There are dudes, there’s The Dude (as fans of a certain movie will remind us), then there’s The King of the Dudes. This was Evander Berry Wall, a 19th century New York socialite who took fancy dressing to heights no one had ever seen before. Who was Evander Berry Wall?
He Inherited A Fortune
Evander Berry Wall was born in 1861 into a family that owned a very successful rope-manufacturing business. As a young man Wall was fond of dressing up in fancy clothes. When he inherited two million dollars at the age of 22, he immediately went to town on his wardrobe.
New York American, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
King Of The Dudes
Wall’s flamboyant clothing gained him a reputation as a “dude”, which in those days was short for “Yankee Doodle Dandy” or a flashy dresser. His outfits often featured loud checkered patterns, white spats, colorful striped collars, cravats and dinner jackets among other haberdashery. In honor of all this flashiness, a newspaper in New Jersey proclaimed Wall the “King of the Dudes”. But another nattily attired gent soon challenged Wall for his title.
Battle Of The Dudes
Robert “Bob” Hilliard was another well-known dude, and he soon stepped forward in all his sartorial splendor to challenge Wall for the dude crown. Not to be outdone, Wall showed up at a bar wearing patent leather boots that went up to his hips. Despite the statement-making move, the press was still divided on who won the battle. On another occasion, Wall won a bet by changing his clothes 40 times between breakfast and dinner.
He Went Bust
With his habit of turning down any drink that wasn’t champagne, Wall became known around town as a guy who liked to live large. Unfortunately, he was better at spending money than making it. After an unsuccessful stint as a stockbroker, he bought a stable. His horse sense proved no better than his stock picking abilities: Wall declared bankruptcy in 1899, which led him to a life-changing decision.
He Went Expat
Disenchanted with his failed financial ventures and tired of the mercenary culture of New York, Wall and his wife Salome made the bold move of relocating to Paris in 1912. Living in a hotel next to a bespoke shirtmaker, the Walls found themselves right at home in the fashionable French capital. The local aristocrats asked them “What took you so long to join us?” For the Walls, it was a new lease on life.
He Was Recognized
With the coming of WWI to Europe, Wall took advantage of his high society connections by raising money to help pay for the care of wounded French servicemen. These efforts earned both the Walls the French Legion of Honor, the country’s most prestigious medal.
He Didn’t Leave Much Behind
The Walls lived out the rest of their lives in France with their beloved chow-chows. But the good times began to run out, along with his money. Salome passed in 1936, and Wall himself in 1940. Leaving behind only $12,000 of what had been a fortune, the man once known as the King of the Dudes had clearly fallen on hard times in the last years of his life.
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