Trends, nowadays, and more specifically, trendsetters, are a dime a dozen. The world is a fickle place, and given the barrage of styles and entertainers that the entertainment industry offers in huge doses, we are always on the lookout for the next great fad. From the hip-swivelling Elvis to the bad boy Rolling Stones to Punk to Grunge to Hollywood's eternal offerings of glam actors, the world is consistently bombarded with images of what and who is hot and what and who is not, and we try to adjust accordingly, depending on our tastes. But history, particularly in the entertainment genre, often repeats itself, and the greats always make a comeback beyond the grave, as in recent years, we witnessed the return of the hippie '60s and the retro '70s.

One of the weirdest things to happen to the '90s and ‘00s, without a doubt, has been the '50s. One minute, the air stank of grunge and heroin chic; the next, flannel-wearing slackers had become a cocktail nation of martini-sipping swingers. The iconic Rat Pack’s ultra hip, notoriously hedonistic lounge culture has enjoyed a resurgence. Why take this nostalgic stroll down memory lane; is it our desire to rejuvenate long forgotten fads, which serve as fond memories of days gone by? Perhaps nostalgia for those days is an escape, no matter how fleeting or illusory from safe sex and sobriety? A known fact is that nostalgia stirs, for your own youth and our fathers and mothers youth – a cocktail nation of martini sipping swingers.

The name of Rat Pack has intrigued audiences around the world for more than 50 years. Whether it was the macho image of men and dames, the camaraderie of the rich, beautiful and famous or mysterious alleged mafia connections, the Rat Pack is still an American icon even 40 years after the group fell apart.

The historical phenomenon that is the Rat Pack represented a time when you didn't have to worry about people giving you grief if you fired up a square, had one drink too many or cracked an ethnic joke. They represented something we don't have enough of today-- complete unadulterated raw freedom, which assisted these men in their pursuit of pleasure. Was the Pack chauvinistic? Damn straight. Did they sometimes cross the line with the racial comedy bits? Hell yeah. Women? Love 'em and leave 'em was the way to go. But they had the freedom to make asses of themselves, something the homogenized "please everybody and offend nobody" entertainers of today wouldn't consider attempting.

This new Hollywood culture, became a cult following finally emerging as a show business auxiliary of the media. It used to be Frank Sinatra's world: Women were broads, the whole world was a smoking section, and booze flowed freely. And at no time was it more Frank's world than when a Summit meeting was in session. The Rat Pack stood for masculine elegance, ease, wealth, power conspiracy, hedonism and fun. No phenomenon could have been more portentous of the turbulence of the 60s – they performed, gambled and boozed it up in the lounges of the Las Vegas Sands Hotel.

This Hollywood inspired fad came about at a time when restraints on sexual and social behaviour had begun to loosen, causing conservatives to blame the decline of values and rise of self indulgence on the 60s generation – including the Rat Pack. In four years, their great ride was over, and showbiz and indeed the world, was never the same due to their contribution to global popular culture.