Lawman (TV series)

[ElCid]

I happened upon Lawman one night while watching MeTV + and I haven't stopped watching it since. I feel the acting, scripts and storylines are very worthy of my time. Most of all, I love the happy endings, I love that the good guys always win. That silver swatch of hair only adds to actor John Russell's handsome looks and Peter Brown isn't so bad to look at either. I don't think Deputy McKay is slow, I think he's just naive. And Lily is a beauty, I love her outfits and the chemistry between her and Marshal Dan. The only complaint I have about this show is Lily's singing it's hard to sit through her singing and I'm wondering if I'm the only one? As for the tight shirts and pants, those are just a bonus. I like a man who's built and for it to show The tight clothes only add to their attractiveness. This is one of my favorite tv westerns and not just because of the tight outfits worn by the leading men

Often wonder about the clothing, but hey, it's Hollywood. I'm sure most men in the West went to general store and bought whatever was on the rack and it probably did not fit "tight." Actually probably loose as tight would have been uncomfortable in heat of the summer. Did they even make tight fitting clothes for men back then, especially every day wear for "working" men?
Tight jeans would have been especially hard to get on and off and even restrict movements such as running, bending, kneeling, etc. Of course based on TV, men only had one set of clothes and wore them all day and night every day - for the most part.
When I was in the Army if you wanted your uniforms to fit tighter than issued, you had to take them to a tailor shop (usually civilian) to have them "tailored."

Ready-to-wear as we know it today didn't really exist until very late in the 19th century. Before that, most clothing was either homemade, made by a seamstress, or, for expensive/formal clothing, tailored to fit. Standardized sizing came about as a result of the Civil War, coincident, nearly, with the invention of the sewing machine. The development arose due to the need to clothe hundreds of thousands of military men. It took a bit longer for the industry to mature, as the clothing manufacturers that sprang up to clothe soldiers pivoted to the consumer market after the war.

Thanks. When we talk about Westerns, we are primarily talking about the post Civil War West. Would the typical cowboy, drifter, gunfighter and all the other males pictured in Western movies and TV shows be able to afford a seamstress made outfit? Would it even have been available in small Western towns? What woman/homemaker would have made it for these guys? As depicted in movies and TV. Understand the wealthy and those with money could get clothing tailored. Realizing it is Hollywood, most of the time the guys go into a general store and buy something from the stacks of clothing.
Just thinking the tightly tailored clothing of heroes and others is a Hollywood invention more so than reality. Even "tailored" or seamstress made would probably have been looser than what we see on TV and at the movies.

[txfilmfan]

Often wonder about the clothing, but hey, it's Hollywood. I'm sure most men in the West went to general store and bought whatever was on the rack and it probably did not fit "tight." Actually probably loose as tight would have been uncomfortable in heat of the summer. Did they even make tight fitting clothes for men back then, especially every day wear for "working" men?
Tight jeans would have been especially hard to get on and off and even restrict movements such as running, bending, kneeling, etc. Of course based on TV, men only had one set of clothes and wore them all day and night every day - for the most part.
When I was in the Army if you wanted your uniforms to fit tighter than issued, you had to take them to a tailor shop (usually civilian) to have them "tailored."

Ready-to-wear as we know it today didn't really exist until very late in the 19th century. Before that, most clothing was either homemade, made by a seamstress, or, for expensive/formal clothing, tailored to fit. Standardized sizing came about as a result of the Civil War, coincident, nearly, with the invention of the sewing machine. The development arose due to the need to clothe hundreds of thousands of military men. It took a bit longer for the industry to mature, as the clothing manufacturers that sprang up to clothe soldiers pivoted to the consumer market after the war.

Thanks. When we talk about Westerns, we are primarily talking about the post Civil War West. Would the typical cowboy, drifter, gunfighter and all the other males pictured in Western movies and TV shows be able to afford a seamstress made outfit? Would it even have been available in small Western towns? What woman/homemaker would have made it for these guys? As depicted in movies and TV. Understand the wealthy and those with money could get clothing tailored. Realizing it is Hollywood, most of the time the guys go into a general store and buy something from the stacks of clothing.
Just thinking the tightly tailored clothing of heroes and others is a Hollywood invention more so than reality. Even "tailored" or seamstress made would probably have been looser than what we see on TV and at the movies.

Agree. Apart from everything else, the modesty of the times would probably rule out anything tight fitting. Plus, as has been pointed out, those clothes were for working in, not for a fashion show and tight clothes are not usually comfortable. I always thought if anyone showed up dressed like Robert Conrad in The Wild, Wild West, dressed in his bolero costume, they'd laugh him out of town, if not worse.

[jamesjazzguitar]

What woman/homemaker would have made it for these guys? As depicted in movies and TV.

On a lot of 50s \ 60s westerns a man's wife, being a homemaker could be seen sewing and knitting: I.e. doing the type of work a tailor might do.

The western Bat Masterson includes a lot of scenes that feature men fashions since Masterson was known for his. But for Masterson to find a tailor was difficult. There was one episode that centered all around a tailor. Masterson gets fine cloth from Europe and rides his horse many miles (weeks?) to a tailor he knows so he can make him some suits. Of course, how realistic these tales are, I have no clue about, but I assume west of St. Louis tailor shops were really spaced out.

E.g. I just read that the rifle that McCain used in The Rifleman, was released by Winchester 12 years after the time-period depicted in the show.

And that same rifle was used by John Wayne in the 1939 film Stagecoach). Looks like whatever props department that had this rifle got decades of use from it!

[ElCid]

What woman/homemaker would have made it for these guys? As depicted in movies and TV.

On a lot of 50s \ 60s westerns a man's wife, being a homemaker could be seen sewing and knitting: I.e. doing the type of work a tailor might do.

The western Bat Masterson includes a lot of scenes that feature men fashions since Masterson was known for his. But for Masterson to find a tailor was difficult. There was one episode that centered all around a tailor. Masterson gets fine cloth from Europe and rides his horse many miles (weeks?) to a tailor he knows so he can make him some suits. Of course, how realistic these tales are, I have no clue about, but I assume west of St. Louis tailor shops were really spaced out.

E.g. I just read that the rifle that McCain used in The Rifleman, was released by Winchester 12 years after the time-period depicted in the show.

And that same rifle was used by John Wayne in the 1939 film Stagecoach). Looks like whatever props department that had this rifle got decades of use from it!

Always get curious when a character in a Western says let's ride over to someplace that was many miles away. Apparently the average distance a horse could travel in one day was 30-40 miles on the flats and less on hilly or mountainous terrain. That ain't very far.

[txfilmfan]

What woman/homemaker would have made it for these guys? As depicted in movies and TV.

On a lot of 50s \ 60s westerns a man's wife, being a homemaker could be seen sewing and knitting: I.e. doing the type of work a tailor might do.

The western Bat Masterson includes a lot of scenes that feature men fashions since Masterson was known for his. But for Masterson to find a tailor was difficult. There was one episode that centered all around a tailor. Masterson gets fine cloth from Europe and rides his horse many miles (weeks?) to a tailor he knows so he can make him some suits. Of course, how realistic these tales are, I have no clue about, but I assume west of St. Louis tailor shops were really spaced out.

E.g. I just read that the rifle that McCain used in The Rifleman, was released by Winchester 12 years after the time-period depicted in the show.

And that same rifle was used by John Wayne in the 1939 film Stagecoach). Looks like whatever props department that had this rifle got decades of use from it!

Always get curious when a character in a Western says let's ride over to someplace that was many miles away. Apparently the average distance a horse could travel in one day was 30-40 miles on the flats and less on hilly or mountainous terrain. That ain't very far.

And my understanding was that steam trains of the era needed a water stop every 10-15 miles, so stations were typically no further apart than that. That's what they told us about the founding of my hometown, anyway. Typically a town would spring up wherever the train stopped.

[Dargo]

Yeah, but would the title "Have Couturier, Will Travel" here REALLY have the same ring to it?...

[ElCid]

Yeah, but would the title "Have Couturier, Will Travel" here REALLY have the same ring to it?...

How many western, noir/crime/mystery, etc. stars do we now recognize because we were introduced to them on TV?

[Dargo]

How many western, noir/crime/mystery, etc. stars do we now recognize because we were introduced to them on TV?

Way too many to list, I'd say Cid.

And you could include many of those who starred in the multitude of sitcoms from the time we were both youngsters sitting in front of that round cathode ray tube television set and to the more recent years as well, of course.

(...take Fred MacMurray for instance...betcha for years the first thought you always had of him was as a widowed father of three boys on that one sitcom, and before you discovered he once played an insurance man who kills his illicit lover's husband, huh?!)

[ElCid]

How many western, noir/crime/mystery, etc. stars do we now recognize because we were introduced to them on TV?

Way too many to list, I'd say Cid.

And you could include many of those who starred in the multitude of sitcoms from the time we were both youngsters sitting in front of that round cathode ray tube television set and to the more recent years as well, of course.

(...take Fred MacMurray for instance...betcha for years the first thought you always had of him was as a widowed father of three boys on that one sitcom, and before you discovered he once played an insurance man who kills his illicit lover's husband, huh?!)

Think my reply to an earlier post of yours got lost, but in college I took Golf as a required PE course. Reason was because I did not have to change out of my uniform to participate. We either sat in class or walked around a field hitting balls for short distances or putting. End of course, instructor met with me and asked if I intended to play golf in the future and I replied never. So, he looked at my written test scores and my results on the field and said he would give me a D if I never played golf - and I never have. Fortunately next two years I did not have to take PE as I was on the fencing team.
As for this post, I remember my sophomore year and four of us diligently studied cathode ray technology the night before our physics finals. We watched TV (illegally) since we had already blown the course. Went to one of those colleges where even history majors had to take a year of chemistry, a year of physics, two years of math, two years of a foreign language, etc. I think they stopped doing that.