Fat Blokes

You might not think fashion icon Simon Doonan, who clocks in a fit and trim 5'4" ("in heels" as he once told a newspaper), would have much to say about being Big & Tall, but you'd be wrong.

I was on his site the other today, and noticed the below nestled in between mini essays on sarcasm and shoe shopping:

Fat Blokes by Simon Doonan

Back in the day, heft was associated with gravitas and power, leadership, and trust. Fat blokes, by their very physiques, projected monumental indestructability. Even when they were rotting with syphilis (Henry VIII) or prone to decapitating their spouses (Henry VIII, again) they were somehow preferable to those malevolent skinny fellows (Richard III). Obese monarchs and porky politicos loomed large on any podium or battlefield, and one imagines that when they delivered speeches their words boomed and reverberated to tremendous effect. Enough to make your jewelry rattle.

It’s hard to imagine a scrawny geezer having the same kind of impact. Imagine if Winston Churchill, instead of looking like Falstaff, were to have resembled Igor Stravinsky, or a Giacometti sculpture. I cannot help feeling his we-will-fight-on-the-beaches addresses to the nation would have been much less comforting.

Well look at that.  It's not often that you see such a positive portrayal of size by someone

A. who is not part of the big and tall community and

B. is such an entrenched and respected member of the  fashion industry.  

And guess what? HE'S RIGHT!  So, all my big and tall brothers (and sisters!) get out there today, take up space unapologetically, and make people's "jewelry rattle."

(But before you do, pre-order Simon's upcoming book Soccer Style: The Magic and the Madness on Amazon here.)