Cowboy Hats and More

Movies impact  a wide variety of styles around the world. Whether it’s a hat, a dress or a car, the decision to buy is often impacted by what is seen as cool in the movies. With the release of the first Indiana Jones movie in 1981, the hat industry has never been the same. Instantly the fedora was popularized.

The only thing that has had a greater impact on the hat industry is the realization that hats serve to protect us from skin cancer. Cowboy hats, western hats, outback hats, fedoras or any hat with a brim of at least 2 3/8” meet the requirements set by the American Academy of Dermatology as part of a total sun protection regimen to help prevent skin cancer and premature aging. Now we find out that we can have good looks that are good for us, what could be better? But even that fact has come in to second to the impact of a movie series on fedora sales!

Indy’s hat is such an icon that it is even in the Smithsonian.  Indiana Jones style hats are safari style fedoras with a medium-to-large brim that is turned down in the front and back. This hat style has come to embody the character of the man: strong, adventurous, a bit unconventional and … well, handsome. With a boost from this image, sales of all fedora styles skyrocketed.