in a nutshell:

My father started in men's clothing at a store called Casual Aire (I believe it was spelled with an "e") where he met my uncle; Joseph Levine.  Together they started Men's Town and Country (which was in the 50's, I think on 3rd Ave; the shot of Marilyn Monroe over the subway grate with her skirt blowing up was in front of the store).  My father left there to start R. Meledandri Inc. at 74 East 56th St. (early '60's); a full service men's retail establishment with a custom tailoring department.  Most of his merchandise was made in Italy and my father (and mother) used to go to the factories where he would have input into the designs made specifically for him.  I would risk saying that in reaction to the prevailing "Brooks Brothers" sensibility he was responsible for bringing elegance and flair back into American men's fashion; he widened lapels, raised the armholes, nipped the waist and flared the skirt.  He brought both the influence of Italian tailoring and the British hacking jacket into his designs.  Cuffs, collars and ties also went wide, and he introduced a range of colors and textures that were previously unavailable to the American male.

Of course anyone with an artistic eye and a flair for clothes would be attracted to the "Meledandri" look and his clientele included fashion photographers, advertising directors, etc; the people who dictate what the world sees when it comes to style.  He was also an extremely charismatic person, when I was photographing his friends and clients, so many of them referred to him as "one of my closest friends".  As I said earlier, his store became a kind of salon, a hang out and one his name synonymous with elegance and success (as when the phrase "the men in their Meledandri suits" was used to describe a certain sector of hip NY in the book "Edie")

Over the years he also developed a wholesale division and had departments at both Barney's and Bloomingdales as well as other fine department stores across the country.  But he was primarily known for the exquisite design and quality of his custom tailoring department.  When he died from a massive and sudden heart attack in 1980 at 51 (quite unexpected as he was extremely fit, a runner and watching his heart) he was in the process of closing "R. Meledandri Inc." and had finally run the first sale in the history of the store.  He was a man of impeccable taste, an artist who expressed his vision through clothes.

Last edited by neene (2006-06-04 15:09:50)

What an enigmatically stunning coat; the craftsmanship looks superb, almost as Marc said it, like haute couture. The refined flamboyance reminds me of another maker of clothing, Ernest Beall, who did ties that were branded "Ernst". Beall also had a rather short life, dying inexplicably in Nevada.

This is very fascinating; I especially love these histories.

Neene, was your father familiar with the American couturier Charles James who also worked at that time? Of course, he had a reputation for being exceedingly difficult and dedicated to his work, which led to financial insolvency. His clients included Millicent Rogers and Barbara Hutton although I believe he did men's tailoreds for a short time.

Last edited by Incroyable (2006-06-04 18:44:05)

Fascinating stories and pics, Nina. Thanks a bunch for sharing them with us.

lol
i have purposefully stayed away because i won't make my deadline for moving if i visit too often!
re: the location of the store, actually it was about a third of the way up the block at 74 east, for a while there was a japanese restaurant there, i believe the actual building was demolished; honestly i kind of avoid that block.  The mercedes dealership was/is on the corner.  I am not sure if i have a pic of the front of the store, i will scan a GQ article that shows my father "arriving to work in his mercedes"...
i'll correct the inaccuracies when i post it.

love those peaked lapels!!!

Thanks Nina, I really enjoy hearing(especially photos/illustrations)) of your fathers work. I can't help but think that he would approve of your efforts.

Thanks for posting this stuff, Nina.  Very interesting.

Marc:  the paisley linings were (are?) a staple of Dick Carroll's shop too.  Carroll's was mentioned in the old Esquire article by Frazier that's floating around the net, here and there.  Also, the 280 4.5 is indeed a great design, but there's something about the brute force of the 450 SEL 6.9 that I've always admired.  I think I even recall a 6-point-something in the body of a 280 as well.

Hmm. Most luxury cars are that way these days, you can often get the same engine and transmission in the more commercial makes.

Last edited by Vaclav (2006-06-27 20:20:32)

I've just discovered this forum in trying to research some vintage, designer suits I recently acquired at a New Orleans estate sale.  Three of them bear a tag of "Meledandri II".  I've seen pics of other pieces that read simply "R. Meledandri".  Do you all think mine may be from the wholesale line his daughter describes in this forum, or from one of his actual stores?  Thanks for any advice about these beautiful suits.

By the way, interesting nugget pertaining to Roland Meledandri in Michael Gross's bio of Ralph Lauren...

http://books.google.com/books?id=uNQ7v3aHBqQC&pg=PA135&lpg=PA135&dq=roland+meledandri&source=web&ots=b-lQc4y0iz&sig=tHP7aHtnwKXUzAQULIjOgPFRLi8