There is a select group of trend-proof garments that have been in style since they were created and will remain in style in perpetuity. I’m thinking about the original Levi’s 501 jeans in raw selvedge denim, the Brooks Brothers button-down shirt in white Oxford cloth, the Ray Ban Aviator, the Rolex Submariner… the list goes on. Classics. Another one is the G9 “Harrington” jacket from Baracuta.

Founded in Manchester, England, in 1937 by brothers John and Isaac Miller, Baracuta was a manufacturer of rainwear. Though the Miller family had a good thing going supplying companies like Burberry and Aquascutum, they wanted to branch out with their own line. That line started in 1938 with a better golf jacket for the famously inclement wet weather in that part of England. That jacket was called the G9 – “G” for golf, and “9” for nine holes. 

One of the Baracuta G9’s signature assets is the lining. The Miller brothers approached Lord Lovat (Brigadier Simon Christopher Joseph Fraser, the 25th clan chief of the Clan Fraser of Lovat in Scotland) and asked him if they could use his family tartan in their brand. He agreed, giving way to one of the most iconic design flourishes in menswear history.

In 1964, the G9 adopted the supplemental moniker “Harrington” after Ryan O’Neal’s character Rodney Harrington in the wildly popular soap opera Peyton Place. O’Neal’s character wore the G9 so often on the show that the G9 became colloquially known as the Harrington, a name that sticks to this day.

The King wearing a Baracuta G9 in King Creole (1957)

The G9’s iconic stature was further secured by wearings by Elvis Presley, James Dean, and, perhaps most famously, Steve McQueen, who wore it both in film and in his personal life.

Steve McQueen wearing his Baracuta G9s in dark navy and mist.

Though available with different exterior fabrics from leather to denim to corduroy, the original is made with the cotton blend Baracuta Cloth shell with the Fraser tartan lining made from something called Coolmax® Cotton, (highly breathable with moisture wicking). It also comes in a spectrum of colors, the most iconic being tan, natural, navy, or dark navy.

Since my trip to London last week, I’ve got all things British on my mind. That, coupled with the current season, has me thinking about the Baracuta G9. It’s a perfect outer layer for September and October in New England. At a price of $449 US, it’s not some disposable fast-fashion impulse purchase. Rather, it’s a timeless, trend-proof jacket made with rigid standards in craftsmanship, and it’s an investment I’m seriously considering. 

This post is part of my free weekly newsletter, The Dispatch, which includes recommendations on movies and shows I’m watching, books I’m reading, albums I’m listening to, worthwhile articles I’m finding on the web, and anything else that might catch my interest. Subscribe here.


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3 Comments

  1. Hello, Mr. George Hahn,

    Just wanted to drop a note letting you know how much I look forward to your stately and rhythmic parade of updates that arrive with perfect timing.. just as a refresher is needed!

    As a female day-dreaming poet and shameful schlub…perfectly capable of leaving the house with two mismatched sneakers, I love your sensibility, although my own personal external image is still very much a work in process and I “aspire” to, but only occasionally achieve a stylish look. : )

    I also appreciate the way you combine unerring taste in art, music, events, and external elegance with an appreciation for the deeper aspects of life. Some favorites from you reads for me included: a.) visiting friends when they are ill; b.) charity events addressing hunger in the city; and c.) your own challenges with anxiety attacks. Substance underlying style.

    It is also wonderful to vicariously catchy up on the happening in New York City, be it the magnificent or the absurd (as in the latest on the always-ridiculous Adams). I used to take the train from Washington DC once or twice a season for everything from a comedy workshop for one of my characters, to theater in Times Square, a city walk or tour, or just about anything else. Since late 2019, my visits have for now ended, first with Covid, then with layoffs and financial challenges. I wish I could provide you with one-time or membership report and if times change, definitely will join up!

    I found the early excerpt of your memoir-in-progress so moving, and magnificently-written. Very much hope you return with more…if you have the impulse, It was very entertaining.

    Finally, I am making bold to send you a link to a series of mine on Medium called “Franz Kafka Has Joined LinkedIn.” I thought you might enjoy it, as it is set in Manhattan (as well as the “Amazonian” warehouse in Staten Island). Yes, it really is “my” Franz Kafka, who with his annoying-but-doughty rescuer Mildred M. battles the brutal 2023-2024 job market as well a other insults to his sensibilities:

    https://medium.com/@ma_murphy_58/franz-kafka-has-joined-linkedin-short-story-f93767e544b2?sk=0381945a8748c99f9a725a35e9dea3fb

    FINALLY, Yeeeeesh, I am very much a salty old crone who jealously guards my channel selector and eats in bed shamelessly, but I must say, Steve McQueen is a MAGNIFICENT BEAST of a man. I would now, being older and wiser, keep a guy like that at a half-kilometer arms length, but he was…SOMETHING!

    Best regards,

    Maureen Murphy (“Moe”)

  2. Oh goodness. Typos. Pardon. Edits in freestyle.

    “Some favorites from [your] reads…” para 3, line 2.

    “…to vicariously [catch] up” para 4, line 1

    “…membership [support]” para 4, final line

    “Very much hope you return with [more, if] you have the impulse[.] It was very entertaining.” para 5

  3. Uffe Jerner Reply

    I have often wondered that you have never appeared in a Harrington jacket. You’ll look perfect in it until peacoat season hits! Buy! (navy, of course).
    Kind regards

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