J. Press Blog: Threading the Needle by Richard Press

Growing Up in New Haven

The title of Philip Roth’s 1959 novella Goodbye, Columbus refers to a disc recording awarded to graduating Ohio State seniors evoking songs, cheers...

Hey Buddy, Can You Spare A Dime?

The current COVID-19 plague finds me quarantined in my UES Yorkville apartment. Fear for my health along with news of economic uncertainty set upon...

Heyday Chief Of Staff

Much public acclaim during World War II was accorded Generals Douglas MacArthur and Dwight D. Eisenhower, but Chief of Staff George C. Marshall to...

American Menswear

Birth of a Salesman

They never taught me how to baste a suit at Dartmouth, but I had to learn in a hurry when Ray Jacobs got sick on the road. “The Road” was the ter...

Sizzling The Fizzle

Advice columnist Dr. Joyce Brothers once bespoke the need to recharge our tried and true unions when their sizzle starts to fizzle. It’s back to ba...

Off-Broadway J. Press Seersucker

The new J. Press Spring/Summer Brochure regenerated my seersucker blood lust. It also rekindled my seersucker time on the off-Broadway stage.

Insider Trading And Irish Oys

The recent pardon President Trump awarded convicted financier Mike Milken recalls my appearance on the off-off-Broadway stage with anoth...

With Poppy Bush And Babe Ruth

The new baseball season hovers on the horizon and my brief time at Yale Field with “Poppy” Bush and Babe Ruth makes my heart beat faster every April.

White Ducks vs. Khaki Chino

My longtime installation in the family business occurred during the tragically short period of the Camelot-JFK era. During that time 44th Street wa...

Shoe vs. Weenie

For Yale men, Barrie Ltd. was shoe headquarters since the Isaacs brothers opened their narrow slot of a store attached to J. Press in 19...

Springtime for J. Press and American Style

In 1980 The Official Preppy Handbook described our then family business with the following statement: “J. Press has catered since 1902 to the ultra...

Does Anyone Still Wear A Hat ?

“Does anyone still wear a hat, I’ll drink to that” — the primeval post-Camelot put down toast Elaine Stritch belted out onstage in The Ladies Who L...