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General discussion

The history of Bad Hair... ;-)

by grimgraphix Jul 22, 2007 9:06AM PDT

How many of these hair styles have you tried out?

Click on the link to get the full story for each hair don't.

A history of bad hairstyles

(1) MOHAWKS

The Style: Originally sported by warriors of various Native American tribes, the hairstyle was adopted by a squad of the U.S. Army's bad-to-the-bone 101st Airborne Division during World War II, before being commandeered by punk rockers in the 1970s.

The Story: Up until a few years ago, no one would have questioned the mohawk's roots. However, in 2003, an Irish peat harvester made a discovery that would change the hairstyle's history forever -- a 2,300-year-old corpse, remarkably well preserved by the unique chemistry of a peat bog, sporting a bonafide 'hawk.

The Shocker: The ancient Irish punker, dubbed Clonycavan Man, had gel in his hair, which archaeologists determined was made from vegetable oil mixed with a resin from southwestern France or Spain. Imported hair product? Today, scientists are still working hard to determine whether Clony was a prehistoric punker or just an Iron Age metrosexual.

(2) POMPADOURS

The Style: If the word brings to mind images of pink Cadillacs and bouffant 'dos, you're on the right track. But in the same way America borrowed rock 'n' roll from the blues and method acting from the Russians, the key to those 1950s locks lies in 18th-century France.

(3) BEEHIVES

The Style: Speaking of rats' nests (and the Marquise de Pompadour, for that matter), the beehive of the 1960s is itself a 200-year throwback to the 1760s Big Hair Days.

(4) QUEUES

The Style: When the Manchu invaded China in the 17th century, they brought over a killer fashion trend killer as in, adopt it or else.

(5) MULLETS

The Style: A fad gone bad or the most reviled haircut in history? Popularized by David Bowie and others during the glam 'ol days of the 1970s, the mullet was adopted (and expanded voluminously upon) in the 1980s by hard rockers and their headbanging army of fans. As hair metal gave way to grunge and alternative music in the early 1990s, a term was coined to describe those who still clung to the headbangers' signature cut -- "mullet heads."

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None of these but in the summer

by Steven Haninger Jul 22, 2007 10:36AM PDT

I'd always get a "butch". I briefly tried a flat top which looked stupid because of my "widow's peak". Schools had very strict standards in the '50s and '60s. You had three months in the summer to go wild. That doesn't grow much hair.

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