From a Gentleman’s Journal online article:
“He went into the bathroom and had an ice-cold shower and washed his hair with Pinaud Elixir, that prince among shampoos, to get the dust of the roads out of it…”
“There was everything in the bathroom — Floris Limes Bath Essence for men and Guerlain bathcubes for women.”
In Ian Fleming’s From Russia, With Love, there is a terrific exchange between James Bond and Tatiana Romanova — a Soviet corporal who takes up with the British agent. On a sleeper train out of Turkey, the two are readying themselves for the day ahead and Romanova, noticing that 007 doesn’t wear cologne, asks him why this is.
“We wash,” replies Bond, drier than a martini. And this clean-cut, neatly clipped and slightly stinging response sums up the superspy’s attitude to his grooming routine. It’s a thoroughly English approach; leaning on trusted, heritage brands — and not preoccupied with overly strong scents or convoluted bits of kit. So this got us thinking: if a pared-back, simple grooming routine was good enough for MI6’s finest, surely it should be good enough for us?
To read more: https://www.thegentlemansjournal.com/article/we-followed-james-bonds-grooming-routine-for-a-week-this-is-what-happened/
Faced with the question of why Some Like It Hot has topped BBC Culture’s poll of the best ever big-screen comedies, it’s tempting to say something similar. Wilder’s glittering masterpiece doesn’t just use the handsomest kid in town (and a terrific actor, to boot), but its most radiant sex symbol, Marilyn Monroe, and one of its most dexterous comedians, Jack Lemmon. It also has a bevy of bathing beauties, a crowd of sinister mafiosi, a glamorous seaside setting in the roaring ‘20s, and a sizzling selection of songs.
JAY MYSELF documents the monumental move of renowned photographer and artist, Jay Maisel, who, in February 2015 after forty-eight years, begrudgingly sold his home—the 36,000 square-foot, 100-year-old landmark building in Manhattan known simply as “The Bank.” Through the intimate lens of filmmaker and Jay’s protégé, noted artist and photographer Stephen Wilkes, the viewer is taken on a remarkable journey through Jay’s life as an artist, mentor, and man; a man grappling with time, life, change, and the end of an era in New York City.
