Bucket hat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A bucket hat is a soft cotton hat with a wide and downwards sloping brim which is worn by both men and women. The brim offers shade from the sun for the eyes and face. They are usually made from heavy-duty cotton fabrics such as denim, or canvas. Two metal eyelets are commonly placed on each side of the hat so that it is cool to wear on hot days.
In American popular culture, the bucket hat is associated with the character Gilligan, from the 1960s television comedy Gilligan's Island, who habitually wore one.
Bucket hats were also quite popular in old school hip hop fashion namely those from the Kangol brand. Rappers who were often seen wearing this type of hat were LL Cool J and Run DMC.
Another musician known for his use of bucket hats is Reni, drummer for the band The Stone Roses. The hat is still sometimes called a "Reni hat" in the UK particularly by people who grew up in that musical era.
Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson was also famously known for wearing them, and is depicted as doing so in both Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Where The Buffalo Roam.
The bucket hat can be seen in the apocalyptic science-fiction film The Day After Tomorrow and is worn in a crucial sequence in the film in which the main female lead (Emmy Rossum) trudges through a flooded New York City.
In Israel, the bucket hat dates back to the beginning of the nation in the Israeli War of Independence. Israeli soldiers needed something that would protect them from the hot sun. At first, they used the Arab keffiyeh but realized they needed to distinguish themselves from the Arab soldiers. They used a local heavy-duty cotton fabric for simple hats, the "kova tembel" or "fool's hat". To this day, the "kova tembel" is used in the Israeli Defense Forces, and is a national symbol.
In the UK, it is known as a "fishing hat" and is associated with the Mod/Indie scene.
In Argentina the hat was made famous by comedian Alberto Olmedo and his fictional character, Capitán Piluso (The Piluso Captain). The bucket was one of the outstanding features in his uniform, and thus the hat rose to popularity as The Piluso Hat, or simply, The Piluso.
