99 44/100 Ivory Soap?DiCaprio, I would bet, had 99.44 % say in what pipe to use, or whether to use one at all. The director may have insisted on the slightly faded appearance, making up the other .56 %. A bright, shiny stem would have looked contrived or even fake, and have drawn the viewer's attention unnecessarily. It wasn't a movie about a pipe. I'm not a DiCaprio fan (thought him playing Howard Hughes in The Aviator was ludicrous), but his judgment in choosing a pipe over the more obvious and clichéd cigar shows he does have some mastery of details in his craft. Did he smoke it exclusively, or was it just a momentary gimmick? His Catch Me If You Can was very good.
He not my favorite either, but he did a good job carrying a South African accent on Blood Diamond. Very good movie.