TIME-TESTED

Family Threads NEW YORK CITY'S FABRIC CZARS

Even those familiar with Barbra Streisand's version of the Depressionera song “Sam, You Made the Pants Too Long” might not know that the inspiration for this Victor Young tune (with lyrics revised by Milton Berle) was Samuel Beckenstein, a Polish immigrant who started with a pushcart on Manhattan’s Lower East Side in 1919. Beckenstein sold rags by the pound, then expanded his business to the tailoring of “matched pants”—for those who couldn’t afford a new suit and instead would purchase an exact copy of their tattered trousers. And, in our current economic climate, what could be more useful than a fabric company whose tailors can perfectly copy those favorite pants that are impossible to find again anywhere? Today, Neal Boyarsky—the grandson of Samuel Beckenstein, and the president of Beckenstein Men's Fabrics—and his son Jonathan run what is undoubtedly the most renowned fabric company in the U.S.

In 2004, after 85 years on Orchard Street, Beckenstein’s moved to a 7,000-square-foot space at 257 West 39th Street. The company’s three floors house more than 60,000 yards of fabrics that range from $8-a-yard polyester to $3,200-a-yard vicuna and tailors who custommake the pants (and shirts). The walls are adorned with autographed photographs of past and present clients—from Frank Sinatra and David Letterman to Howdy Doody and Buffalo Bob. Beckenstein fabrics have been used to make clothes for designers Ralph Lauren, Oscar de la Renta, and Jil Sander, as well as costumes for Broadway shows and well over 150 movies—including all three Godfathers and Casino—suits for N.B.A. stars (Michael Jordan, Dwyane Wade), musicians from the Beatles to Prince, and nearly every U.S. president since F.D.R. Neal has acquired the nickname “the Fabric Czar” and he states, “We are an international source for the best fabrics in the world.” This year, the company celebrates its 90th birthday and will be featured in the forthcoming Dressing America, a documentary about the making of the garment industry.What started out with a pushcart and an immigrant’s dream now sells to a worldwide celebrity and political clientele. And those pants: they’re always just right— never too long.

LISA ROBINSON