Tuxedo jacket designed by Sy Devore and worn by Nat King Cole in St. Louis Blues
date: label: Date
content: September 30, 1957
name: label: Designed by
content: Sy Devore, American, died 1966
label: Worn by
content: Nat King Cole, American, 1919 - 1965
notes: label: Description
content: A tuxedo jacket designed by Sy Devore and worn by Nat King Cole in his role as W.C. Handy in the Paramount Pictures produced 1958 film St. Louis Blues. The navy blue wool tuxedo jacket has knee-length tails and a black satin lapel. Six black plastic buttons, three on each side of the center front opening, are positioned on a diagonal running parallel to the lapels. These buttons are decorative only, the jacket does not close. The jacket has a wide notched lapel covered in black silk satin, with a neck band made of navy wool. There is one exterior inset breast pocket on the proper left front. The sleeves are full-length straight cut, with two decorative black plastic cuff buttons at each cuff. On the back is a black plastic button at the waist above the center seam of each tail. The tails have rounded outside edges with squared interior edge and overlap about one inch at the center back. The center seam of each tail is covered by a pressed edge of the wool, which is stitched down at the top and bottom where the tail is attached at the waist and to the lining.
label: Description
content: The jacket is lined in black twilled silk lining, while the sleeves are lined in ivory silk lining. There are two inset pockets on the interior, one at each breast. There is a hanger loop of black lining fabric at the center back of the neck.
place: label: Place made
content: Studio City, California, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Blues (Music)
label: Topic
content: Clothing and dress
label: Topic
content: Costume
label: Topic
content: Costume design
label: Topic
content: Design
label: Topic
content: Fashion
label: Topic
content: Film
label: Topic
content: Men
label: Topic
content: Musical films
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Fashion and Historical
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Costume
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2012.64.1.1
objectType: label: Type
content: dinner jackets
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: wool and silk with plastic buttons
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (Flat): 48 × 24 1/2 × 3 3/4 in. (121.9 × 62.2 × 9.5 cm)