Kurt Vonnegut, author, playwright and “cultural critic at a critical moment,” kept several J. Press Tuxedos in his closet. A longtime loyal customer, he was “waited on” and faithfully served at our 44th Street emporium in the last half of the twentieth century by longtime J. Press sales associate Ken Trommers. Vonnegut attended many formal events as one of New York’s great twentieth century literary celebrities. It’s unlikely he ever suffered the indignity suggested by one of his self-referential characters in his novel, Breakfast of Champions. “He dabbed at his Tuxedo with a damp rag, and the fungi came away easily…maybe they invited me because they know I have a Tuxedo.”
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