- Manufactured by
- Cosmopolitan Hat Company, American
- Worn by
- Calloway, Cab, American, 1907 - 1994
- Subject of
- Cotton Club, American, 1956 - 1958
- Date
- 1957
- Medium
- straw with textile materials , ribbon , feather and leather
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 4 1/8 × 14 13/16 × 16 7/16 in. (10.4 × 37.6 × 41.7 cm)
- Description
- A purple boater hat from a costume worn by Cab Calloway at the Miami Beach Cotton Club for a Shakespearian Romeo and Juliet themed routine. The hat is constructed primarily from purple dyed straw. It has a flat top and a wide brim. The hat features a wide, gold, metallic hat band tied in a large flat bow around the proper left side of the crown. A bright yellow fragment of a feather is tucked into the bow. The crown is lined with light brown silk. A black circular stamp at the center of the crown features a shield device at the center with a profile of a squirrel and a lamp above. The shield is framed by pairs of laurel leaf branches on either side of the shield’s base. Black text printed above the shield reads [INCOMPARABLE EXCELLENCE]. Printed below the shield device is black text that reads [Cosmopolitan / NEW YORK]. The interior also features a leather hatband with another manufacturer’s stamp on the proper left side. The hat brim is edged in magenta.
- Place used
- Miami Beach, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, North and Central America
- Place made
- New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
- Collection title
- The Cabell “Cab” Calloway III Collection
- Classification
- Clothing - Costume
- Type
- hats
- Topic
- Band (Music)
- Clothing and dress
- Composers (Musicians)
- Conductors (Musicians)
- Costume
- Dance
- Jazz (Music)
- Musical Theatre
- Singers (Musicians)
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Cabella Calloway Langsam
- Object number
- A2015.273.1.2.4
- Restrictions & Rights
- Unknown - Restrictions Possible
- Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.




