Like the mid-century modern buildings that were springing up around them, there was something contemporary yet classic about Frank Sinatra and his Rat Pack buddies. The way they wore small-brimmed fedoras with slim suits, cut just so, personified a sartorial simplicity. It was the new manly chic -- less Saville Row, more Palm Springs. The guy behind that legendary Rat Pack look, which transformed Frank and friends into cool customers with a glass full of class, was Jack Taylor.

At 93 and the subject of a new DVD, "Jack Taylor of Beverly Hills," he still remembers how it all came about.

"Sammy [Davis Jr.] and Peter Lawford were customers of mine before there was a Rat Pack. The look I gave them was simple. It was the 'Jack Taylor' look," he says.

That look had an equally simple edict: Be classy. Before he ever had the chance to dress Mr. Sinatra and his pals, the Beverly Hills haberdasher had dressed Cary Grant, Duke Ellington and Glenn Miller. Although he never actually sewed the bespoke creations, he did pick the fabric, help take the measurements and style his customers from head to toe. Mr. Taylor left the actual tailoring to his tailors.

What were the key elements of Rat Pack style? "Men should dress in a manner that's smart and elegant yet simple. One-button coats with continental pockets, no longer than three-fourths of an inch below the seat, and absolutely no cuffs on the pants," he insists. "It's about being chic but not overdone."

A slim profile is something Mr. Taylor imposed on all his clients and still does today. His custom suits are made to give a man a lean, clean, unfettered elegance.

"Every man should have a good-looking black suit, or navy if they prefer. The lining of a suit is always important in my book. It should have some snap but look sharp," he notes.

He also likes to coordinate the tie and handkerchief with the lining, something you don't see much of these days. "It's about coordination of colors." Mr. Taylor has an affinity for color and shape because at one point he thought he might be an artist. It is his artist's eye that drew stars to call upon his expertise. While celebrities Brad Pitt and Justin Timberlake are now wearing small-brimmed hats as fashion statements, Mr. Taylor remembers that the Duke of Windsor exported that craze from London decades ago.

"The Duke of Windsor was a customer of mine, and he wore a small-brimmed hat, as did most men in London from the time they were teens." Although many men in New York were also wearing hats at this time, there was something about the duke's smaller brim that said "chic."

And one simple rule a man should never forget? "With a black suit there is only one color shoe to wear -- black."

Mr. Sinatra followed Mr. Taylor's edicts to the grave. In the end, Frank did it Jack's way -- he was buried in a Jack Taylor suit.