In “Off the rack” I chided the governor for his too-casual choices of attire while on the job. I concede that my standards in such matters were shaped by my first tow governors, William Stratton and Otto Kerner. Stratton was a bit of a dandy, Kerner went dignified.
Kerner was
named Best Dressed in his class at Brown University, and later served in World War II as a
field artillery officer in North Africa, Italy and the Pacific; decorated
twice, he left active duty as a lieutenant colonel.
Kerner carried himself like a soldier his whole life, and by some miracle of self-presentation
managed to look distinguished even in golfing clothes.
However, time in the service is no guarantee of sartorial
smartness. In the ‘70s I covered an appearance by then-candidate Dan Walker,
a corporate exec. He was wearing polyester. I decided at
that moment to vote for Ogilvie.
This article appears in Mar 17-22, 2016.
