Mullet (haircut)
The mullet is a hairstyle that is short at the front and sides, and long in the back.[1] The mullet began to appear in popular media in the 1960s and 1970s but did not become generally well known until the early 1980s. It continued to be popular until the mid-1990s.[citation needed]
The Classical period
The Roman emperor Nero may have at one time adopted a hairstyle that resembled a mullet, judging from the writings of the ancient biographer Suetonius:
He was utterly shameless in the care of his person and in his dress, always having his hair arranged in tiers of curls, and during the trip to Greece also letting it grow long and hang down behind.[2]
Later, the 6th-century Byzantine historian Procopius' Secret History describes the actions of some of the Blue faction:
First the rebels revolutionized the style of wearing their hair. For they had it cut differently from the rest of the Romans...clipping the hair short on the front of the head down to the temples, and letting it hang down in great length and disorder in the back, as the Massageti do. This weird combination they called the Hun haircut.[3]
1970s
Mullets were sported by rock stars David Bowie and ex-Beatle Paul McCartney (and wife Linda) as far back as the early seventies.
1980s
The mullet became wildly popular in the mid to late 1980s as a result of the early success of U2's popularity and it was Bono's style from the Live Aid 1985 performance in particular that is most widely credited as being the main influence of the mullet style.[citation needed] The zenith of the mullet's popularity in 1980s continental Europe has been described as an "age of singing tattooed Swedish Flokati Rugs".[4]
1990s
Superman was drawn as having a mullet from issue 505 (1993) to 544 (1997)[5] of Adventures of Superman comic and this look was released in action figure form by Mattel in 2009.[6] In the mid to late 1990s the "tail" of the mullet was occasionally "permed" with loose or tight curls adding even more internal composition contrast to the hairstyle.[citation needed] Punk rock band The Vandals sang of country music singers and Jerry Springer Show guests sporting mullets, and listed regional names for the style in the 1998 song "I've Got an Ape Drape".[7] Country Music singers Billy Ray Cyrus, Travis Tritt, and Joe Diffie were also known for their mullets. The German punk rock band Die Ärzte dedicated in their album "Le Frisur", in which every song is about hair, the song Vokuhila Superstar to the mullet (in German Vokuhila). Vokuhila is a joke, it mean Vo-(front)-ku-(short)-hi-(back)-la(long). Sanjay Dutt also wore a mullet in 90s.[8]
2000s
The mullet and its associated lifestyle have been central themes in movies such as Joe Dirt "business in the front, party in the back" (2001), and the television show The Mullets (2003–2004).
2010s
In July 2010, the Islamic government of Iran issued grooming guidelines to men supplementing the existing modesty stipulations to women. Among the new regulations is a ban of the mullet hairstyle. The ban on mullets is one of the measures that Iran has deployed to "confront the cultural assault by the West." The country aims to promote a set of new Islamic hairstyles that were unveiled at the Hijab and Chastity Festival of 2010.[9][10]
References
- ^ Entry from OED Online - Series One - Oxford English Dictionary, Archive.org copy here.
- ^ Suetonius: Life of Nero, Section 51.
- ^ Procopius; Atwater, Richard (1961). Secret History, pp. 35-6. The University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor. ISBN 0-472-08728-2.
- ^ [1] Spiegel, 30.11.2008 ZEITMASCHINE INTERNET, So scheußlich waren die Achtziger wirklich (The '80s really as ugly as they were) Frank Patalong
- ^ Superman Covers #500-549
- ^ DC Universe Classics Mullet Superman | Toy Reviews | MurderShowDotNet
- ^ I've Got An Ape Drape lyrics - The Vandals | All The Lyrics
- ^ Saajan (1991) | MemsaabStory
- ^ Anita Singh Iran government issues style guide for men's hair Daily Telegraph 05 July 2010
- ^ Saeed Ahmed and Mitra Mobasherat: Iran promotes 'Islamic' haircuts, CNN, July 8, 2010.
