The black leather bomber jacket became a symbol of 1950s greasers when the movie Grease was released. It was popular with rebels and with rockabilly men today, however, it was not the most common style of 50s jacket. That style goes to the gabardine jacket: a lightweight Harrington or bomber jacket with ribbed cuffs, a bottom band, and a wide flat collar.
In the early 50s it was the belted bush jacket, safari coat and plaid mackinaw style that every man was wearing. Teens wore two-tone letterman jackets to show off school pride. Learn about casual men’s jackets in the 1950s here.
Other short jackets include suede or the leather bomber jacket, leather motorcycle jackets, and the shirt jacket. Long coats for heavy winters were still worn but now they were shorter, falling to just at the knee. Bold patterns and textured wool fabric gives a unique vintage style. Double breasted raincoats were a lighter overcoat option (think Singing in the Rain). Learn about 1950s men’s overcoats here.
While you can still find men’s vintage overcoats and jackets, many men prefer the fit of new, classic men’s jackets like these we found online:
