“I Mean…What?!?” – Abe Gurko

Q. What is a Manzie?
A. A Manzie is not a Pansy or a Dandy. A Pansy doesn’t necessarily dress effeminately in order to be teased by a bunch of blokes. A Dandy dresses like a proper gentleman adding a special touch of avant-garde styling. A Manzie is a guy desperately trying to be “on trend”. He can be a straight man trying too hard to be stylish or a straight-acting-gay guy who acts extra butch to compensate for his quirky fashion choices. Bottom line: A Manzie will wear any of the outfits featured here. … Read More »

Now that you are getting the drift of what a manzie is, what better way to honor these bold, confident individuals than by creating the First Annual Manzie of the Year Award? Hereby I have started the list of nominees and invite you to join me by submitting your own suggestions. As New York Fashion Week is just around the corner, the streets will be chock full of manzie’s…in all shapes and sizes…sporting their new fall purchases. We at I Mean..What?!? will be out en force looking for candidates. It’s easy to participate. Simply grab your iPhone, B-Berry or Mino… Read More »

The Spring 11 shows came to a close in Milan, and overall there were great, sexy, safe collections sprinkled in with those few designers that love…and are committed to…Manzies. There were noticeably less mandals than last year, more blue than black and less quirky man-hats, which makes me very happy. Yes, there were Mad Men, but more along the likes of Coo-Coo, rather than Jon Hamm lookalikes. The Milan Maznie Report ends by featuring these few designers who we can live happily ever after…without.… Read More »

No, I am not being mean about the new Diesel ad campaign. Their new campaign slogan is Be Stupid. How stupid is that?!? Growing up, I used to hate that word. It was one of those words that really cut through me…like fatso. I don’t know why it affected me so much…because one thing I am not, is stupid. But it just did. Seeing these ads made me think of how stupid the ad campaign is. Let’s look at the first image, where the Diesel jeans wearer is killed by an elephant. Gee, that’s aspirational. This guy is so stupid… Read More »

Let’s go back in time a few months when NBC announced its “ground breaking” late-night turned prime-time programming coup d’ etat. The hype was exhausting. Leno was a bigger news story than both wars put together. Jeff Zucker touted, “The Jay Leno Show will change the face of prime-time television”. The peacock network was basking in the glow of their brilliant maneuver way before the first show aired. Jay Leno even said, “If we go down in flames, we’ll be laughing on the way down, believe me,” during the summer press tour. Do you think Jay Leno and Jeff Zucker… Read More »

Men, we’ve come a long way since Fred Astaire and the Golden Age of Hollywood, when slicked-back hair, a clean-shaven face, spats, a top hat and tails were in vogue. Today that combination sounds more like a costume than a reality. Through the years our wardrobe has become much more casual, hair lengths went from the top of the ear down to the middle of the back, while beards and mustaches adorned our faces in countless variations. Fred was Elegant Chic and now we have Casual Chic, a term that is readily bandied about. This look could even be a… Read More »

Just when I thought that my Manzie Reports were getting read by all the right people, being viewed on all the right laptops, iPhones and Blackberries, comes the reality that I am not fully doing my job. I know that the Manzie Report has been a source of laughter and hysteria by many of the industry’s top taste-makers, creatives and editors. But clearly, there are several stylists and fashion designers that must be deleting the IMW Manzie Report and clicking to CocoPerez.com. Big mistake girl. He is not going to steer you in the right direction. Perez will just feature… Read More »

Ahhhh, what a feeling. Women’s Wear Daily proclaimed that orange is the new black for Spring ’10 from the mens’ runways, days and days after I MEAN…WHAT?!? spotted it and even labeled the trend Gina Lollobrigida Orange. Click here to see all the I MEAN…WHAT?!? reportage from Milan and Paris mens’ shows. The other trend WWD spotted was also, right up there in each and every I MEAN…WHAT?!? fashion entry known as Manzie, but they call it something else, “Boys of Summer”. Now, scroll down and tell me that: A) If boys wore these outfits, they would not be shit… Read More »

One would have to be living under a rock not to know that I have taken issue with The New York Times Style section as of late. I have accused it of being not style conscious enough, behind the trend curve in its reporting, not fierce, old news, and under fabulous. And today is not any different. There are two stories that bugged me to no end starting with the lead article about “marijuana”.… Read More »

Earlier in the week I did a report on the Milan Men’s Shows an noticed a burgeoning trend that I lovingly call the “Season of the Manzie”. Now, maybe I need to clarify here. A Man-zie is not like a Dandy, nor is it like a Pansy, hence the revised spelling. In my book, a Pansy doesn’t necessarily need to dress effeminately in order to be called a Pansy by a bunch of blokes. On the contrary. They just need to have a sisssing “S” in their speech or run with their arms flailing or become cheerleaders. A Dandy on… Read More »