Acres of Pant

[ZuZu]

The US Army look of WW2- especially the officer look- is one of the most unflattering looks ever! Acres of pant emphasizing almost feminine asses and hips. Fred Mertz style waislines 6 inches above the navel- a look especially rocked by that weird man Douglas MacArthur. There's a reason the official uniform of WW2 jacket collectors is vintage jeans and an A-2 or G-1. The actual WW2 look- the complete look- is odd at best.

Child bearing hips! The men of that time had much smaller upper bodies and the Army chose to emphasize this with balloon pants!

My Dad wore this same outfit during the 50s and 60s- khaki pants and a leather jacket- a weird ass-centric look- the short jacket and balloon pants make for an oddly feminine aspect:

The King and Progenitor of the Fred Mertz look:

 

[ZuZu]

Don't get me wrong- you could look good in this outfit:

But you had to be pretty cool to pull it off!

 

[B-Man2]

Not disagreeing with you Zu .
I think the pants were pretty baggie .
But I think that you’d have to consider the time period and the men’s fashion of that period .
1940s were predominantly double and triple pleated high waisted baggie pants .
The military pants of that period pretty much fit that mold .
Many of the officers had their uniforms tailored and tapered . Clark Gable definitely had his uniforms tailored as well as some of the more financially well off officers.
Steve McQueen had his chinos tapered for the Great Escape thats why they look good .

 

[ZuZu]

I knew Steve's pants were fixed- that's why they look good. That being said- modern Hollywood twinks just don't look like the WW2 guys (and definitely haven't got that generation's moxie)

They just look weird!

 

[Flightengineer]

With all due respect, it is rather strange to try to condemn this style looking at it from our time. Especially since we all know why the flight jacket is usually so short and why loose high-waisted trousers are more comfortable in the cockpit

 

[ZuZu]

With all due respect, it is rather strange to try to condemn this style looking at it from our time. Especially since we all know why the flight jacket is usually so short and why loose high-waisted trousers are more comfortable in the cockpit

Just being honest. And I am strange.

 

[CBI]

Funny - and I totally agree, I hate those super baggy pants when worn these days. A style from a different era for sure.

 

[B-Man2]

Just being honest. And I am strange.

Zu
Nobody in their right mind is going to answer this
( But I’ll try )
You’re not strange … you are probably exceptionally intelligent. Highly intelligent people tend to view things from a different perspective than people of normal intelligence.
It’s sort of like this …. When I look into a room , I see basically a room .
When highly intelligent people look into that same room ….. They see every detail of that room and look into each corner as well and take a photo of it with their mind . Thats why you are so detail oriented. It’s probably just an integral part of your thought process.
Now .. Based on what I just said above … You will probably analyze this statement and look for any possible hidden meanings, but I can assure you … it was made with a great deal of respect and was intended to be very complimentary .
Regards
Burt

 

[Silver Surfer]

Either McArthur was shorter than may pix depict, or that gal is really tall. Shane on a milk crate syndrome?

 

[Grant]

Sorry Z, disagree with you yet again. I happily wear baggy, long rise, high waisted WWII issue wool combat trousers and khaki pants. They're much more comfortable wearing and have a certain class look that IMHO is missing from the tight ass, low rise, peg legged pants most guys wear today. It's nice to stand out sometimes, even with a baggy ass. Also, I appreciate the quailty of the fabric and materials used back then. Too bad most WWII trousers are almost impossible to find these days in normal sizes.

 

[ZuZu]

Sorry Z, disagree with you yet again. I happily wear baggy, long rise, high waisted WWII issue wool combat trousers and khaki pants. They're much more comfortable wearing and have a certain class look that IMHO is missing from the tight ass, low rise, peg legged pants most guys wear today. It's nice to stand out sometimes, even with a baggy ass. Also, I appreciate the quailty of the fabric and materials used back then. Too bad most WWII trousers are almost impossible to find these days in normal sizes.

You must disagree with me a lot in your mind- I don't see it that much here!

The quality of the materials etc. was unparalleled etc. but the look of the pants is never cool unless they are a bit less baggy. There used to be an exact copy of WW2 AAF khakis called Military Vat Dye which were perfect- slightly slimmer and lower rise. The baggy pant look is cool only in the eye of the wearer looking in the mirror- it's a costume otherwise IMO. You may have a nice wife who says you look great in WW2 khakis but my wife of 38 years is brutally honest and would literally laugh if I showed up like that.

Modern men are built differently- even us skinny guys have a lower waist and larger torso- it's all that milk I guess. In their native WW2 environment baggy pants at least looked natural- everybody had them on. The different build of the men then gave them even more volume when worn- leading to that weirdly feminine large hipped look. IMO they don't work at all now.

 

[CK90]

Happy to admit I am a fan of a wider leg and higher rise than most guys wear today.

Zu I hear what you're saying on the overall silhouette but I actually like that classic look, provided the top proportions are relatively in balance with the bottom.

But might we argue there's a nice middle ground to be had? nice mid/high rise and a clean straight leg? Timeless, flatters everyone.

 

[Silver Surfer]

I wear my Levi’s lean and mean. Always have…long before good was a pup. However, now and again, I like to don my br wwll khakis. Man they are so comfy. The look? In the eye of the beholder.

 

[Micawber]

Did someone mention acres of pant?

Meanwhile I shall take my leave of this thread for now and consider the benefits of not having my nuts squeezed or crushed when working outside in the great outdoors by wearing high waisted baggy trousers.

 

[Pa12]

 

[ZuZu]

Happy to admit I am a fan of a wider leg and higher rise than most guys wear today.

Zu I hear what you're saying on the overall silhouette but I actually like that classic look, provided the top proportions are relatively in balance with the bottom.

But might we argue there's a nice middle ground to be had? nice mid/high rise and a clean straight leg? Timeless, flatters everyone.

Yes- like Dockers but cut to the US Army pattern. Those Military Vat Dye pants were just that.

 

[ZuZu]

Zu
Nobody in their right mind is going to answer this
( But I’ll try )
You’re not strange … you are probably exceptionally intelligent. Highly intelligent people tend to view things from a different perspective than people of normal intelligence.
It’s sort of like this …. When I look into a room , I see basically a room .
When highly intelligent people look into that same room ….. They see every detail of that room and look into each corner as well and take a photo of it with their mind . Thats why you are so detail oriented. It’s probably just an integral part of your thought process.
Now .. Based on what I just said above … You will probably analyze this statement and look for any possible hidden meanings, but I can assure you … it was made with a great deal of respect and was intended to be very complimentary .
Regards
Burt

Wow- you skewer me with compliments! Nicely done!

 

[ZuZu]

The Japanese have discovered the Military Vat Dye pants:

1970's "MILITARY VAT DYE" CHINO TROUSERS【0530A01】 | 【公式】Thrift Tokyo & TAROCK 古着・ヴィンテージ通販 powered by BASE

【商品説明】70年代頃のビンテージチノ。ミリタリーチノに近いシルエットでビンテージ感のある一本です。古い物にこだわりのある方に。コインポケット付き42TALONMade in...

thrifttokyo.theshop.jp

They didn't have buttons which was nice but other than that they were made pretty close to one version of the WW2 chino- it had a side seam and thin belt loops.

 

[mulceber]

Appreciate the range of opinions I'm seeing here. Personally I think the high-rise pants of the WW2 era look cool. That said, wearing them that way for me is a pain - my natural waist is the same size (or maybe a little bigger, if I'm being honest) as my other torso measurements, so high-waisted trousers naturally want to slide back down to my hips.

I tend to agree with Chris - a nice mid-rise straight leg is my preference.