Wrangler’s $50 Jeans Are the Best in the Butt Business

Published April 23, 2025NYT Wirecutter

By Alexander Aciman

Alexander Aciman is an editor who has written about pasta-making, running gear, and Wirecutter picks he has spotted on TV shows.

Picture this: Don Draper stands at the head of a boardroom amid a cloud of cigar smoke. Because whatever you may think of the fit, or the comfort, or the decidedly and unapologetically straight-leggedness of Wrangler’s flagship pants, one thing is undeniable: They flatter the very anatomical feature that men’s jeans have spent decades trying to hide.

The Wrangler brand found its way into the wardrobes of many of the 20th century’s greatest icons, from Martin Luther King Jr. and Paul Newman to Freddie Mercury and John Lennon. He waits in silence for a moment, scans the room, and finally he speaks.

“Wrangler butts,” he says. “They drive you nuts.”

Or at least this is how I imagine the original pitch went for Wrangler’s Cowboy Cut Jeans when they were first introduced, in 1947. Read more about it here.

→

This Wildly Creative Restaurant Turns Campfire Cooking Into Fine Dining LifestyleTravelChef and sommelier couple Nicolai and Eva Tram got off the foodie hamster wheel in Copenhagen—and built an unlikely Michelin destination, called Knystaforsen, deep in the Swedish forest.

ByAnn Abel,

Senior Contributor.

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. He has a hint of Scandinavian self-deprecation, but he also makes a valid point.

He means that he and his international team at Knystaforsen, in the dense forests of Halland, Sweden, aren’t just part of today’s global fire-dining trend. Ann Abel is a Lisbon-based writer covering luxury travel with a soulFollow AuthorApr 16, 2025, 05:27am EDTUpdated Apr 17, 2025, 05:58am EDTShareSaveComment

Nicolai Tram cooking at Knystaforsen

Eva H. Read more about it here.

→

The Day James Bond Movies Died

In hindsight, it doesn’t seem like a coincidence that in “No Time to Die” the filmmakers did away not only with two of the series’ most memorable and longest standing characters (Felix Leiter and Blofeld) but also with 007 himself, even when the MacGuffin in turn provided more alternatives to wrap up the plot than in most every other entry in the history of the series. And yet, considering how long and hard the producers had fought to secure exclusive rights to the character, as well to the Blofeld and SPECTRE names, the announcement still came as a shock.

At the end of the day, the only criteria to decide if this change of direction should be seen as good news would be identifying what exactly has distinguished the Bond series and how likely it is to remain the same way with this change of direction. There have surely been even more financially successful series than 007, like the “Star Wars” saga, but the longevity and constant quality standards of the Bond movies through twenty-five features and over sixty years remains unmatched. Read more about it here.

→