The most memorable one was the signature jacket of Tom Cruise’s Top Gun hero Maverick. Maverick is a mischievous kid who breaks the rules and gets into trouble, but only because he knows it’s worth it (and because it’s fun). One of Cruise’s most famous images on the jacket is of his lover-to-be teacher slipping one hand into Cruise’s and the other tugging at his nape. Were we ever this young? (I see…manly?)
I can see where Musk was going with this attitude. He was nothing if not obvious, and to emphasize that, he wore the look with dog tags, black jeans, and shiny leather boots. (It was too shiny. It betrayed his fantasies. Clint’s Eastwood didn’t trust boots that showed his image.)
The necklace looks like this Pendant sold by 501(c)(3) staff working to return Israeli hostagesAnd it says, “Take me home now,” perhaps indicating that he takes the accusations of anti-Semitism in his platform seriously. He received the necklace from his Israeli father, who was taken hostage by Hamas while visiting the country this week. He vows to X to wear it “every day until his loved ones are freed.” He stressed that this visit had been in preparation for a long time and was not an “apology visit.”
As subsequent interviews emphasized, Mr. Musk is a man in crisis. Asked about advertisers leaving X (formerly Twitter) over concerns that it was amplifying anti-Semitism, Musk said, “If someone tries to blackmail me with an ad, If you’re trying to blackmail me with money, don’t do it…” -yourself. ”
Perhaps that’s what a man wearing such clothes thinks when he speaks. The surprising and comical synergy between Musk’s actions and clothing is cinematic by design, with clothing as entertainment and commentary. (Some people at Jeremy Strong, who plays Kendall Roy, the self-pitying heir apparent, wore a flight jacket that he said was inspired by another of Musk’s outerwear pieces..) Thursday marks the official unveiling of Tesla’s first truck, and how this jacket provides the perfect peace of mind for those worried that the smooth quietness of an electric car will be at odds with horsepower and big tires. You’ll see. Rather, his actions made him seem loud and funny. You’re wearing a Maverick jacket, are you discussing tweets?
There’s a longstanding perception that maverick men in Silicon Valley (heh) don’t think about the way they dress, but in reality, they’re more concerned about the way they dress than the businessmen who button up the same blue suit or skinny chinos every day. They seem to put a lot of thought into their clothes. Remembering his philosophical approach when dressing Jack Dorsey and Rick Owens, Mark Zuckerberg, and his decision to upgrade his uniform T-shirt and jeans by swapping them for a $300 version from Brunello Cucinelli please.
But none of these figures is as obsessed with the power of dressing appropriately as Musk. According to GQ, he asked designer Emily Dawn Long to style him throughout 2018, including at that year’s Met Gala. Together, they looked to male icons like Harrison Ford, Paul Newman, and Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton, which apparently inspired them to purchase the jacket, which they wore during an interview at South by Southwest that year. did. (His boots were even more damaged.)
Musk seems to understand that fashion is a powerful tool for myth-making. Replacing one uniform with another, or even a costume for that matter, could allow gaffe-prone celebrities to irrefutably be seen the way they want to be seen.
The problem is that when your actions conflict with the source material, they end up highlighting your weaknesses instead of making you look cool and strong.
correction
A previous version of this article had the Tesla truck release date incorrect. It was Thursday. The article has been corrected.