Bowl cut

A child sports a bowl cut.

A bowl cut, also known as a pot haircut, or a mushroom cut, is a haircut where the hair is cut short on the sides and back and looking as though someone put a bowl on the head and cut off all the visible hair.

The most well known bowl cut wearer belongs to Moe Howard, who wore it as part of his "Three Stooges" persona until his death in 1975.^{[citation needed]}

History

A 1920s Ukrainian poster; the man on the left sports a bowl cut

Historically this haircut was popular among common people of various nationalities as an easy and relatively neat cut by a non-professional. Indeed, it was done by putting a cooking pot of a fit size to the level of ears, and all hair below the rim was cut or even shaven off. In some cultures it was a normal type of haircut. In other cultures the bowl cut was viewed as an attribute of wealth, signifying that the wearer could afford to visit a barber. The bowl cut is quite common among the Amish, and is also seen among some indigenous tribes such as the Yanomamo.

Popularity

From the late twentieth century on, the haircut resurfaced as a counterculture style credited to the Beatles' moptop hairstyles and the Ramones' early stylized bowl cuts. The bowl cut gained popularity in America among teenaged and pre-teen boys in the 1980s and the hairstyle was a veritable fad in some American locales. The popularity of the bowl cut faded in the early/mid-1990s.^[1]

More recently the style has re-emerged on the UK music scene along with the renaissance of the "shoegaze" and garage rock genres among young bands. Matthew Baker is a proud wearer of the bowl cut. He strides around proudly showing this cut to his fellow friends. Kevin is a strong anti bowl cut believer and in many cases this has caused conflict between the two.

See also

• Curtained hair

References

1. ^ 1990's Time Period in Fashion History