February 8, 2018

Why do all the women on TV wear their hair like that?

Ah! Someone has answered my question. This has been driving me nuts.

Julia Rubin at Racked (writing in 2016):
It doesn't matter if you watch a little TV or a lot of TV, dramas or comedies, network shows or Netflix, you've likely noticed a startling trend. An epidemic, if you will. Everyone (well, every woman) on TV has the same damn hair. The same straight-up-top, loose-curls-on-bottom hair.


There's also this, from Emily Witt at the NYT from a year ago:
I judge television shows by the women’s hair. It turns out this is a binary judgment: Either the women have TV hair, or they don’t. What is TV hair? It’s shiny, long, has obviously been styled with a curling iron at the ends, and looks like that of a beauty pageant contestant. (The style is known as “The Cosmo” in the parlance of Drybar, the blowout salon that has more than 70 locations across America.)

It is also ubiquitous... The haircut transforms all television heroines into variations on an ur-woman. Who is she, this feminine ideal? Where does this hair exist in the wild?....

But there is a direct correlation between some of the best television shows and female characters whose hair does not conform.... In fact, the less sleek the hair, the more likely a show will have a memorable female protagonist....
This kind of hair — "The Cosmo"/TV hair — is something I associate with the 1950s, before the early 60s period of highly teased bouffants, which were ousted by "the natural look" in all its many forms (as celebrated in the musical "Hair"). I thought that 1950s hair would never come back, and now, it won't go away. I remember it as having been called "bedroom hair" and, to me, it looks completely unprofessional and dumbly subordinate. It's especially awful seeing it on newswomen.

129 comments:

Sebastian said...

"dumbly subordinate." It's always about that, isn't it?

At least the video gave some good technical reasons.

traditionalguy said...

Maybe they want to look like women who respect a man's preference to marry a woman.

rcocean said...

Men vs. Women.

I never would have noticed that in a million years.

The only 50s/60s Woman's Hair I notice is the "Beehive" - bleh - what did you think of that?

Men's hair - I'm not a fan of 50s crew-cut or 70s long hair (even though i had it)

tcrosse said...

Catherine Herridge is a notable exception.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

I love Nurse Lee's hair on Call the Midwife.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

I don't watch really anything set in the present day. The women do all look the same, even if the characters wouldn't look that way. Really thin, lots of makeup, super contoured cheekbones, that same hair. It's distracting and kind of annoying.

Curious George said...

Rachel Maddow doesn't have "the hair." Which confirms all those suspicions you may have had.

Lexington Green said...

As a man, I like it. It is flattering, pretty and feminine. Since people on TV are there to be looked at, not surprised this has evolved as the default look.

thumbs up for The Hair.

etbass said...

I just want young men on TV to start shaving again and combing their hair. They all look like they just got out of bed and came to work without stopping by the bathroom.

Ann Althouse said...

""dumbly subordinate." It's always about that, isn't it? At least the video gave some good technical reasons."

My comment was about how it looks to me, what the message is. I understand the proffered technical reasons, but if the message were not also valued, it would not be done, and in my view, the message is so bad that another technically good solution should be found.

And quite aside from the retrograde sensibility I hate, there's the problem of all the women looking alike. There should be variety, especially on fiction shows where you need to recognize the different characters and want to be entertained by the interestingness of how different people look.

Ann Althouse said...

"Catherine Herridge is a notable exception."

Yes, and she looks fantastic like that.

Big Mike said...

What’s that line from “Hymn to Him” in “My Fair Lady”?

“Straightening up their hair is all they ever do.
Why can’t they straighten up the mess that’s inside?”

Anyway, Althouse, I am certain that the answer is they all do it because — are you sitting down? — they all do it. Network news is first and foremost entertainment, and the urge to conform in the entertain industry is huge.

Luke Lea said...


Even so, I notice a remarkable difference between the hair of many of the female newscasters on Fox and those on MSNBC. The former (Ainsley Earhardt, Kimberly Guilfoyle) tend to look like wigs, while the latter look more natural (Katy Tur, Hallie Jackson). I chalk this up to a difference in the aesthetic preferences of conservatives and liberals, which I guess makes me a liberal even though I voted for Trump.

Ann Althouse said...

The best thing about the "TV hair" is that eventually it will stop and we will look back at video from this era and laugh that everyone did that back then. It will be at least as funny as 80s hair, especially with the makeup that will also need to go out of style. All those heavy false eyelashes, black eyeshadow on the outside of the lid in one giant blotch, white crescents under the eyes, contoured nose. It's ludicrous, even if your laughter is delayed for 10 or 20 years.

I thought the flat on top, wavy on the bottom style had something to do with the top being natural hair and the bottom being extensions, some kind of idea that springiness is needed to keep the hanks at the end from looking dead.

Oh, how I loath those spaniel ears on everyone!

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Kasie Hunt on MSNBC has a shortish bob and it looks adorable on her. Stephanie Rule and Joy Ann Ried don’t have the “hair” either. And yes black women can have the “hair”. Nicole Wallace didn’t used to have the hair, but she does now.

readering said...

Plenty of Tur and Jackson shots with the hair.

Triangle Man said...

The same hair style is pervasive among college women in the South. Same true in Madison?

LuAnn Zieman said...

Just posted the video on my Facebook page. So, even in your absence, you've contributed.

CJinPA said...

Funny, the gal in the video wondering why every woman on TV has the same hair style could be included in another video: Why Does Every Young Woman on TV Speak in Vocal Fry?

buwaya said...

A lot of girls seem to be shaving half their heads, and going long elsewhere, I expect it will show up on TV eventually.

A breakout style will be when they put their hair up with combs and wear a mantilla.
You heard it here first.

LordSomber said...

I don't mind it. It's got a JBF vibe to it.
It's better than the half-shaved Skrillex look I see on ostensibly cute college chicks that ruin their looks with.

AZ Bob said...

This reminds me of the impact of Hollywood on the cowboy hat. We all think of cowboy hats as curving up on the side, right? The cowboy hat was to keep the sun off the head. So historically, the brim wrapped completely flat around the head like a sombrero.

But along comes Hollywood which picks its leading men on their rugged good looks. The directors want their star's faces more exposed to the camera so up go the sides of the hats.

Lately, western movies are more accurate with clothes. Tombstone is a good example. The hats the Earps wore are flat brimmed. Good movie by the way.

Westerns from the mid-20th century display some rather goofy western clothes. Gene Autry's outfits were not the style of cowboys that rode the Chisholm Trail.

D 2 said...

Somewhere a spaniel lifts a sleepy head, opens a sleepy eye, and sighs a sleepy sigh, before going back to the rabbits. A disturbance in the astral plane is noted. A cascade may be rippling outward as he dreams. The wheel turns.
"Well. We had a good run", the spaniel dreams. Soon it will be the Time of the Poodle. Let them enjoy that.

glenn said...

You aren’t supposed to look at their ....... ummm ........ hair. You sexist pig.

rhhardin said...

Why do women have long hair at all.

Sebastian said...

"My comment was about how it looks to me, what the message is."

Is the "message" to be derived from TV men wearing suits that they, too, are "dumbly subordinate"?

Sally327 said...

I figured it was the Kate Middleton effect.

I'm hoping that once Meghan is married to Prince Harry she'll let her hair go back to its naturally curly self.

FIDO said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Leora said...

I'd been focusing on the 50's eyebrows but you are right about the hair.

CJinPA said...

Why do women have long hair at all.

Because men like it.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Ann Althouse said
"The best thing about the "TV hair" is that eventually it will stop and we will look back at video from this era and laugh that everyone did that back then."

It didn't take long before people started calling the late '90's male style of gelling one's hair to create short spikes that stood straight up as if their owner was in a permanent state of fright "weatherman hair." Now, it's only seen occasionally on Trey Gowdy, who has some weird need to vary his hair style constantly.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“Why do women have long hair at all.”

“Because men like it.”

The world revolves around what men like...so some men think, lol.

FIDO said...

Talk about 'lack of individuality'. I refer you to 'Mom Hair'.

Almost all the soccer moms I've seen had long, straight hair, of varying lengths.

If they give a shit about being marginally attractive, it was long enough to touch their shoulders in a begrudging nod toward gender stereotypes.

If they didn't, they cut it much shorter than that.

(Let us look askance away from women wearing 'The Butch'. Pity their husbands)

The women who did not conform to this incredibly pragmatic haircut garnered the most attention...just like women wearing 'The Hair'.

A vast majority of the men and a substantial majority of the women find 'The Hair' attractive. Just like a Coke.

So this seems like some feminist bitchy virtue signaling. I know a few women who could ROCK an Althouse...but generally the succeeded DESPITE the haircut, not because of it.

Kathryn51 said...

I'm watching "Outnumbered" on Fox News right now.

Melissa Francis and Jessica Tarlov have "The Hair".

Harris Faulkner (my favorite) and Kennedy do not.

50/50.

Jennifer Griffin is another "short hair" Fox reporter - but that's partially due to her battle with cancer.

FIDO said...

The world revolves around what men like...so some men think, lol.

Shrug. Men will care about women who care what men like.

That open contempt is sure to get lots of men to help you on whatever socio-political changes you want to accomplish.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Lexington above. Pretty, flattering and feminine. What's not to like? I really don't get the subordination comment by Althouse on this one.

Lewis Wetzel said...

"Why do women have long hair at all.”
“Because men like it.”

This seems like a social norm, not a sign of male dominance. You might as well ask "why do men have short hair?"
I am old enough to remember the days when virtually all adult women wore a dress. Women wore slacks, if they ever did, only at home or in very informal social situations. It's an interesting exercise to watch an old movie (pre 1965) and take note of the situations where women wear dresses and where they wear slacks.

tljhound said...

I don't much care about hairstyles on tv, legs on FN and FBN are my thing.

CJinPA said...

The world revolves around what men like...so some men think, lol.

I was a bit glib, but the notion that women do things men like, and men do things women like, isn't confrontational. It's a spice of life.

If we were to measure portrayal of coverage of cultural issues over the last 20-30 years, we could sum it up as: What do women want today, and what part of society must we re-engineer to give it to them?

I could describe it that way, but I won't.

Lewis Wetzel said...

IIRC, back in the 1960s in the Midwest, a girl could be sent home from school if she wore slacks or her skirt didn't go below the knee. Boys could be sent home if their hair reached over the top of their ears. Very humiliating for the kid's family, I suppose.

rcocean said...

Rachael Maddow - she's a man, baby!

Lewis Wetzel said...

If we were to measure portrayal of coverage of cultural issues over the last 20-30 years, we could sum it up as: What do women want today, and what part of society must we re-engineer to give it to them?
1- a penis.
2- break the link between gender and biological sex.

FIDO said...

Rachael Maddow - she's a man, baby!

When one has lost the 'Lust Lottery' as completely as Ms. Maddow has, it would be hard hearted to at least not grant her the luxury of being as pragmatic and low effort a life as possible.

That she somehow succeeded anyway is a tribute to affirmative act...TALENT, I mean talent. (keep a straight face...keep a straight face)

MayBee said...

I don't understand your term "Spaniel Ears" wrt women's hair.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

What do women want today, and what part of society must we re-engineer to give it to them?
1- a penis.

Women want a penis? Seriously, is this how most men think? I sure hope not. No thanks on the penis, I’m very satisfied with the equipment I have.

Hahahahahaha! Don’t worry, no one will take yours away.

Etienne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Earnest Prole said...

For the greatest female hairstyle ever, google "Callista Gingrich Owl"

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“When one has lost the 'Lust Lottery' as completely as Ms. Maddow has, it would be hard hearted to at least not grant her the luxury of being as pragmatic and low effort a life as possible.”

I doubt that Rachel Maddow cares about getting men to lust after her. She’s a lesbian, perhaps she appeals to other lesbians in a sexual way. And compared to Fox News female talking airheads, Maddow stands head and shoulders above them.

Paul Snively said...

I will always respect Jennifer Aniston, who otherwise seems to be a real piece of work, for loathing "The Rachel."

FIDO said...

I doubt that Rachel Maddow cares about getting men to lust after her. She’s a lesbian,

Among the many questions the LGBT community doesn't want to ask:

3) Was she a lesbian because her head was wired to be a lesbian...or was she a lesbian because she had no chance of getting a quality man with her looks and she still wanted a love life?

Left Bank of the Charles said...

You know where you can see pictures of lots of women without “the hair”? On Facebook.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Rachel Maddow’s high school year book picture.

She was a very pretty, feminine looking young woman. Much prettier than Ann Coulter who also has a very long neck.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Maddow is what I would call "homely." She could make herself look attractive to men, if that is what she wanted to do. Most homely women can have a reasonably happy, heterosexual sex live if that is what they want.
For God's sake, men don't choose to become homosexual because they don't fit society's ideal of masculinity, do they?

jimbino said...

I have made it a point to avoid all people who are preoccupied with hairstyles or with having hair at all.

Freeman Hunt said...

Mystery solved!

Bring back the natural hair!

I Callahan said...

Why do women have long hair at all

Sinead O’Connor was unavailable to answer the question...

Freeman Hunt said...

"Why do women have long hair at all."

Long hair is so much easier than short hair. Just let it dry on it's own, looks fine. Could never do that with shorter hair, it would end up looking wild and crazy.

Freeman Hunt said...

And you can pull it back out of your face if it's long.

Jupiter said...

FIDO said...
"Was she a lesbian because her head was wired to be a lesbian...or was she a lesbian because she had no chance of getting a quality man with her looks and she still wanted a love life?"

I have known some lesbians who would have had no problem getting all the heterosex they wanted. Of course, the reason I knew them was because they didn't hate men. I suspect that women hating men is usually sour grapes. As is men hating women. No one really *enjoys* being found unattractive, even by people they are not attracted to.

The puzzling thing is why lesbians who reject men seem to want to look like men, and are attracted to other women who look like men. Go figure.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Ruben explains why for practical reasons TV people like the cosmo hair look. But all of these reasons are equally valid for men. A male equivalent would be a buzz cut, but they don't make every male actor wear a buzz cut.
Don't most television and film actresses wear wigs? I've always assumed that they did. A wig looks the same all of the time & gives the actress the ability to look differently in her off screen life than in her on-screen paid work. Most men are bald or balding after the age of forty. When you look for them, it is amazing how many bad hair pieces you see on male television actors.

Unknown said...

Yep. Extensions. My young hairdresser looks different every time I see her. Sometimes long, sometimes short. Dyed black then blond. But. always curled the same way.

Ctmom4 said...

Freeman makes a good point. My hair is wavy, and I couldn’t have an Althouse style bob without aggressive blow drying and spraying and on humid days it would still fail. I have, I guess, The Hair, and I can just wash and comb and let it dry, and it waves on the ends with no help.

madAsHell said...

You won't find this hair style in porno flicks because it would allow their hair to hide their......oral skills!!

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Why do women have long hair at all.

Because it's pretty, and feminine, and sexy, and youthful. If it's healthy and well cared for, it's shiny and clean and moves nicely. It suggests sexytimes when it's down and rumply, and it emphasizes a pretty neck (as do dangly earrings) if it's pulled up. Is versatile.

When a middle-aged woman cuts her hair short, in most cases it signals menopause and her renunciation of appearing sexy. Think old lady church hair.

tcrosse said...

At the large corporation where I worked young women who were marked for professional advancement were given grooming tips and vocal coaching to break them of looking and speaking like Valley Girls.

madAsHell said...

When you look for them, it is amazing how many bad hair pieces you see on male television actors.

Small market TV newscasters have a lock on bad hairpieces.

tcrosse said...

Jamie Leigh Curtis once said of her hair and her breasts, that sometimes she wears them up, and sometimes she wears them down.

Sam L. said...

Makes me glad I just watch old movies on TCM.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“My hair is wavy, and I couldn’t have an Althouse style bob without aggressive blow drying and spraying and on humid days it would still fail.”

True! I have wavy hair also and if I wanted to, which I don’t, I could wear it straight with a lot of work. I have a blunt cut in the front half of my head with layers in the back, so the back is full and loosely curled and the front is wavy, but not wildly so. At my age long hair is out, I think it’s too youthful and now that my black hair is at least half silver, it would look scary (might scare the grandkids, lol). The longest I keep my hair now is to the tops of my shoulders. Long enough to pull back in a pony tail if I need to and long enough to keep my neck warm.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“When a middle-aged woman cuts her hair short, in most cases it signals menopause and her renunciation of appearing sexy. Think old lady church hair.”

LOL! No old lady church hair for me.

Howard said...

I have answer: Farah

Howard said...

It is the perfect geometrical frame for decollatage, eg, it is what instantly gives 17yo boys boners.

Howard said...

Love your hair in the profile pic, Inga. LOVE IT!!

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Thanks Howard! Funny that the silver doesn’t show up very well in this pic.

David said...

Love the video.

And the woman in the video. She has a spark.

Howard said...

I don't wonder, Inga. You ladies go silver much less than us guys...

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“I don't wonder, Inga. You ladies go silver much less than us guys...”

Silver hair is in fashion now, which is great because I got sick of dyeing it.

mockturtle said...

They are called 'beachy waves', I believe.

Longer hair is much easier to care for. Fewer trips to the stylist [I trim my own], can be pulled into a pony tail and through a baseball cap, and worn up or down. At my age, shoulder-length is about right and is the most flattering length for me.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

LOL! No old lady church hair for me.

I didn't want to be creepy but I almost said that you keep yours (from your profile pic) adorable. Not old lady. :D

Mine is all one length, almost to my waist, and no grays yet at 38 but it's blond so probably will be a while. I wear a pretty headband for church and get updos for formal occasions but other than that, it's brush and go, and I throw it in a braid or pencil bun if I need it out of the way. I know an older lady whose former blond hair is now mostly gray and she keeps it long and hippie-ish (clean and pretty, though, not ratty) and she's totally my sunset years hair goals inspiration. I don't ever see myself doing the razor-cut perm thing that is still so common among older ladies. Yuck!

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Oh, and dark hair with silver in it looks awesome. As does red hair with white streaks, like this lady at church whose mane I have a hair crush on. One of my girls is a redhead and I hope she get cool white patches as she ages.

Jake said...

the premise is faulty. if all women look alike to you, you're the problem.

Kyzer SoSay said...

I love it when a lady's hair suggests sexytimes.

My hair usually just suggests left . . . left . . . left right left.

Easier to take care of when there's less of it. My barber says I'll never go bald (few men on either side of my family are bald - in fact, only my paternal grandfather lost any hair with age), so I have no problem cutting it short since I know it'll always grow back if I want it to. My criteria for proper length is, if it takes more than two rubs with a towel to dry it after a shower, it's too long.

I prefer long hair on females. Shoulder length or longer. If it gets below the waistline though, that's too long. Too many snags - as it is, I ask my wife to put her hair "up" if she visits me in my workshop while I've got tools running.

Curious George said...

"Howard said...
I don't wonder, Inga. You ladies go silver much less than us guys..."

Hair doesn't go silver of course, it goes white.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

Thanks Pants. Hope you’re doing well, let us know when little Pants comes.

Jim at said...

The world revolves around what men like...so some men think, lol.

It's simply amazing nobody's snapped you up, isn't it?
A total mystery.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

Why do all the women on TV wear their hair like that? Because they are paid to.

Ralph L said...

It's The Princess William hair.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“It's simply amazing nobody's snapped you up, isn't it?
A total mystery”

I’ve been “snapped up” more than I care to admit, you retarded gnat. I didn’t get pregnant four times and have four children from being a nun.

FIDO said...

Jupiter,


Never said that being ugly was the only way to go lesbian. Humans are varied. But I doubt it's 'everyone is hard wired gay' as the LGBT community avows.

Some got their circuits crossed by outside influences or actual choice.

FIDO said...

It is the perfect geometrical frame for decollatage, eg, it is what instantly gives 17yo boys boners.

Ageism!

Décolletage gives boners to a much wider range of people than that. Unless your equipment doesn't work, in which case my sympathies. I'm not far from old age either.

Ralph L said...

when little Pants comes
Shorts or Panties?

FIDO said...

When a middle-aged woman cuts her hair short, in most cases it signals menopause and her renunciation of appearing sexy. Think old lady church hair.

Some of the soccer moms I see are hitting middle age and menopause very early, then.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

" At my age, shoulder-length is about right and is the most flattering length for me."

Yeah, mine is shoulder-length too. I do what Ann does and keep it blonde. I'm not ready to go gray yet.

I would if it looked like the hair of a friend of mine, who has snowy white hair. It's very striking, especially since she has dark brown eyes.

FIDO said...


I’ve been “snapped up” more than I care to admit, you retarded gnat. I didn’t get pregnant four times and have four children from being a nun.

They come for the hair.

So 'Yay Hair' and penile induced stupidity.

FIDO said...

I would if it looked like the hair of a friend of mine, who has snowy white hair. It's very striking, especially since she has dark brown eyes.

I've been silver haired for 25 years and yes it is striking.

Unfortunately, women tend to be good judges of personality so it did very little for my prospects at the time.

Inga...Allie Oop said...

“So 'Yay Hair' and penile induced stupidity.”

The only penises I love/loved are/were attached to very intelligent men who were in no way not aware of what they wanted and worked hard to get it.

Freeman Hunt said...

A man once told me he could respect fussy hair, makeup, clothes, and accessories as requiring effort, organization, and skill, but he could never find them attractive.

Birches said...

I didn't think all of the women's hair was exactly the same. Some styles seemed different.

Long hair is so much easier than short hair. Just let it dry on it's own, looks fine. Could never do that with shorter hair, it would end up looking wild and crazy.

This is the opposite for me. If I have long hair, I've got to take care of it or I wind up looking like 10 year old Hermione Granger. Short hair is so much easier. I've had this pixie for two years and love not having to spend the time on it like I did when it was down my back.

tcrosse said...

Megan McArdle has written that it is well for us to stay away from the cultural minefield of Black womens' hair.

Birches said...

A woman at church has this hair. It looks very, very nice, but I feel sorry for her because I wouldn't want my hair to always look the same. It seems rather boring.

CPM said...

A riveting post. Has it come to this?

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

I've had this pixie for two years and love not having to spend the time on it like I did when it was down my back.

You're a lucky duck that you have the bone structure for a pixie cut. A good friend of mine keeps hers really short because she has striking cheekbones and eyes and she looks wonderful.

Paul Ciotti said...

I have a friend whose teen daughter wears her hair very short. I once asked her how she cared for it. "I don't," she said. "I get out of the shower, shake my head and I'm done for the day."

Here in Los Angeles where we go on water rationing every few years, we could save a lot of water if women all wore their hair short. Of course, no one in authority would ever suggest that. They'd rather their lawns turned brown and their cars went unwashed.

I have often wondered why professional women with children wore long hair. They always complain there isn't enough time in the day to deal with their careers and their families too. Well, shoot. Cut your hair short. It's like having a 25 hour day.

Bilwick said...

The video was very informative. There's a local "soft" news show that I watch mainly for the hostess, who "has it all" as far I'm concerned: pretty face with beautiful eyes, nice "fore and aft," and maybe the best legs on tv, displayed often in miniskirts. And she has "The Hair." I think the coif is her least attractive feature. (Although I wouldn't mind all those tresses spread out on my lap, if you catch my drift.)

RAH said...

I have long hair and if let dry without blow dry it curls in almost pencil curls and is flat on top due to gravity and the hair pulling it down My hair is waist length. I keep it up because it is so fine it mats behind my neck or keep in loose braid . I leave my hair long because it is easier and less money to style.

mockturtle said...

Paul Ciotti: Short hair must be trimmed frequently. Time spent at the hair salon will amount to a bigger PITA than longer hair. But YMMV.

FIDO said...


The only penises I love/loved are/were attached to very intelligent men who were in no way not aware of what they wanted and worked hard to get it.

Generally, men tend to want women who care what they like...beyond liking the hair and the person attached to it.

Speaking generically.

Mark said...

I know a few people in real life with this style of hair. And it is popular probably because it is attractive, unlike that 1950s TV/movies hair which was short old-ladies hair -- even Marilyn Monroe! -- which detracts from women's looks.

Mark said...

Megan McArdle has written that it is well for us to stay away from the cultural minefield of Black womens' hair.

Speaking of short hair, I do not understand those black women who go for either the buzz cut or even a shaved skull.

Ralph L said...

I do not understand those black women who go for either the buzz cut or even a shaved skull.
Wigs

My mother had naturally curly hair. The closest it ever got to her shoulders was in college in the 40's. It barely shows below her ears in her '55 engagement photo.

Ann Althouse said...

We just watched the Chris Rock documentary “Good Hair” which is about black women’s hair.

Ann Althouse said...

I wore my hair long most of my life, and I did it mostly because it was easy. Easy to wash and dry. Easy to wear up or down. Doesn’t need to be cut a lot.

I’ve gone shorter over time because I like the great haircut my particular stylist is able to give me. With a great haircut, shorter can be easy too. I can get up in yhe morning and just fluff it up with my fingers for two seconds and it looks fine. But a bad haircut on shorter hair is really annoying. It never looks right.

Anyway, a lot has to do with the size and shape of your face and the thickness and texture of your hair. You should do what works for you and what feels good for you. But if you can’t find someone to give you a great haircut, it probably is better to grow it long enough to be able to curl, straighten, and pin up.

Long hair worn down on an older woman is often not flattering. It’s not that the woman doesn’t care to look sexy anymore, but that the long hair no longer has the same effect. On a lot of women, long hair drags your face down and looks sloppy.

Lucien said...

I don't agree with most of what Rachel Maddow says, and worse yet, she plays for the other team, but she does have a big, sexy, brain.

Dresses for convenience on air -- and apparently like a nerdy college student off screen, based on what I could google of her.

sane_voter said...

Shannon Bream doesn't have the hairstyle either and is the host of the 11p show.

Catherine Herridge is another short hair Fox reporter.

Mika B on MSNBC has the bob

FIDO said...

The hair stylist can make all the difference, as the tears of my daughter (followed by the murderous impulses) can plainly tell.

That being said, the outbreak of 'Mom Hair' is, from my observations, unrelated to age, menopause, and even class (my neighborhood has young to middle aged intelligent wealthy women).

Whether it has something to do with a strong strain of 'lack of fucks to give AM (after marriage' is something which is outside my ability to discern.

But the motives are irrelevant since the results are the same: lots of similar, horrible looking hair.

Mark said...

Does it bear mentioning that many hair stylists really aren't into women, don't care about women's beauty and have no real concept of it?

Mark said...

OK, so proof that Google spies on you.

I just started entering in the Google search box "older women wi..." and immediately what popped up to auto complete the search string was "older women with long hair" and "older women with short hair."

FIDO said...

Does it bear mentioning that many hair stylists really aren't into women, don't care about women's beauty and have no real concept of it?

I can only speak of my own experience, but the majority of hair stylists I have seen ARE women. And the gay guys I've seen in that service are even more professional than the women are.

So I will take that remark in context.

walter said...

"unprofessional and dumbly subordinate."
Ah..looks feminine to me.

Actually, what I've noticed in tv/movies is an excess of redheads.
I mean..reminds me of Watertown, WI.

Mark said...

Nothing of what you said Fido is responsive to what I said.

FIDO said...

Perhaps you better clarify then, because what you said seems so incredibly stupid that I must be misunderstanding you.

You said those who act as hairstylists to women

1) Don't like women

2) Don't know how to make women beautiful

3) Don't care about women's beauty.

hair are other women. I will concede the first bit in some cases.

Bad Lieutenant said...

she does have a big, sexy, brain.


But full of worms.

Ralph L said...

Must have been her diet.

Bruce Hayden said...

“When a middle-aged woman cuts her hair short, in most cases it signals menopause and her renunciation of appearing sexy. Think old lady church hair.”

Try visiting Utah. There, short hair seems to mean that the woman is married with a bunch of kids. That she is fertile and religiously Mormon.

Katherine said...

Way too late here for Althouse to see this, but: I don't see what's unprofessional about that hair. Catherine Herridge, on Fox News, looks great in her short hair, and your short-medium style, with the good cut, looks great too. My hair wouldn't look good that short. Tried it and failed every time. Most of the women wearing "the hair" look fine in it. I'll bet when not prepping for the camera the ends are just straight. Easy care, just pull it back when you don't want it in your face, or when it's hot outside.

T. A. Hansen said...

Don't know why this is so hard for some women to understand. Men like women with long hair.

T. A. Hansen said...

The photo of Althouse on this Blog is 10+ years old and it highlights her medium-long hair.

T. A. Hansen said...

Hell, her old photo highlights her hair.

T. A. Hansen said...

The photo is 90% hair.