Back in the day …

… The Bossa Nova Craze - JSTOR Daily. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)

The bossa nova may not have dazzled the youth, but it became a symbol of sophistication among the most powerful people in the country. In January 1963, a New York Times cultural column reported that Kennedy administration figures including Secretary of State James Rusk and Defense Secretary Robert McNamara “simply wouldn’t come to the White House to listen to [popular band leader] Fred Waring. You’ve got to give them Sandburg, Shakespeare, bossa nova, Leonardo da Vinci.” By the end of 1963, products from hair cuts to cashmere sweaters to ice cream were using the term “bossa nova” to convey sophistication.