THE MAN AND THE MANNEQUIN

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30106, 15 April 1963, Page 16

THE MAN AND THE MANNEQUIN

One of man’s missions, in his weary walk across the desert of life, is the protection and comfort of his marriage partner. But she makes him work at it. It is not only a matter of bills and buildings, cars and clothes, holidays and home-spun philosophy; a successful husband has to develop diplomacy tc an extraordinarily nigh level. Life, someone said, is but a stage, and a man has to play many parts Not the least difficult ol them is accompanying his wife to a fashion parade, as we did recently. The mannequins extremely becoming young women, every one

I, of them, showed winter k clothes, sports wear, , summer wear, beach ■’ wear. The difficulty d clearly is knowing just e where to stop in one’s ■s admiration of the disit play. s Fortunately, this d parade, was presented d while the audience was a still slavering over a is full-scale dinner; without o it a good many husbands h might have been left in the soup. The problem is :s that most women expect n their husbands to show s. an interest in clothes, yet >f remain all masculine g and rather like a welln mannered lumberjack. A i- cautious comment here s, and there about winter g suits—not enough to exe pose a complete lack of

taste—is usually safe. A brief reference tn the vivid colours in the sports wear can also get by. With the summer frocks, a careful, unobstrusive watch for one’s wife’s reactions is safest; then one can chime in with the proper sentiment happily. But it is when the swim suits appear that one can be in trouble. Bikinis, luckily for husbands, seem to be going out. but there are other revelations. And the advice we would offer is this: when the bathing costumes come on, don’t try to look bored, or interested, shocked or delighted. Don’t try to look. Just concentrate on the T-bone steak.