One of my favorite recurring articles from the good folks of No Man Walks Alone is the alternative style icons. I like the idea because how many times do people need to be told to dress like Steve McQueen, am I right? There has been one glaring omission to the hallowed halls of alternative jawn gods though, and that is clearly Howling Mad Murdock of the A-Team.
Everyone remembers the A-Team, right? They were a bunch of white dudes and Mr. T, who went from town to town righting wrongs, all the while figuring out new ways to pimp their ride to take down small town goons. I could go through each member and break down why you should add a little of each one’s wardrobe to your closet but Murdock was my favorite.
Murdock as played by Dwight Schultz is a former army pilot that saw combat in Vietnam and lost his mind. That’s it. That’s the character. More importantly for us however, Murdock is a sterling example of choosing the right kind of uniform and sticking to it. I remember him rocking a bunch of silly disguises on the show, but it was his every day outfit that I find myself copying a lot. That outfit consisted of some kind of casual button up shirt worn open with a tee layered underneath with khaki trousers and a pair of chuck taylors. Rounding it out was some kind of dad hat with a leather bomber jacket. It’s so simple and sensible and these days I find myself wearing a variation of it a lot.
No discussion about Howling Mad’s outfit of choice can be had without digging into that iconic bomber jacket. It was perfectly distressed leather with a custom patch on the back of it. The patch was a roaring tiger with the words “De Nang 1970” emblazoned above it. It’s the kind of piece that #menswear enthusiasts would go nuts over today. It clearly came from the character’s personal experience and it looked well worn to boot. I can imagine many an early 2000’s blog calling it a piece that can be passed down.
If you were to stare at a group photo of the A-Team, your eye would be drawn to every other member before you settle on Murdoch, but he’s sporting the only outfit that is feasible for every-day wear. So all hail the father of dad style! Long may he reign.