Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Dapper Day Contest



For the last few years, I have wanted to do a retro shoot at Disneyland. A person, a couple, or a group of people attired in Dapper wear, strolling through the park as guests might have back in the 50's/60's. With Dapper Day soon approaching (Sunday, February 24), I thought I'd run a contest here where readers could submit photos to my email (dvdpicasso@aol.com) in vintage attire, and the winner would get my photo services for the day. Today's post will hopefully inspire a few cool outfits, starting out with this casual (but still Dapper in my book!) couple at the entrance to Adventureland.

Does wearing a tie seem out of place at Disneyland? Actually, they were fairly common.



How about this quartet? They may be elderly, but they're still stylish. Note the fur stole draped on the arm of the stylishly suited woman on the right side of the photo:



One to inspire the ladies from January 1961:



and one for the gents. Say "cheese!" Kudos to the man who removed his hat; onions to the ones who didn't. Where are there manners?!?



Even the addition of a hat can add a little bit of Dapper to the most simple of outfits.



This stylish group with a tour guide hails from January 1968. It's nice to see some older folks at the park, as I don't notice that so much any more.



Same batch, getting a little rest under the shade of a tree:



Applying lipstick in public—definitely a no-no!



Note the gloves:



This trio is the epitome of Dapper; I would have loved to have followed them around the park with my camera.



Feel free to go REALLY retro at Dapper Day:



Nobody said that Dapper couldn't be sexy.



What a great looking bunch; the youngster in the colorful shirt probably grew up to be a style icon.



This guy is Dapper, and darn if he doesn't know it. He's also a poser.



A trio of Dapper Dames:



The guy in the suit looks like a young Johnny Carson.



This family stepped right out of Pleasantville.



Please don't feel obligated to wear gold slippers. That might disqualify you.



A nice mother-daughter (I'm assuming) portrait.



Bro-mance, 1960's style.



A head scarf can dress up even the simplest outfit.



These twins must have made a real splash with their matching outfits.



Besides the clothes, you have to "look" the part and know how to pose. Ladies...one foot placed stylishly in front of the other!



Email me your photos (preferably wearing your Dapper Day outfit) and why you want to be photographed for Dapper Day. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with! For more information on Dapper Day, visit the official website.

See more vintage and current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland photo web pages.

6 comments:

stu29573 said...

I would love to (actually I'm going to a Rat Pack party on Saturday) unfortunately, I live 1247 miles away...sigh.... Great idea. though!

Major Pepperidge said...

So many great photos, but my favorite is still the two gals and one guy at the Hills Bros. Coffee House. The woman on the left looks like a movie star!

K. Martinez said...

My favorite is the quartet coming off the Plaza towards the woman with the stole. There's something about the way people dressed in those days.

I love your idea. Unfortunately I don't get chance but once a year to go down there.

Dan said...

I love all these photos and agree with Major Pepperidge about the Hills Bros. coffee photo being the best of the bunch.

In the lipstick photo, I noticed that the paint scheme of the Main Street Bank is much different than it is today. Is the monochrome look just a trick of the lighting or was it really painted like that at one time? It certainly looks much better today.

walterworld said...

What a wonderful set of photos.

The Hills Brothers Coffee House pic does stand out, and I'm going to guess and say the photo was taken by the husband/boyfriend of the girl on the left; look at how she's looking at the camera man.

Also, the 'sexy' pic of the girl appears to be over-purple, was it a damaged negative?

Daveland said...

Dan- Overall, the color palette of Main Street back in the day was much more muted. The color of the bank was mainly a monochrome brown.

Walterworld - The vamp photo is from a very faded vintage print. Not much I could do with it, unfortunately.