fatalistic, and psychologically bleak Films Noir from the 1940s and early 50s. You dirty rat! See? Yeah.

So, it's a year late in coming, but I finally got around to ordering one more special 50th birthday gift for myself this morning. I opted for a phone fitting and was assisted by a very knowledgeable and helpful young woman with an alto voice, that also displayed a very slight twinge of southern accent. It was all rather fetching. Were I 20 years younger and unmarried, I might have engaged in a bit of snappy Film Noir-ish repartee with this disembodied female voice.

As things transpired, however, I refrained from playing out a weak attempt at a J.Peterman inspired dialogue, kept my cool, and let her do her job unhindered. I came away with, what I think, should be a fantastic and very stylish bit of headwear. The hat itself should arrive on or before December 23rd. Can't wait. And hell yeah I'll wear it!

That's Optimo Hats of Chicago guys.

-- Heinz-Ulrich

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