Mens Black Trilby Hat Worn in Casablanca

The Black Trilby Hat made famous by Casablanca was first worn in the the stage production of George du Maurier's novel named simply "trilby" in 1894-95 where the style was first worn which is where the name comes from. They became more common in the 1920's as a sporting hat and are synomonous with the cloak and dagger era of spy/gumshoe movies. They are traditionally made in soft rabbit hair felt although tweed and wool are not uncommon and have a deeply indented crown with a sharp pinch at the front.

Black Trilby hats are softer than homburgs, and have a flexible brim which can be bent instead of a rigidly curved one and are similar to the American fedora in style which have a wider brim.

In the late 1920s onwards trilby hats were widely worn for sporting meets such as the horse races and by the end of the 2^nd world war had largely replaced the bowler and homburgs for wearing casually or with a suit until the 1960s when men largely stopped wearing hats in everyday use, but they never replaced the flatcap. The trilby hat has been associated with jazz, soul and ska musicians as well as the indie subcultures since the 1980s.

Black Trilby hats are most commonly recognised in older films from the 1940s in classics such as Casablanca, Citizen Cane and the Pink Panther films although they are making a resurgence with Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck and even Madonna or Britney Spears wearing them.

Anything goes so far as adornments on trilby hats, though a feather or ribbon is most common around the base. For women a decoration may have been quite normal but nothing overbearing.