Where Does Canadian Tuxedo Come From?

Bing Crosby in his custom made denim tuxedo. Photo credits to Levi’s.Bing Crosby in his custom made denim tuxedo. Photo credits to Levi’s.

I love jeans. I love denim. I love anything made out of denim. My menswear newsletter even has a name inspired by denim.

Unironically, as I’m also Canadian, I’ll rock the double denim look also known as the Canadian Tuxedo.

But where does Canadian Tuxedo” come from?

It all starts with Bing Crosby, the guy who’s famous for singing the Christmas Classic, White Christmas.

In 1951, at the height of his fame, he was checking in at Hotel Vancouver. The clerk at the hotel denied Crosby’s entry. Why? Crosby was wearing a denim-on-denim fit and jeans were seen as low-class workwear. The clerk didn’t recognize Crosby either. He thought Crosby was just some bum.

The local news caught word of the situation to the embarrassment of the Hotel, and when Levi’s heard about this, they created a custom double-breasted denim tuxedo for Crosby with an interior leather patch that read, Notice to All Hotel Men.”

Levi’s called it, the Canadian Tuxedo.

The rest is history.

October 16, 2024


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