Flashback : Dallas

Metzger’s milkmen on parade in Life magazine

by Paula Bosse

Something BIG happened in Dallas in 1955 — it was such an earth-shattering event that it made headlines around the country: Metzger’s milkmen in Dallas announced that Bermuda shorts would become part of their summer uniform. It must have been a slow news month, because this story was picked up by the wire services and absolutely caught fire, running in newspapers all over the country. It even climbed to the pinnacle of mass media newsworthiness and found itself in the pages of Life magazine where the above photo was accompanied by the following caption:

MILKMEN’S CALVES
Drivers for a Dallas dairy produced a new morning look by setting out in Bermuda shorts. The boss thought they would be cooler in them. The shorts were fine, but one driver was nipped by a dog of long acquaintance who didn’t recognize him. (Life, May 23, 1955)

It was also the subject of newsreel footage. Watch the 1-minute silent clip here. Below, a screenshot:

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In 1955, Bermuda-shorts-fever had somehow gripped the nation. Some sort of marketing sadist was pushing the jacket-and-tie-and-Bermuda-shorts-and-knee-socks combo as appropriate and stylish summertime apparel for men in the boardroom — an unfortunate early version of “business casual.” Mercifully, the fad died fairly quickly.

But another more utilitarian idea for the new cool and comfortable shorts emerged here in Dallas. Jake Metzger, owner of the dairy that produced Metzger’s milk, decided to adopt the shorts as part of a new summer uniform for his milk delivery men. The Dallas Morning News suggested that this might be the first such uniform in the United States. Shorts were just not widely seen outside the gym in those days, and certainly not in the workplace. But it gets hot in Texas in the summer. Real hot. REAL hot. Metzger’s idea was a brilliant one, and I’m sure his drivers appreciated it. According to an AP article, the new uniform would consist of the following:

The shorts are the black Bermuda type, often called walking shorts, with an elasticized maroon belt. They’re matched with a short-sleeve khaki shirt, over-the-calf cotton ribbed khaki socks and low black loafers. The outfit is topped with a black cotton golfers’ cap. (AP, May 10, 1955)

If a milkman believed that the new uniform went against his “moral scruples” — or if he just didn’t like the way he looked in it — he could opt out and wear the regular uniform. But a lot of the men jumped at the chance — reports said 30 of 120 milkmen went bare-kneed. And their photos were splashed across newspapers all over the place. A publicity bonanza! Here are just a few of the photos.

Milkman Cal Hager, ogled by Mrs. Tom Grimes and Mrs. F. F. Kennedy:

UPI wire photo, May 10, 1955

Allan Adams gets the once-over by his customers:

Victoria (TX) Advocate, May 13, 1955

Herman Lancaster and a confused Mrs. Dale Spence (holding daughter Jean):

AP wire photo, May 11, 1955

Metzgers’ man Herman Malone proffers a bottle to Mrs. Maurice Schermann and her daughter Linda:

Nanaimo Daily News, British Columbia, Canada, June 10, 1955

Philadelphia Inquirer, May 12, 1955

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The headlines were often better than the photos, in all their reverse sexist glory. Here are a few from every corner of the United States:

• “DALLAS MILMEN REAL CREAMY IN SHORTS, SOX”
• “HOUSEWIFE DELIGHTED: MILKMEN MAKE ROUNDS IN BERMUDA WALKING SHORTS”
• “YOO-HOO, MILKMAN!”
• “MILMAN COMETH IN SHORTS NOW”
• “THE MILKMAN COMETH, AND LOOK AT HIS CLOTHES!”
• “HE’S IN SHORTS: WHISTLES, CATCALLS GREET THE MILKMAN”
• “DALLAS MILKMEN GO TO WORK DUDED UP”
• “SPORTY SHORTS FOR MILKMEN”
• “WHISTLE-BAIT MILKMEN DON BLACK SHORTS”
• “QUARTS WITH SHORTS — 30 MILKMEN GO NATTY”
• “DON’T WHISTLE, MOTHERS, IT’S ONLY THE MILKMAN”
• “CATCALLS, WHISTLES, POETRY GREET SHORTS-CLAD MILKMEN”
• “ULTRAFASHIONABLE MILKMEN ARE CLAD IN BERMUDA SHORTS”

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You know a fashion craze has gotten out of hand when you see San Antonio vice squad detectives looking like this:

Bryan (TX) Eagle, May 27, 1955

If Messrs. Jones and Lombardino are still amongst the living, I’m pretty sure they still haven’t lived that photo down. (The partner of Wilton Shaw is misidentified in this photo — he is Chesley Jones.)

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Coshocton (OH) Tribune, May 11, 1955

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Copyright © 2014 Paula Bosse. All Rights Reserved.