Inhaltsverzeichnis für Summer 2024 in Esquire

BY LATE AFTERNOON AT CHURCHILL DOWNS, I’D LOST TRACK of the number of bourbon drinks I had consumed. There were icy mint juleps by the bucketload and more than a few Old Foresters on the rocks. I was feeling pretty damn good. My wife, Sally, and I had left the kids with Grandma and Grandpa and traveled to Louisville for the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby. This was Oaks Day, the Friday before the Derby, during which the guests wear pink for the main event: the running of the three-year-old fillies (in other words, young-girl horses). It was our first time at the Derby, only my third time at a horse track, and none of our bets had paid off yet. As guests of Longines, the official timekeeper of…

SCIENTIFIC FACT: NO ONE HAS EVER SMILED WHILE saying the word father. Bowed their head in respect or fear? For sure. Followed it with the word figure? You know it. Included it in the title of their “brave and unsparing” memoir? You betcha. Magazines (this one included!) love nothing more than to furrow their brow and devote pages upon pages to the state of American fatherhood. It’s no wonder, with a word—a figure—so looming that every man, on some level, fears turning into his father. ¶ Becoming a father is serious business. Unless you work at the White House or are a surgeon of some kind, raising a kid is likely the most important thing you’ll ever do. The stakes are high enough to make a guy wonder whether he…

Here’s a story about my dad that he won’t like me telling you: When I was, I don’t know, ten, I cleaned up spilled milk with our fabric toaster cover. My dad was not happy. “You know, Michael,” he said, “sometimes you can be a real jerk.” He wasn’t wrong, and now that I have two of them myself, I know that everyone sometimes has this thought about their kids. But he said it to me. My dad was an asshole sometimes. He had a short fuse and a certain way of doing things. How he loaded and unloaded the dishwasher—don’t get me started. He worked all the time. He wore a suit and tie six days a week. On his one day off, he’d wake up my older brother…

FINE IS… FINE. BUT IF YOU WANT TO REACH the very top tier of jewelry, you need to get high. The world of baubles and sparkles has layers. At the base is costume stuff that delivers the glitz but leans on cheap materials. Above that, there’s fine jewelry, which employs precious metals and stones to considerably more refined effect. And above that is high jewelry, featuring the most exceptional gems, the most exacting craftsman-ship, and the most exclusive pieces. These are the items with a provenance—and price—that demands you keep them under lock and key. Which is, as it happens, the inspiration for the name of the latest collection from David Yurman: the Vault. Overseen by Evan Yurman, the CEO and the son of the founder, it’s the first men’s…

MAJOR FASHION BRANDS ARE INTERested in your skin. Not in a creepy way. They are banking on the idea that if you like what they do for your wardrobe, you’re going to love what they do for your mug. The good news is that these labels have technology and money that upstart brands usually don’t. That translates into new ingredients, more elegant formulas, and packaging designed with the same care that goes into the clothes. So whether you’re looking for a cutting-edge face cream, a simple all-in-one routine, or an excellent natural body lotion, here are three labels to know when you’re ready to make over your medicine cabinet. 1_DIOR SAUVAGE MENCARE A complete skin-care system in three steps, with products that utilize cactus, which is prized for its ability…

WHEN I WAS 40, I RAISED MY FISTS AND DID NOT RUN AWAY FROM A FIGHT for the first time since sixth grade. It happened in a gym straight out of a Rocky movie. I was spending that year working in a rented office on the second floor of a three-story walk-up in Rome, Georgia. I filled my time staring out the office window, tapping gloomily at my keyboard on a failing project. One day, I heard banging. Fire-escape stairs led to a newly cleared third floor. “A gym,” an intense, wiry man said. And sure enough: heavy bags, speed bags, weights. Along one brick wall: a ring, canvas duct-taped directly to the wood floor. Plaster hung in patches; the bags hung directly from exposed roof joists. The wiry man…

Stephen King AUTHOR; 76; BANGOR, MAINE __ FAME IS A PAIN IN THE ASS. The older you get, the more of a pain in the ass it is. But you have to realize that it comes with the territory. It’s just part of what you do. __ THERE’S THIS OLD SPANISH SAYING: “God says, ‘Take what you want and pay for it.’” That’s the case with being famous. __ I KNEW A LOT when I was seventeen. But since then, it’s been a constant process of attrition. __ YOU CAN’T THINK OF WRITING as an adult pursuit or anything that’s important. That’s a good way to turn into a gasbag and start to think that you’re really fucking important. You’re not. You just do your work. __ I HAVE TO…

Tigre NEW YORK CITY This intimate Lower East Side bar is like the slingshot that launches you into the glorious night. It’s the Golden Snitch of a good time: a compact gilded room lined with undulating booths and bodies undulating on them, bathed in a low light, reached through a long hallway and purgatorial door. Once inside, everyone is serving looks, from the bartender to the waiter, a dead ringer for Jesus but hotter, who sashays in a cream silk pantsuit, holding trays of cocktails much better than they need be. (Tigre is from the Maison Premiere team, no slouches when it comes to bars.) The menu, writ on gold paper, features cocktails with lesser-known agave-based spirits like the Prickly Pear (bacanora) and Agave (raicilla). Down a few and you’ll…

Nine Bar CHICAGO Head to the back room of the Moon Palace restaurant—family run and serving the community since 1995—and you will find the neon-lit Nine Bar, from Lily Wang and Joe Briglio. It serves mapo fries and drinks that lean into the ingredients of the neighborhood (e.g., Calpico, Szechuan peppercorns, plums). The Blade Runner vibe is heavy here, but the DJ and the angular, big-flavor cocktails keep the overall atmosphere light. WHAT YOU’RE HAVING: The Mahjong Money, made with mezcal, Japanese whisky, matcha, honey, lemongrass, and ginger. —K. S. Bar Next Door LOS ANGELES In La La Land, new drinking joints often take two forms: high-gloss, social-media-ready hellholes or wannabe social clubs. Both are awful! (And both often serve terrible drinks.) Then there’s Bar Next Door. This Sunset Strip…

It’s more than five thousand miles from Honolulu to Victoria Harbour. In between, it’s open ocean, the odd pinprick of an island punctuating all that blue. The distance is imposing. Unless you’re Pharrell Williams. Hawaii and Hong Kong may seem far removed from each other—culturally and geographically—but Pharrell doesn’t see it that way. Travel. The sea. The inevitable mash-up of people and the perspectives that come with them. They pull the two together, and they’re exactly what Pharrell explores in his latest collection for Louis Vuitton, in which nautical themes, surf-inspired styling, and bold prints meet upscale fabrications and city-ready silhouettes. It works, especially if you’re the type of guy who catches a wave in the morning and a private jet in the afternoon. This is no coincidence. As a…

STORE INFORMATION For the items featured in Esquire, please consult the website or call the phone number provided. Blueprint, p. 33: Orlebar Brown swim trunks, orlebarbrown.com. Thom Browne sneakers, thombrowne.com. Akoni sunglasses, akoni.com. Hamilton watch, hamiltonwatch.com. Lagos bracelet, lagos.com. P. 34: Breitling watch, breitling.com. P. 36: David Yurman High Jewelry bracelets, ring, and amulet, davidyurman.com. David Yurman necklace, davidyurman.com. Loro Piana cardigan and trousers, loropiana.com. P. 38: Sperry by Chris Echevarria shoe, blackstockandweber.com. American Trench sock, americantrench.com. Jacquemus shoe, jacquemus.com. Sebago shoe, sebago-usa.com. Coach overalls, coach.com. Polo Ralph Lauren shoe, ralphlauren.com. Levi’s x ERL jeans, levi.com. Pantherella sock, pantherella.com. Dior Men shoe, dior.com. Schostal Originals sock, schostaloriginals.com. Camper shoe, camper.com. Anonymous Ism sock, anonymousism.com. P. 40: Canali jacket, sweater, shirt, knit shirt, and trousers, canali.com. Marsèll shoes, marsell.com. Eliburch Jewelry…

HOW OFTEN DO YOU START A SENTENCE WITH THE WORDS “WHY, WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE…”? A_Almost never. (10) B_Occasionally. (7) C_At least once a week. (5) D_It’s the title of my podcast. (0) YOUR CHILD IS PLAYING ON A YOUTH SPORTS TEAM. YOU: A_Stress sportsmanship, healthy competition, and the value of bringing enough orange slices to share. (10) B_ Track team standings in a suspiciously thick binder. (7) C_Conduct frank postgame assessments of your child’s play. You try not to be harsh, but there have been tears. (3) D_Remind your child, “It’s not a foul if the ref doesn’t see it.” (0) HOW DO YOU HELP YOUR CHILD WITH HOMEWORK? A_You work side by side, patiently guiding them to arrive at the right answers themselves. (10) B_ You do…

A PORTABLE PROJECTOR Congrats on finally making it to the “fun” years. From, let’s say, age seven to the dreaded start of teendom, how do you keep the kids interested in hanging out with you? Movie night, and do it right—with a portable projector. Pick it up by the handle, then watch the movie out back or in the kids’ room. $1,300 DAD SNEAKERS Don’t forget you need to look the part. Nothing says “dad,” let alone “cool dad,” more than the Made in USA 990’s. $200 SNOO The best, most valuable—and even most controversial—topic concerning items for newborns is the Snoo. It’s a bassinet invented by Dr. Harvey Karp, a childhood-development expert, and it’s controversial mostly because of its price tag. Even if you don’t buy the Snoo, you’d…

AFTER YEARS OF ANYTHING-GOES style, guys are cleaning up their act and getting dressed with a sense of occasion again. When it comes to swimwear, that means ditching big, baggy suits and opting for something with a more streamlined fit. Enter Orlebar Brown’s Bulldog trunks. Cut to hit mid-thigh, equipped with a set waistband instead of elastic, and finished with tailoring-inspired tab adjusters at the side, they’ll bring a welcome dose of refinement to any and all aquatic adventures. And once you’ve toweled off? Thanks to their quick-drying fabric and a look that’s more “short” than “swim,” all you need to do is throw on some shoes and a shirt—something with a camp collar or a knitted polo would pair particularly well—and you’ll be ready to round out the evening…

THE FIRST NATIONAL POLITICAL CONVENTION THAT I EVER WENT TO WAS ONE I DIDN’T really attend. It was 1976. I had spent the previous 18 months trying to get Congressman Mo Udall elected president and had failed. (Not that it was entirely my fault.) The Democrats had come together in New York to nominate Jimmy Carter, whom we had chased all over the country, only to lose narrowly to him in almost every primary. We lost in Wisconsin when everybody went to bed thinking we’d won, and the Milwaukee Sentinel got caught with a Dewey Defeats Truman headline in its early editions. Then, in May, with the campaign barely breathing, we lost to Carter in Michigan by fewer than 2,500 votes. I still have nightmares. I felt that, out of…

THE HOUSE OF THE DRAGON BROTHERS ARE having a smoke outside their hotel, looking like the most famous British rockers who never existed. There’s Ewan Mitchell, twenty-seven, whose six-foot frame is hidden by a baggy black hoodie and sweatpants. At his side is Tom Glynn-Carney, twentynine, slightly shorter, looking proper as heck: newsboy cap, cords, the works. They’re so perfectly, lazily, and hilariously draped against the Soho Grand’s brick exterior that I expect someone to ask for an autograph thinking they’re Cambridge Asylum (my name for their fictional band), not Aemond and Aegon Targaryen. We meet up inside the hotel’s restaurant and order drinks—beers for Tom and me, just a Coke for Ewan. Before we get to their hit Game of Thrones prequel (season 2 debuts June 16), we address…

Paradise Lost NEW YORK CITY You are welcomed with the ol’ secret-bar shtick: Discreet door. Buzz to open. But this isn’t some dimly lit drink temple. It’s much weirder: a tropical bar with punk sensibilities (this is the East Village, after all) and ultra-nerd cocktail ambitions dressed up in red lights and bamboo-clad booths, plus lots of fish nets and trippy vintage paraphernalia. There are flights of esoteric, hard-to-find rums that come in mini treasure chests and a cocktail list of more than twenty entries that range from twists on classics like the piña colada to drinks that push the boundaries of tropical cocktails. WHAT YOU’RE HAVING: The Damnboo, a refreshing take on the bamboo cocktail with fino sherry, umeshu plum sake, caraway, and aloe. —K. S. Liquid Diet LAS…

Portrait Bar NEW YORK CITY Portrait Bar, in the Fifth Avenue Hotel, stands as a shining example of what can transpire when people really know what they’re doing. The drinks and the food reflect a quiet but confident virtuosity. You may think a martini has no use for aguardiente and cherry-bark vanilla bitters, but that’s only because you haven’t yet sipped veteran barman Darryl Chan’s Barrio Getsemani, informed by the flavors and fragrances of Cartagena. You may think you don’t need any bar snacks fancier than a bowl of nuts, but that’s only because you haven’t yet nibbled on veteran chef Andrew Carmellini’s crispy oysters with a celery-root rémoulade or his tuna tartare tucked into nori that deftly crackles in your teeth. The cocktails pay tribute to cities around the…

TO BE A MIDDLE-AGED MAN IN SOUTHERN California is to find yourself saying, with alarming frequency, “Yeah, I’m one of those assholes now.” If you’ve come from somewhere else—somewhere more corn-fed and homespun and other synonyms for unhealthy—you may adopt a wholesome habit out here. You may reap physical and emotional benefits, and you will be clowned to death by your friends from home. CrossFit, breath work, bullshitting through a gratitude journal—I’ve tried them all. Some have had a positive impact on my life; others have given me items to sell on OfferUp. (I’m looking at you, matcha stirring bowl.) This year has been especially busy on the humiliatingly-healthy-habits front. Maybe it’s a post-Covid focus on fitness, or a more robust wellness marketplace, or the fact that I hit my…

WHILE HANGING OUT WITH FRIENDS ON A recent visit home to Atlanta, I mentioned casually that I was “dumbphone curious.” To my surprise, one tech-obsessed pal—she’s employed by a Web3 art collective and gets paid in cryptocurrency—quickly said the same. Then two others pulled out matching flip phones that looked very 2004. A group of terminally online Gen Zers talking about going back to a technology we barely remember? It couldn’t be a coincidence. Turns out, my friends and I are part of a growing movement to embrace less-than-smart media. Call it streaming fatigue. Or maybe it’s just a longing for a simpler time. But people are choosing to ditch their $1,000 smartphones—and the hours of mindless scrolling—for more intentional media consumption. And consumer electronics companies are responding by rewinding…

Dad jokes only seem easy. We asked Jim Gaffigan, comedian, father of five, and founder of Fathertime Bourbon, to break down the art form for us. WHAT MAKES A PERFECT DAD JOKE? It has to be a bad joke. The most important thing is the fact that the joke is annoying to our children. A key element is we pretend to be unaware that it’s a groaner. DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE? There are some classics. “I’m hungry.” “Hi, hungry, I’m Dad.” It has to be an observation on a very lazy connection of two seemingly unrelated ideas. WHY DO YOU THINK DADS GRAVITATE TOWARD PUNS? Kids are dumb, so they’re not going to get it initially. But as they get older, it becomes a joke that is shared. It’s…

I WATCHED ZACK SNYDER’S JUSTICE LEAGUE WITH MY KIDS WHEN THEY WERE eight and five. And they liked it. I mentioned this, with a bit of guilt considering its R rating, to Snyder during a Q&A. “It’s a pretty soft R,” he told me, as if to say I wasn’t that terrible a parent. Sure, I had to ignore the kids’ questions about what the Joker meant by giving Batman a “reach around,” but for the most part, if your kids can handle curses and some violence, they can handle soft R’s. One of the best parts of being a dad is knowing which rules are okay to break. The fatherly refrain of “no R-rated movies” is one. Since then, we’ve added more soft R’s to family movie night. Game…

EVERY ERA HAS ITS OWN AERONAUtical obsession. Around the turn of the 20th century, it was simply getting off the ground. By the ’60s, it was getting to the moon. In the ’90s, it was one of the few unconquered high-altitude feats: a nonstop balloon trip around the globe. It sounds a little wacky, but this was serious business. The endeavor preoccupied 11 teams that made 21 attempts in all before Brian Piccard succeeded on his third try in 1999 with copilot Brian Jones on the Breitling Orbiter 3. The journey covered more than 28,000 miles in just under 20 days. Now, 25 years after that accomplishment, Breitling is celebrating the Orbiter 3’s excursion with a new watch: the Aerospace B70 Orbiter. The gradated orange dial is inspired by the…

MENTION THE NAME CANALI IN MENSWEAR circles and tailoring comes to mind. That’s reasonable: The Brianza-based brand, which is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, is certainly capable of producing an exceptional suit. Although its reputation is well earned, Canali didn’t start by making tailored clothing. Its first product was a raincoat—an essential element of the everyday wardrobe. And now, in an increasingly casual world, the label is returning to its roots by embracing a more easygoing take on getting dressed each morning. Canali calls it “gentleness”—a deliberate declaration of no, grazie to the loud, in-your-face styling prevalent in runway fashion. There’s still a sense of luxury and craftsmanship, of course, but now those high-end fabrics and time-honored techniques are deployed to make clothes for men with more than work…

“DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO BELVEDERE CASTLE?” Bill Skarsgård and I have been walking for an hour and forty-seven minutes, winding our way aimlessly around Central Park on a moody New York City morning in April. Over the bridges, around the baseball fields, past the amphitheater, and through the nature sanctuary. Twice. Now we’re suddenly facing a middle-aged, brunette woman in workout clothes who’s looking at us expectantly. Neither of us, however, has the faintest idea how to locate Belvedere Castle, a Central Park landmark and former lookout tower completed in 1872 and designed in the style of a miniature, well, castle. Skarsgård freezes, leaving me to apologize to our fellow park walker for not knowing which way she should head. She hurries along, none the wiser about whom…

SOMETIMES YOU JUST WANT TO SETTLE IN. SOMETIMES YOU NEED TO call the audible, cancel the next meetup, ask the sitter to stay late, and get your friends to come to you, because you’ve found the place with an energy so perfect—exactly what you were looking for on that day, in that moment—that, really, could anything go up from here? ¶ More bars these days seem to be a complete package, like a nightlife one-stop shop. They can be a club if you want—you know, the kind you dance in. They can be the place where you order a bottle of Champagne and endless oysters. They can be a jazz lounge. They can be the place where you think you’ve stumbled on a garage party attended by the city’s coolest…

Tusk Bar NEW YORK CITY Tusk Bar bills itself as a raw bar, but that might not register at first. Located through the lobby of the Evelyn Hotel, the space resembles more of a jazz-age salon than a place where lots of shucking is happening. There are oysters, yes, but the menu is from chefs Jeremiah Stone and Fabián von Hauske Valtierra of Wildair, so you’ll want the pillowy panisse, the live-scallop crudo, and that decadent Wagyu-steak sandwich. And it’s a bar, too. Tristan Brunel’s drinks are delightfully off-kilter: The old-fashioned has a hint of sesame, and the Bloody Mary is seasoned with fermented chile. WHAT YOU’RE HAVING: The mini martinis with an oyster shooter. What a way to start things off. —K. S. Traveling Mercies AURORA, COLORADO Sometimes the…