“The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt” (1942)

"The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt" was the title of a 1942 short story by Mary McCarthy. The title is famous, but the story itself is less so. The Brooks Brothers company used the theme in ads, changing it to "The Man in the Brooks Brothers Suit."

Brooks Brothers has been around since 1818 and is a legendary American business.

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/aboutus/heritage.tem
1818 - THE FIRST BROOKS BROTHERS STORE
On April 7, 1818, at the age of 45, Henry Sands Brooks opened H. & D.H. Brooks & Co. on the Northeast corner of Catharine and Cherry Streets in New York City. His guiding principle: "To make and deal only in merchandise of the finest quality, to sell it at a fair profit and to deal with people who seek and appreciate such merchandise."

1845 - READY-MADE SUITS
Brooks Brothers introduced the first ready-to-wear suits in America. Pioneers of the 1849 California Gold Rush, unable to wait on the whims of a tailor, flocked to Brooks Brothers to pick up ready-made clothing.

31 May 1942, Los Angeles Times, pg. C6:
THE COMPANY SHE KEEPS. By Mary McCarthy. Simon & Schuster, $2.50.
(...)
One of the six episodic sections, entitled "The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt," deserves special note. In the reader's as well as heroine's mind, it is "an absurd, ugly love story" expertly told.

30 August 1948, New York Times, pg. 3 ad:
WHEN PEOPLE SAY:
"THE MAN IN THE BROOKS BROTHERS' SUIT"
THEY DO MORE THAN POINT OUT A MAN
--THEY IDENTIFY HIM

25 August 1976, Chicago Tribune, "Brooks Brothers alters a custom" by Gilbert Millstein, pg. B1:
Indeed, there is evidence that Brooks was either the first clothing establishment in the United States to offer ready-made clothing or one of the first.
(...)
F. Scott Fitzgerald dressed his star-crossed heroes in Brooks suits. John O'Hara took the measure of his protagonists by the cut of their clothing (the good guys went to Brooks; the heels wore padded shoulders and severely pegged pants), and Mary McCarthy wrote a short story which is as famous for its title as for the story - "The Man in the Brooks Brothers Shirt."

(Trademark)
Word Mark BROOKS BROTHERS ESTABLISHED 1818.
Goods and Services (EXPIRED) IC 034. US 008. G & S: CIGARETTE CASES, CIGARETTE HOLDERS, ASH TRAYS, CIGARETTE BOXES, TOBACCO POUCHES, PIPES, HUMIDORS, CIGARETTE RESTS, CIGAR HOLDERS, ((CIGARETTE PAPER AND BOOKLETS FOR SAME,)) AND PIPE CLEANERS. FIRST USE: 18940000. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 18940000
Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS
Design Search Code 030710 090104
Serial Number 71462300
Filing Date July 26, 1943
Current Filing Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Change In Registration CHANGE IN REGISTRATION HAS OCCURRED
Registration Number 0405282
Registration Date January 18, 1944
Owner (LAST LISTED OWNER) BROOKS BROTHERS NEW YORK. NEW YORK, N.Y.
Assignment Recorded ASSIGNMENT RECORDED
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Affidavit Text SECT 12C. SECT 15.
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD