Figure 1.-- Boys varied greatly in how they cared for their. Some boys could care less about their hair. Others might boys be quite fastidious. Different hair styles held up differently under the affect of active play.

In real life of course, active boys often had less perfect hair styles and many boys did not comb their hair at all. Some boys couldn't be bothered with combing their hair at all. Here boys varied. Somevboys carried a comb and did comb their hair. Most boys could have cared less and only combed their hair when instructed to do so. Of course when biys reached their teen years, they began to give more attention to personal grooming. I think here attitides may have also changed ober time. I thik pre-teens today are more interested in clothes and hair styling than earlier generations.

Dennis (United States, 1940s-50s)

As a boy I had virtually no interested in clothes, except that I didn't want to wear short pants which my friemds and I saw as just for little boys. Basically I just put on what ever my mother ought and layed out for me. I also had no interest what so ever in hair styling. My mother sent me to the barber shop, I gthink with 25 cents. She didn't go with me and I don't recall giving him any instructions. He just gave me the standard hair cut. I also virtually never combed my hair--at least on my own volition. Mom either combed my hair or had me do it in the moning, and that was it. I don't recall having any objection to combing my hair, I just didn't think it was all that important and actually a waste of time as it soon out of place after I combed it. I remember one teacher fussing with me about it. I think she even bought me a comb. But it was no interest to me what so ever until I enteted junior highschool. Interested readers can learn more about Dennis on his HBC page.

John (United States, 1950s-60s)

My hair was styled a "regular haircut" or "short sides and back," so, there wasn't so very much hair that could become untidy. Two occasions demanded a neat haircombing: school and church. Then, either my mother, usually, or my father would apply a white, sweet-smelling dressing called Wildroot Cream Oil to my hair, and with a dampened comb proceed to get every hair - or as many as possible - in place. A cowlick in back often defied their efforts. Otherwise, if my hair became a bit messy, no one - least of all me! - seemed to mind. Hair length, though, was an entirely different matter to my dad. When he'd look closely at me, a critical look in his eye, and ask me to turn around, I knew what was coming. If he could a grasp handful of my hair, it was time to go to the barber. These sojourns took place about every two to three weeks. My appeals to reason, that so much money could be saved by less frequent haircuts, came to no avail. Wildroot, by the way, is still manufactured in abudance, something I can't say for my hair. Ah well, if this is the time or place to describe what I call "the haircut," an occurrence during my 14th summer, I'll be glad to relate it. Time has eased the pain. Interested readers can learn more about John on his HBC page.

Jonathan (England, 1970s)

A HBC reader, remembers that growing up in England during the 1970s that he was one of the boys who couldn't be bothered about combing his hair. Of course this varied from boy to boy. Some mothers were more insistent than others. And of course some boys might have left the home with combed hair, but a little strenousdh play soon resulted in the effect of the combing being lost. Others were in real need of a hair cut. Once the hair grew out after a hair cut, the initial styling became less apparent. This varied somewhat with the style of the hair. Of course if a boy had cropped hair, it required little maintenance--other than a period buzz. Other longer styles might require constant combing. While it is relatively easy to identify hair styles in formal portraits, often it is much more difficult in family snap shot in which the children have not been spruced up to have their picture taken.

Peter (United States, 1970s)

The unruly hair page brought back a lot of memories. I don't think that when I was growing up I ever combed by hair without being told to. If I thought my hair looked messy, I would usually brush it quickly with my hands, and I think that I lot of other boys were the same way. I think that many boys think that hair looks better if it's a bit unruly, so it would be hard to convince them of why they need to comb it. (There were however boys who would keep their hair combed. When adults would suggest bringing a comb for things like student picture day, a few boys would.) It's hard to remember when I started to comb my hair regularly. Maybe by the time I was 18 or 19, I started started to comb my hair every day, BUT usually without looking in a mirror when I combed it. Now, I see older teenagers with much more unruly hair than anyone had when I was growing up. (I vaguely remember a scene in the 1993 movie "The Adventures of Huck Finn" in which the adults tidy Huck up and after he steps out the door he is shown quickly messing up his hair.)

Created: 10:51 PM 9/13/2005
Last updated: 8:39 PM 10/23/2005