A pictorial celebration of the most glamorous hairstyle of the 1960s, as worn by various female celebrities of the past and present on television, in the movies, and in various photo illustrations
A pictorial celebration of the most glamorous hairstyle of the 1960s, as worn by various female celebrities of the past and present on television, in the movies, and in various photo illustrations
GOOD NEWS, BIG HAIR FANS! This is now a SUPERSITE, seven pages long (and counting)! I have combined my three seperate sites into ONE, and all that remains is to get a few things replaced on certain pages; the buttons all work now. As always, please bear with with me, as this may take a little time; I'll let you know when it's all fixed.
The 1960s bouffant hairdo: Jackie Kennedy (left) popularized it, but it took Hollywood, skilled hairstylists and an entire generation of glamour girls of that era to bring it to the pinnacle of eye-catching beauty as the decade progressed. By perhaps 1965 or 1966, the bouffant reached its peak of spellbinding enchantment, and became synonymous with romantic evenings or glamorous, star-studded events. The style proved to be a perfect companion to a long, off-the-shoulder, sequined evening gown, but also did fine accompanied by shorter dresses. Either way, the bouffant hairdo truly epitomized a woman's crowning glory whenever she wanted to be noticed.
But by the end of the 1960s, bouffant hairdos slowly began to fall out of favor, especially among younger women. Ease and simplicity of styling were the order of the day, and there appeared to be no room in the new era of women in the workplace for the time or effort needed at a salon to involve oneself in the intricacies of creating such an elaborate style. Concerns also arose about how much hair spray was needed to hold it in place, and movie- or theatregoers expressed their annoyance over having to sit directly behind a woman wearing her hair so high that it blocked their view of the action. By the '70s, bouffants became a symbol of a bygone era, and few people seemed to care that they had all but vanished.
Today, bouffant hairdos seem to be little more than a blatant representation of kitsch camp, as witness the two female vocalists who make up a portion of the new-wave rock band, The B-52s ("Rock Lobster"; "Love Shack"), or the scores of drag queens and female impersonators who turn up now and again on daytime TV talk shows. They're also prominently featured in the smash-hit musical stage production, "Beehive". But one or two "legitimate" bouffants have turned up on TV in recent weeks (late 1999 as of this writing), and if they should ever come back in style, that's fine with me. A little after-five retro-glamour could maybe lift the spirits of a weary world as the new millenium continues.
The gallery of pictures and images that follow represents a fine cross-section of bouffants past and present, typifying glamorous situations, elegant events, and yes, occasional examples of latter-day "camp". But regardless of motive, the 1960's born-and-bred bouffant hairdo will always be associated by me with the utmost in stylish beauty befitting high fashion. If you agree, then scroll down, pause, and enjoy.
Generally, it's her roommate Ginger on whom you'd expect to find a 'do befitting a mid-'60s Hollywood glamour queen
This scene is from "I Dream Of Jeannie", but upon seeing her coifed and dressed for a 1965-style evening out, Major Nelson is obviously "bewitched"
Here's Jeannie again, even more beautiful in living color
Series star Barbara Eden used to send this 4x6 card bearing her printed signature to those who sent her fan mail. Talk about her granting a wish...
This hypnotic-haired attendee at a 1967 love-in would seem more at home at a yacht party with a millionaire escort than with a bunch of hippies...maybe...
Courtesy of the Corbis photo site.
In a "Batman" TV sequence, Marsha, Oueen Of Diamonds (Carolyn Jones) distracts the guards at a subtreasury building during a gold heist Here's another "Batman" bad girl having a good hair day: The Siren, played by Joan Collins Holy Heavenly Hairdo! It's Robin himself--Burt Ward--at a gala with his then-wife Bonney Lindsey Elke Sommer is the very picture of 1966 Hollywood glamour in this big, beautiful bubble bath, although her character isn't enjoying it This lovely lady, on the other hand, doesn't mind being in the same situation. She appeared on the flip side of Mr. Bubble boxes in 1969 '50s sex symbol Mamie Van Doren tried a big screen (and big-haired) comeback in 1964's "3 Nuts In Search Of A Bolt"... ...and she, too, took a bath before the cameras; it was added to the "completed" film to help sell it
Don't you just love the ability to do photomanipulations on the computer?
For more about Mamie, click here to go to Kim Rosenthal's Mamie Van Doren Page.
Jayne Mansfield served as a team captain on "The Match Game" for a week in 1964
Mad about Mansfield? Click here to go to Kim Rosenthal's Jayne Mansfield Online Fan Club.
The lucky fellow pictured above gets to sit at a mere arm's length from glamorous Jayne throughout the entire show. How very different game show seating arrangements were back in those innocent times before concerns about stalkers (presumably) put the stars and the civilians mostly at a distance from each other.
Jo Anne Worley, unlike many of her late-1960s contemporaries, continued to appear in an ever-present bouffant 'do until 1975 Speaking of Miss Worley, I thought at first she was also this otherwise unknown model for a 1966 console stereo magazine ad Motown singing star Martha Reeves stirs up a "heat wave" on the cover of the Vandellas' "Watchout" album R-E-S-P-E-C-T...that's what Aretha's hairstylist gets from me Holiday glamour is suggested by this enchantress, who posed for this 1966 Christmas ad for a famous department store Earlier that same year, the same store used this model in their Spring and Summer catalog Jennifer Marlowe she's not, but this scene from the original sitcom about radio D.J.s, "Good Morning, World", finds Julie* Parrish dolled up for a special event
*Julie herself e-mailed me a while back to tell me that this might actually be Leslie Parrish. The identity remains unknown for now, but I originally thought it was Leslie until someone else reminded me that Julie--not Leslie--was the series' co-star.
Ann-Margret gets a taste of a stripper's world in the 1966 movie, "The Swinger" Here she is in another scene from "The Swinger", this one depicting high fashion back in the days before ozone layer depletion concerns...and red-paint-throwing From the same film: Yvonne Romain plays the wife of this Monopoly Man wannabe The bouffant lives again in 1999 atop "Mad TV" regular Mo Collins. What--her worry? Another latter-day bouffant adorns the head of this Maury Povich guest--but is "she" really a he? Well, the hairdo looks glamorous, anyway... The same show showcased the singing style of the stylish Hart Barnes. Dig that wig! Marge Simpson Sez: "Click on me to go to Great 'Toon Hair"!
