Anatomy of style: Mickey Rourke

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Who: Mickey Rourke, 56, an actor who has more feathers than a phoenix in his latest comeback, ‘The Wrestler.’ In the tragic film, he plays a wrestler with long, ratty bleached-blond locks -- think of a lion with a thinning mane -- and a predilection for Day-Glo spandex.

His performance is spectacular and heartbreaking in that way that makes you appreciate a movie for making you ache. The costumes -- from his wrestling duds to his layered hoodies and stonewashed denim -- point precisely to a man out of time.

Why: Offscreen, Rourke has never been shy about color either. Even back in 1999 -- see upper right -- he wore edible hues on the red carpet. (This could stem from his teen upbringing in Miami.)

The rabble-rousing actor had a penchant for Versace, of course, and favored Armani blazers. Nowadays, he’s louder than ever and even donned a polka-dotted tie as wide as a frying pan to accept the Golden Lion award at the prestigious Venice Film Festival back in September. At the recent premiere of his new film, the barrel-chested Rourke showed up (right) looking like a dapper velvet fire hydrant in a red velvet smoking jacket paired with what may be a pajama top and a devilish goatee. I like that Rourke is one of those stars who wears sunglasses at night, sans apology.

Why not: In 1994, it was reported that Rourke was collaborating with Ed Hardy guru Christian Audigier on a rebel motorcycle line. Hopefully, that will never happen. Rourke is a great style icon because he sometimes dresses like a bad-ass Howard Hughes or a sad clown or a zoot-suited gangster.

He’s that junkyard dog who’s all gums now, but still keeps his coat clean. Critics called him a sellout for his role in ‘Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man.’ A partnership with Audigier would be even worse. I would rather see him come out with a line of bow ties and smoking jackets for dogs, like his Chihuahua, Loki.

-- Monica Corcoran