Robert De Niro in The Deer Hunter (1978)
Vitals
Robert De Niro as Mike Vronsky, steel worker
Southwestern Pennsylvania, Fall 1967 and Winter 1973
Film: The Deer Hunter
Release Date: December 8, 1978
Director: Michael Cimino
Costume Supervisor: Eric Seelig
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Michael Cimino’s acclaimed second film The Deer Hunter was released 46 years ago today on December 8, 1978. Aside from the sequences set in Vietnam, the film primarily takes place among the steel towns of western Pennsylvania. As we’re currently in the midst of the two-week deer-hunting season for Pennsylvania riflemen, let’s look at how Robert De Niro dressed as the titular outdoorsman Mike Vronsky.
We meet Mike and his friends finishing a shift at a mill in Clairton, Pennsylvania—a steel town on the Monongahela River just about fifteen miles southeast of my home. (While The Deer Hunter is certainly set in Clairton, it was actually filmed in other towns across the Monongahela River Valley in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia and even Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest in Washington.)
Mike’s friends Nick (Christopher Walken), “Stosh” (John Cazale), “Axel” (Chris Aspegren), and Steven (John Savage) pile into Mike’s weathered white ’59 Cadillac to down a few beers at a dive bar operated by their friend John Walsh (George Dzundza) before the crew gets ready for Steven’s wedding later that day. Immediately following the wedding, the friends embark on one final hunting trip before Mike, Nick, and Steven ship off to Vietnam.
What’d He Wear?
1967: Before Vietnam
After Mike’s shift at the mill, he pulls on the same multi-color plaid woolen flannel shirt that he would wear the next day for their hunting trip. Overlapping grid checks alternating between a rust triple-striped check and burgundy double-striped check separate the shirt into hunter-green and navy-blue cells. The shirt has a long-pointed collar, breast pocket, and front placket with smoke plastic four-hole buttons. He leaves the button cuffs undone and rolled back over the sleeve-ends of his white waffle-knit crew-neck undershirt.
Mike initially wears brown corduroy jeans, identified as Levi’s by the telltale white tab sewn along the seam of the back-right patch pocket; through this period, Levi’s denoted their corduroy products with white tabs rather than the signature red tab reserved for their traditional denim gear. These casual flat-front trousers follow the usual styling of jeans, with belt loops, curved front pockets, and patch-style back pockets. He holds them up with his usual wide dark-brown leather belt that closes through a silver-toned square single-prong buckle.
Following the wedding, Mike dresses for the hunting expedition in more conventional blue denim jeans, dyed a dark shade of indigo more adjacent to charcoal than blue. We don’t see any clear visible indicators of who made these jeans (no branded tabs or the like), though the front pockets are slanted at a more dramatic angle than typically found on Levi’s and less of a curve than Lee used.
Mike continues wearing his light-tan nylon down vest, also known as a “puffer” vest for the puffy effect of its quilted air pockets insulated with down feathers. Mike’s vest is organized into five horizontal air pockets around the body, split by seams running down under each armpit and with an additional air pocket hanging below the waist on the back. The edges of the vest curve out to the four silver-toned snap buttons up the front, each positioned over the seams between these air pockets.
Two open-top patch pockets are sewn onto the bottom of each front panel. Mike keeps his rifle shells in the right pocket, which is adorned with the round red-trimmed patch for the Clairton Turtle Hunters Club while the left pocket features a patch for the Clairton Sportsman Club that includes the embroidered profile of a Native American in full headdress.
In addition to the spare boots that he brings for himself—but not willing to lend out, much to the absent-minded Stan’s chagrin—Mike sports moc-toe work boots with well-worn light-brown oiled leather uppers. The brown rawhide laces pull through seven sets of nickel-finished eyelets on the derby-style bluchers, closing over beige rawhide tongues. The shafts extend over the ankles, and Mike wears white socks—presumably thermal, citing Stosh’s additional request.
During the opening sequence, Mike wears a dirty trucker hat emblazoned with a Mack Truck logo patch. Trimmed in navy, this rectangular white patch features the company’s trademark bulldog embroidered in light-brown, pouncing over the letters “MACK” threaded in red across thr top half of each letter and navy across the bottom. The two front crown panels and the bill are a golden-yellow foam, while the side and black panels are black mesh, matching the black cloth-covered button at the top of the cap.
After decades of typically wearing flat caps or mechanic’s caps on the road, truckers began embracing these sportier netback caps in the late 1960s into the ’70s as the lightweight foam and ventilated mesh kept wearers’ heads cooler in warm weather. Inexpensive to produce, they grew popular through this era as promotional giveaway items from truck manufacturers and farming supply companies; the wearers appreciated the free, comfortable hats and the providers appreciated that they now had organic advertising in the form of walking billboards.
For the hunting trip, Mike swaps the trucker hat for a warmer and more tactical navy knitted skull cap without a bill that would interfere with his taking aim. These are known by a variety of names, such as “toque”, “beanie”, and “watch cap”, with the latter particularly used in the context of American military gear. Here in Mike’s native western Pennsylvania, these are occasionally also called “tossle caps”—though, in my experience, this phrase more specifically refers to similar caps adorned with poms.
Traditionally made from warm wool, manufacturers through the mid-20th century innovating with crafting these caps from acrylic fibers that would be less itchy to the wearer. Mike’s knit cap is long enough that he can widely cuff it back over itself, both adding an additional layer of warmth while also keeping it more snugly on his head.
Mike’s hunting jacket is made from a water-resistant cotton-and-nylon shell in a bright shade of orange that ensures his visibility among other hunters, though it appears to be reversible so that Mike could also wear the less conspicuous tan side facing outward.
Several commenters have shared that the jacket was likely made by the Boulder, Colorado-based Holubar Mountaineering. Founded in 1947 by Roy and Alice Holubar, the company prides itself on being the first American mountaineering apparel brand. The company was incorporated into The North Face in the early ’80s before it independently relaunched in 2010, focusing on premium heritage outerwear like the “Deer Hunter” jacket that pays tribute to De Niro’s screen-worn jacket.
This hip-length coat has a double-fastened front with a zipper that extends up from the waist to the neck, supplemented by a five-snap fly. The jacket also has a drawstring-adjusted hood for extra protection in inclement weather, flapped bellows pockets over the hips, and a game pocket over the back with a long vertical zip-entry on each side.
Mike displays his Pennsylvania hunting license on the back of his outermost layer, in this case his orange rainproof jacket.
Mike protects his hands with taupe woolen fingerless gloves, allowing him to maintain dexterity in his fingers while operating his bolt-action rifle and other equipment.
Prior to his deployment to Vietnam, Mike already wears his steel watch on the inside of his left wrist, in the style popularized by military operators as it reduces glare. The watch is fastened to a black-finished expanding band with silver-trimmed edges.
Production photo of Robert De Niro in The Deer Hunter.
1973: Back from Vietnam
Mike returns from Vietnam by late 1973, as informed by the updated hunting license on the back of his down vest. It’s the same tan puffer vest he had worn six years earlier, as are his jeans, belt, undershirt, and navy beanie cap.
The most significant change to Mike’s hunting wardrobe for the 1973 hunting scenes is his shirt. While also a heavy woolen flannel shirt, it’s made from a solid dark navy cloth and features an additional pocket on the chest. This style is known as a “CPO shirt” for its original issue to U.S. Navy chief petty officers prior to World War II, so Mike’s decision to sport one for his hunting trip may have been informed by his recent military service.
Mike’s CPO shirt features a long-pointed collar, front placket, two chest pockets that close with single-button flaps, and button cuffs that he again rolls back to his elbows while wearing the long sleeves of his white undershirt exposed beneath.
Director Michael Cimino and Robert De Niro on the set of The Deer Hunter, joined by a crew member holding the film’s clapboard.
Back in town, he wears his Army-issued M-65 field jacket, complete with his name, rank, and unit insignia. Made from a weather-resistant blend of cotton and nylon, these hip-length field jackets were introduced by the U.S. Army in 1965 to replace the Korean War-era M-51 field jacket but featured the same general layout of shoulder epaulets, a straight front-zip covered by a snap-up fly, and two flapped bellows pockets over the chest complemented by two flapped set-in hip pockets. However, the M-65 replaced the M-51’s shirt-style collar with a round collar that included a zip-out hood.
Mike’s M-65 jacket has the black-on-olive subdued “U.S. ARMY” tape above his left pocket, with his surname “VRONSKY” stenciled in black on the olive tape above his right pocket. Each sleeves is detailed with his “AIRBORNE” tab, 1st Special Forces Command badge, and his staff sergeant (E-6) rank insignia of three chevrons and arced rocker—all in the subdued black-on-olive scheme. (And thank you to the BAMF Style reader who commented to identify the arrowhead-shaped patch over the right breast pocket as the “Recondo” badge worn by teams who received specialized reconnaissance/commando training, with the black “V” indicating he was specifically trained at the the MACV Recondo School at Nha Trang.)
Consistent with many real-life Special Forces operators in Vietnam during this era, Mike returns from war wearing a Rolex Sea-Dweller dive watch. Developed in 1967 with prototypes issued in limited numbers, the automatic Sea-Dweller wouldn’t be released to the public until 1971 due to delays in obtaining the patent for its automatically operating helium escape valve.
Secured to Rolex’s signature steel Oyster-style three-piece link bracelet, Mike’s stainless steel Sea-Dweller has a 40mm case, black bezel insert, and a black acrylic dial boasting luminous non-numeric hour indices, a white-wheeled date window at 3 o’clock, and the two red lines of text reading “Sea-Dweller” and “Submariner 2000” in reference to its rated depth of 2,000 feet. This latter element has popularized this model among collectors as the “Double Red Sea-Dweller” (DRSD).
Best seen during the climactic Russian Roulette sequence in Saigon (the latter two frames in this three-frame compilation), the helium escape valve and “double red” dial text differentiates Mike’s Sea-Dweller from the visually similar Submariner.
Rolex launched the Sea-Dweller as a sibling to the Submariner capable of withstanding pressure at greater depths. While the contemporary Submariner was rated for depths of 200 meters, the initial ref. 1665 featured a depth rating of 610 meters. This was impressive at the time, but Rolex has since innovated the Sea-Dweller to be functional in depths up to 1,200 meters as well as the Deepsea variant for up to 3,900 meters and even the massive Deepsea Challenge Sea-Dweller rated up to 11,000 meters.
The Guns
Remington Model 700 BDL
The friends each use Remington Model 700 BDL bolt-action rifles for deer hunting, with Mike specifically carrying a left-handed model. IMFDB comments that Robert De Niro may be a cross-dominant shooter, as he handles handguns right-handed but switches to his left hand for operating rifles like the Model 700 and his Army-issued M16A1.
Mike works the bolt of his left-handed Remington Model 700 BDL rifle.
Since its introduction in 1962, the Remington Model 700 developed a reputation for exceptional accuracy and a reliable, smooth operation. These rifles are chambered in popular centerfire hunting calibers like .243 Winchester, .270 Winchester, .308 Winchester, and .30-06 Springfield—all ideal for taking down deer at varying distances. The handsome glossy walnut Monte Carlo stocks offer comfortable grip and solid handling, balanced by cold-forged blued carbon steel barrels currently ranging between 22 and 24 inches long.
The BDL version comes with a hinged floor plate and feeds from the Baldwin Detachable Magazine (BDL), offering quicker reloads than the standard model’s internal three-to-six round magazines. According to a user on The Firing Line forum, left-handed Model 700 BDL rifles produced through this time were available in .270 Winchester, .30-06 Springfield, and 7mm Remington Magnum.
Naturally, Mike mounts a scope to his Model 700 BDL for greater accuracy.
Smith & Wesson Model 10 Snubnose
Annoyed by his friend Stan’s habit of carrying a snub-nosed Smith & Wesson Model 10, Mike understandably loses his temper when returning to their hunting cabin only to find a drunken Stosh holding his nickel-plated .38 on Axel.
Stan claims the weapon isn’t loaded, but Mike proves differently when he grabs the revolver and fires it into the air. Snapping open the cylinder, Mike discovers it fully loaded with six .38 Special cartridges and unloads all but one that he keeps somewhere in the cylinder when he puts it against Stan’s head to pull the trigger—luckily clicking on an empty chamber.
“How do you feel now, huh, big shot?!”
Stan’s new revolver is clearly a Smith & Wesson, identifiable by its flat cylinder release latch, the grips, and the pin connecting the end of the ejector rod to the barrel. The revolver’s half-moon front sight and six-round cylinder distinguish it as a Model 10, as opposed to the five-round Model 36 with its ramped front sight. Built to be easily concealed with a two-inch barrel (and limited three-inch barrels), the Model 36 is more commonly seen in snub-nosed form than the Model 10, which served as a popular American law enforcement service revolver for much of the 20th century but was produced in barrel lengths ranging from two to six inches.
The Car
Even when everyone in a group of young men has their own wheels, there’s usually one guy whose ride everyone piles into. In high school, that was me with my secondhand Plymouth sedan; in The Deer Hunter, it’s Mike Vronsky with his dirty and dented white 1959 Cadillac Sixty-Two hardtop.
Mike and his pals enjoy a pre-hunt picnic over the hood and hardtop of his ’59 Cadillac.
John describes Mike’s car as a “Coupe de Ville”, a trim that Cadillac had only started using in 1958 before it was reintroduced as its own model the following year, also known as “the year of the fin” for the dramatic fins that flanked the sterns of these massive land yachts—each detailed with a pair of distinctive “bullet”-shaped tail lights. Though Mike’s two-door Series 6200 hardtop coupe was technically not the same as the more premium Coupe de Ville, it was dimensionally identical and boasted what Cadillac described in its contemporary advertising as “a perfect introduction to Cadillac’s inspiring beauty for ’59”, exemplified by Bill Mitchell’s elegant design.
Produced since 1940, the Series 62 had been renamed the Series 6200 for Cadillac’s now-iconic 1959 model year, with individual body styles marketed as the spelled-out “Sixty-Two” coupe, sedan, and convertible.
Regardless of model, all 1959 Cadillacs were powered by a 390 cubic-inch OHV V8 engine, increased in displacement size from the standard 365 V8 of the previous model year. Mated to GM’s four-speed Hydra-Matic automatic transmission, this engine typically generated 325 horsepower but was also offered in a “Power Pack” that came standard in Eldorado models and boosted output to 345 horsepower.
1959 Cadillac Sixty-Two
Body Style: 2-door hardtop coupe
Layout: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive (RWD)
Engine: 390 cubic inch (6.4 L) Cadillac OHV V8 with Carter 4-barrel carburetor
Power: 325 hp (242.5 kW; 330 PS) @ 4800 rpm
Torque: 430 lb·ft (583 N·m) @ 3100 rpm
Transmission: 4-speed GM Hydra-Matic automatic
Wheelbase: 130 inches (3302 mm)
Length: 225 inches (5715 mm)
Width: 80.2 inches (2037 mm)
Height: 54.3 inches (1379 mm)
Whether Mike drives a Series 62 or the exclusive Coupe de Ville, it’s intriguing that he owns perhaps the least practical car for such a rugged blue-collar outdoorsman. The choice may be Michael Cimino’s commentary on status, with the no-nonsense Mike perhaps taking some pleasure in how much he can abuse a car once regarded as such a luxurious status symbol of wealth and class, running it hard over the streets of a steel town and into the surrounding mountains, festooned with tacky decor from Steven’s wedding.
What to Imbibe
“Did you ever piss and take a drink of beer at the same time?” John challenges the men as they scatter in the woods for a pee break. True to their southwestern Pennsylvania heritage and surroundings, Rolling Rock is the beer of choice for Mike and his pals—served in their trademark green bottles and cans, including the can that Mike downs while driving the tuxedoed group into the mountains for their last hunting trip before the Army.
“I’ll get you a Rolling Rock, it’s a good beer, it’s the best around,” a somewhat nervous Mike explains to Linda (Meryl Streep) when offering her a drink at Steven’s wedding. This 4.4% ABV “extra pale” American lager was launched in 1939 by the Latrobe Brewing Company in Latrobe, a small town located just forty miles east of Clairton in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
The bottles are prominently printed with the number “33”, which has resulted in a number of theories from 1933 being the repeal of Prohibition or the founding year of the Pittsburgh Steelers (who train at St. Vincent College in Latrobe) to being the proper number of degrees Fahrenheit to keep beer. Additional theories suggest it refers to how many recipes were attempted before finalizing the Rolling Rock recipe, the number of words in Rolling Rock’s pledge of quality, the number of stairs from the brewmaster’s office in the original brewery, or the state’s designation of stream #33 where the brewery sourced its water for Rolling Rock.
Mike Vronsky’s preference for Rolling Rock beer is prominently depicted throughout the scenes in his hometown, illustrated by the familiar green glass bottle not far from him while playing pool at John’s bar.
If you’re looking for something harder, Mike and his pals also drink plenty of cheap but “smooth as silk” Kessler blended whiskey during Steven’s wedding.
How to Get the Look
Robert De Niro in The Deer Hunter (1978)
Mike Vronsky maintains a rugged and relatively timeless hunting outfit of a hardy dark flannel button-up shirt layered under a warm and functional puffer vest, complemented with a navy knit cap, dark jeans, work boots, and a reliable tool watch.
- Solid navy or navy, green, burgundy, and rust plaid flannel long-sleeved shirt with long-pointed collar, front placket, breast pocket, and button cuffs
- Tan nylon down/puffer vest with four nickel front snaps and two patch-style hip pockets (with local sportsman club badges)
- Dark indigo denim jeans with belt loops, slanted front pockets, and patch back pockets
- Dark-brown leather belt with silver-toned squared single-prong buckle
- Light-brown oiled leather moc-toe work boots with 7-eyelet derby-lacing
- White thermal socks
- Navy woolen knit skull-cap
- Taupe wool fingerless gloves
- Rolex Sea-Dweller ref. 1665 stainless steel dive watch with black bezel, black dial (with luminous non-numeric hour indices, white-wheeled 3:00 date window, and “double red” text), and stainless Oyster-style three-piece link bracelet
Do Yourself a Favor and…
Check out the movie.
The Quote
This is this.
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