Oodles of words have been spilled about the deaths this past Thursday of both Farrah Fawcett, at age 62, and Michael Jackson, age 50, and oodles more will be said. There’s little I can add, except perhaps this.
When I think back to my youth in the 1970s, I will fondly remember one gift among the many that these pop icons gave us, and that is their hair.
Ah, Farrah’s mane. Long, thick. My God, did she ever have thick hair! And all different shades of blonde on one head.
She was Jill, the sexy athletic Angel. Sabrina (Kate Jackson) was the smart Angel and Kelly (Jaclyn Smith) the girl next door. But we all wanted to be Jill. Or at least, most the girls in my graduating class did.
We knew nothing of “blow-outs” then. Why today, with the right cut, I could replicate a Farrah Fawcett hairdo in no time, thanks to styling gels, leave-in conditioners, multi-sized barrel curling irons, diffusion blow dryers, and round bristle brushes. But back then we had few tools at our disposal.
Nonetheless, I tried my best to turn my frizz into Farrah’s layered mane. As seen in my high school graduation photo, I managed to feather my bangs, which I did by slowly pulling out (and in the process, singeing) the strands of hair clamped in my curling iron.
I settled with partial feathers, a sort of ready-for-take-off look that alone required hours to achieve. The rest of my curls I left be, except for the very ends, which I halfway straightened.
Some girls were excellent at emulating the ‘do, and I was excellent at hating them and their blonde streaks. But most girls, like me, failed miserably at transforming their natural waves into Farrah’s sexy look. And then there were the girls, in hindsight the courageous ones of our day, who didn’t even try to, through their hair, be anything other than who they were.
My hair was probably better suited for the male ‘do of the time, which in the late 1970s was donned by Michael Jackson, pre nose jobs, skin bleach, dimpled chin, and straight wig.
In 1979, his song Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough was in the Top Ten. We danced to his music and tried his moves. And the most fashionable guys — the foxes, as we called them — wore polyester shirts, vests, and slacks.
Not every boy could pull off a Michael Jackson ‘fro, but this had to be about the only time in the past 30 years where men yearned to possess curls worthy of clown wigs. For some, the ‘fro came naturally. For others, it was just a bad perm away.
You gave us many gifts, Michael and Farrah. How can a legacy in music and dance compare to the short-lived afro that even you, Michael, discarded once you hit mind-blowing fame and fortune? It is minor, I admit.
And Farrah, you were much, much more than the sum of the seemingly infinite hairs on your head. But in the late 1970s, those hairs were the goal of every female my age, and I don’t think we have ever worked in tandem to achieve a singular style since.
Thank you both. For being the ones who impressed us most when we were at our most impressionable.
ybonesy, I have a picture of me in college with a similar ‘do’ to yours. 🙂 forgot about the farrah factor….
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For some odd reason, I always like Kate better.
As for MJ, Smooth Criminal remains a favorite.
When I was about 10 or so, 1978, my grandmother decided it would be a good idea to get me a curly perm. Tight curls! I was soooo Michael, though I didn’t know it at the time. And, until now, I never realized that perhaps she knew more about pop culture than I ever thought . . .
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Listening now to Michael Jackson. Everyone is ga-ga over Thriller, but I knew him since Jackson 5.
Sabrina was my favorite. Intelligent and almond eyes.
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Hey, I did that curl down the side “do” too! I love this picture of you! You are so right about the hair thing and we really did grow up with MJ, watching his hair do change, his music setting the pace of our dance. Life can be so complex and we must really work to keep it simple.
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I bet your hair held the Farrah Fawcett cut well, Michelle. You even have natural highlights.
In my junior year yearbook photo, I have a budding Farrah Fawcett ‘do — used the curling iron all along the edges but no where else. I also nearly plucked out all my eyebrows. Sophomore photo, I’m trying to wear a Dorothy Hamill (she’d been Olympic champion the year before and featured in Pert shampoo commercials doing her famous Hamill camel for the year afterward). My friends called me “mushroom head.”
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To tell the truth, DLourdes, I was always conflicted by which Angel I wanted most to be like. Definitely Jill on looks alone, but Sabrina did have the whole package. She sounded the smartest and had the calmest demeanor. But given that every guy we liked probably had a Farrah poster on his bedroom wall, we just aspired to look like her.
In some of my yearbook photos I laugh when I see how many of us had the feathered look. I mean, it didn’t matter what the texture of your hair was…you went for the look.
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Brian, I didn’t see that like DLourdes, you were also a Kate fan. Was it the intelligent and calm factor?
Funny about the perm. The two male ‘dos from that year seem to be either 1) parted in the middle and feathered, or 2) the ‘fro. The former was a bit more common in our high school, but a large number of guys did the ‘fro, and all different types of hair. One of my best guy friends had a blonde ‘fro. And remember, the dad on Brady Bunch got a perm around that time. Cool that your grandma was clued in the ‘dos of the day.
Barbara, yep, must have been the Farrah factor. Where else could it have come from??
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yb, I too had the Farrah hair style. Who didn’t? Everyone I knew had it to.
As for Michael Jaclson, my first memories of him was with the Jackson Five. I remember when all the guys had the perms.
Their legacy will live will forever in my memories. D
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Great post, YB. I like how you keep it real, and talk about your own personal connections.
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This post makes me smile. Ah, how we tried to be like Farrah. I remember staring at the poster when I was 17; how can I make my teeth look like hers? How can I grow my legs five inches?
On Friday, at my job, we turned up the Michael Jackson music, and had a great time watching all the old music videos. With the exception of “Thriller,” I had forgotten about most of them. Despite Michael’s downturn in the past 15 years, his music and moves did matter to us when we were young. I’ll be one of those people who is buying his greatest hits this week or next. Why not?
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ybonesy, Liz and I watched a couple of great bios on Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson over the weekend. We also watched Farrah’s documentary about her battle with Cancer, Farrah’s Story. I recommend it. It’s powerful and incredibly sad. But documents her struggle in real life terms.
The people that stood by her were strong as well. The bond she had with her close friend who handled almost all of the camerawork — Alana Stewart. The bond with Ryan O’Neal (partner since 1982) and how they were going to finally get married. The sadness about her son Redmond who was in jail during the last days of her illness.
She flew to Germany many times for painful experimental treatments. And declared herself cancer-free four months after originally being diagnosed with cancer in September 2006, only to have the disease return in May 2007.
This woman had a lot of strength and really fought for her life. But what I wanted to say about her hair — there was a very powerful moment in the documentary having to do with the loss of her iconic hair. Even then, she had such strength and poise.
I remember Charlie’s Angels well. And the Farrah poster that many had on their walls. I was, however, a fan of Kate Jackson’s character more than Farrah back then. I guess it was the feminist in me! After watching Farrah’s documentary, I have a new respect for her. She speaks for many who have types of Cancer with research that is underfunded and/or ignored.
Here’s a link to learn more about Farrah’s Story:
‘Farrah’s Story’ a tale of inner strength (LINK) – Documentary a painful, uplifting, transparent look at Fawcett’s cancer fight
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Oh, I wanted to say about Michael Jackson, he was the biggest child star. I remember watching him on TV in high school and thinking, Gosh, he’s only about 4 years younger than me and there he is more famous than ever. He was incredibly talented. And when he teamed up with Q Jones, there was no stopping them.
Liz and I watched a few documentaries about him over the weekend, too. We were mostly struck by how abuse of prescription drugs seems to be a huge problem in this country, and not just with the stars. Anytime something is legal, like alcohol or scripts, the potential for abuse seems to take on a life of its own. And seems much more accepted by surrounding loved ones. Still, you can’t make someone stop. We were also thinking about his kids and his estate, the legal battles that will probably ensue over his fortunes, his debt.
The last thing that seems so painfully obvious is that all the people who are now speaking up and claiming to be his friends — where were they when he needed them the most over the last 10 years? No one would go near him after the scandals. Until his untimely death. That’s the saddest thing of all. Who really stood by him when he was struggling? You have to wonder if he’s up there watching it all unfold. What would his spirit be thinking.
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Michael Jackson reached out to all generations. I remember when I was young, my brother and I had a videotape of all of his music videos. During one summer we watched the videotape on a daily basis, trying to emulate his dance moves. We were only in elementary school then, but my brother still remembers some of the moves 10 years later.
BTW, love the hair. Nanny has all of your siblings’ high school photos on her bedroom wall. It it funny to see the progression of hair styles through the generations, from the flip of patty’s generation to the farrah fawcet hair of your generation. Great pictures.
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Ybonesy – LOL! Those pictures sure do bring back memories. There were some females in our class who had ‘fros too. I guess you could say that both of these styles were unisex. As you know I tried the “Farrah” look too but ended up having the same style as Patrick W. That was the laugh of the night of our 20th reunion when we walked around sporting buttons with our senior pictures on them; Patrick and I could have passed for twins.
I think you came closest to the quintessential Farrah look. Your hair was thick enough and curly enough to do so. I have loved your hair Y because yours is so beautifully curly and thick and mine is so thin. Still I have come to accept my hair and have finally found peace with it. I guess most everyone has to do that que no?
I hope both Farrah and Michael’s family find peace. What makes me think that Farrah’s family will and Michael’s not so much? N
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PS – when my son was 14, four years ago, he was in a talent show at his high school and performed a dance to MJ’s Thriller. He is a good dancer and he performed it very well and brought down the house. He has all of MJ’s music on his iPod. He and his peers love Michael Jackson. MJ transcends most generations and I think that is a sign of talent mixed with genious. N
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Oh Neece, now you gave me the biggest laugh of the day. I had my yearbooks out here, since I’d scanned the photos, and so I flipped between you and Patrick W. HA-HA! That is so funny! Actually, your hair does have more bounce and fullness than his, but they are very similiar. Oh man, remember getting ready in the morning, the darned curling iron. How many scars did we leave on our necks and foreheads from curling iron use? And how did the guys get their feathers? I guess blow-dry only. Do you think some used curling irons, too?
I remember the morning of my graduation photo, I got in a huge fight with my boyfriend. So I’d been crying, which accounts for the heavy-looking lids. My eyelids are actually really skinny. Normally I don’t even have eyelids. I think that also accounted for the lighter-than-normal use of the curling iron, because I just didn’t have time to do my hair.
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Oh, and the point about girls with ‘fros, I had a good laugh flipping through and seeing which girls had ‘fros. We had some thick-haired chicas in our graduating class, didn’t we?! Man, some of those girls have big ‘ol heads of hair. LOL!
Neece, did you capture your son on video for the talent show? I’d love to see it at the graduation party. Can’t wait. Hope you make your famous guac.
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Bex, we should have done Michael Jackson moves at your party. At one point I did stand up to dance, but no one was there to dance with me. I was looking for your mom, but I think at that point she was still so busy moving from table to table. It was a great party, btw!!
Yeah, Larry had the sort of male shag, not quite a mullet, look for his graduation picture. Very Jim Morrison. Janet looked great. Long thick straight hair. Very early 70s. I’m on my way to Mom’s in a bit, so I’ll check them all out.
Michael Jackson was genuis, absolutely. It’s moving to see the global outpouring of love for his talents and the best of who he was. He had demons, for sure, and it is sad now to think how much they gripped his life. In some respects, I’d almost forgotten about him, thought of him as a bizarre recluse, and a sick man. It is good to remember someone for everything they represented, and surely we know very little about who he truly was inside. But it’s good to acknowledge and honor the artist that he was and all that he gave us.
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QM, thanks for the link to “Farrah’s Story.” I wish we have cable; I would have watched it for sure. I missed what I think NBC ran, which was just the documentary that Farrah’s good friend, Stewart, made. I was bummed to have missed it.
I have heard from several people how much respect they now have for Farrah after seeing those documentaries. And in the link you provided, it was amazing to read about her response when it came time to cut her hair. I guess it was about to fall out, so she said something to the doctor about, “You just wouldn’t stop until you had the hair.” Or something to that effect. I think she was referring to the cancer, and how that just couldn’t stop.
And the fact that Ryan O’Neal was really there for her. How touching. I hope they make the documentary available to rent. I will definitely watch it.
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I read some trivia about Farrah’s famous poster the other day, which included the fact that she did her own hair. Awesome. My hair SUCKED, and never would, still won’t, even with all products and modern marvels, look like that. OK, maybe for 5 minutes. But that’s it. Sigh.
My reaction at MJ dying was surprise, but a definite lack of caring. But I’ve listened to a few of his songs since then, and seen a few videos, and now I remember WHY he was considered such a genius. Because he was. The last decade of total weirdness lent to my forgetting and becoming completely cynical to that fact.
Gosh, he was cute when he was black, huh?
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Gosh that was funny — we did so love her hair — even the guys had that look in 1975.
Ann
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LOL. And how do you explain Peter Frampton? Was he a Farrah wannabe?
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first yb, great grad photo…happy to see a fellow member of the teen “don’t smile or I won’t look cool” club. High fiver there 😉
I never wore my hair like Farrah, hell, I never even combed it at that age…but I thought she was a goddess just the same. God bless her sweet soul.
I (like you and everyone else) grew up on “I’ll be there” Michael. I was lucky enough to see him when the Jackson Five reunited back in maybe 84? My oldest niece (who’s now 37) begged me to take her to see them for her first concert. I remember you had get the tickets by mail and I sent mine by special mail. It was at the Dodgers stadium (the giant baseball field on the hill) and I was worried she wouldn’t see a thing. I showed my tickets to some bouncer (having no idea where the heck the seats were) and he guided us onto the game field. I kept showing them to ushers and they kept walking us further up until I realized we were in the 3 row, front and center. I can still remember looking behind us to view literally a sea of people. I think I lost some of my hearing that night with the special effects but the grin on Corina’s face was worth it. They put on some show. Michael was just so darn talented. They all were. To this very day, I still wonder if I would have sold those seats had I known where they were and how much they were worth!
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Ha-ha, fellow club member. The smile also made my nose look beaky, I used to think. What a goofball.
OMG, though, seriously, the ’84 Jackson 5 reunion sounds FABULOUS! How did you nab Row 3 center seats? You must have been among the first to send in for tickets. What an experience of a lifetime, and a great story to boot.
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Ah, just re-read, it was the special mail that did the trick. Good thinking, Heather!! And no, you wouldn’t have sold out your niece’s chance to see Michael!
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Jules, he *was* cute when he was just himself. You know, drawing from my experience within the Latino community, there is so much value placed on light skin, light eyes. If you have a baby with blue eyes, many Latinos (especially from the older generation) fawn over the child. And I know of other cultures (East Asian cultures, for example) where fair skin is revered. So what happens, what I’ve seen in my culture, is a sort of auto-discrimination, an internationalization of the valuation of lightness, which in its worst form becomes self-loathing.
While this wouldn’t explain the degree to which he disfigured himself, nor the rest of his bizarre and sick behavior, knowing that he was just a child at a time and in a society that was steeped in bigotry, it might explain some of what drove him to change his appearance.
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diddy, I’d love to see you in your Farrah Fawcett ‘do.
Christine, thanks.
QM, meant to comment on the point you make about all the “friends” of Michael who are stepping into the limelight. That is sad.
A friend and I were talking about whether any friend could have stepped in to intervene on the drug use, and we both agreed that, no, he was so isolated and probably only kept those who enabled his addiction around him.
Just saw on GMA this morning that his doctor’s credentials are in question. Bet that doesn’t surprise anyone.
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you’re right yb…I wouldn’t have…
Took her little sister Nicole to her first concert a few years later. Janet Jackson was just as good…and just as loud. 😉
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I remember those dos well. I wonder what people will thinking of present time hair when looking back 20 years from now.
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I went to Barnes and Noble last night and listened to Michael Jackson CDs on the headphones. When you really listen to his voice (especially, I think, as a child), he had amazing range and control. It’s quite sad to listen to this 12-year-old, and know how the story would end.
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Stevo, good question. What WILL people be thinking about our hair 20 years from now? We are going to look so outdated. Of course, I don’t know if I’ve changed my hairstyle in years. If I find something that works, I tend to stay with it until it comes back in style again. 8)
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Sinclair, Michael Jackson was really quite stunning as a child. He was one of my coming of age icons so I remember being wowed by him at an early age – control, poise, so gifted. And smash hit after smash hit.
I think it was an interview with Q Jones or maybe it was Gordy who was saying that Michael wanted to know everything about how the studio operated and how records were made from day one. He was curious and driven. Also, in my opinion, a workaholic.
We did end up watching the funeral but it was recorded. Didn’t watch it that day. Parts of it were moving. Have not watched anything on him since. I think one day in the next months, we might have to play Michael Jackson vinyl in the studio and just crank it up. Just as a last tribute.
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I still want to download on my iPhone some of my favorite songs, or maybe buy a few CDs. I still prefer the older music over the more recent. I adore “Ben,” and I’m probably one of the few who even remembers it or thinks it’s his best song. (HA!) I also love “Black or White.” I wonder when that one was produced.
I did not see the memorial service and have caught very little of it since. A few snippets here and there. I’ve heard from one or two people that it was healing and provided closure.
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stevo’s question makes me realize, We never really think that we are outdated when in the moment. Today I wear short hair but long on top, sort of a mop of a head of hair, curly and wild. I wear tight jeans with a bell-bottom flair, a red suede belt (I got in Vietnam), and a pink bright t-shirt. I feel like I’ve landed on my “uniform,” which is probably close to the same thing I wore in the 70s. Are there any new trends that aren’t simply rehashes of our old trends? The thing about the 70s is, it was all so novel then.
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I look forward to the documentary that is sure to be coming soon–the one where we’ll get to see lots of clips of Michael as a youngster.
Can someone be a workaholic at 12? How does someone become that driven?
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no offence but i will miss michael forever and i didnt even know farrah
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I LOVE MICHAEL JACKSON VERY MUCH AND HE SHOULD STILL BE HERE TODAY
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I went to Target today and bought the “Ones” CD. All of the songs those that hit number 1 for Michael Jackson. It’s a great, great CD. I remember when it came out originally Michael was in deep legal trouble and no one cared about his new album. I’m glad I have it now–great dance and unwind music.
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I’d love to get that CD, Teri. I think I will next time I’m at a store that sells it. Amazing how his death changed everything around our desire to hear and buy his music.
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I went to see “This Is It” this afternoon. I went with very few expectations, and I loved it. The dancing was amazing, watching a group prepare for a concert tour was surprising (they work really hard!), and it occurred to me for the first time what Michael’s death meant to all those people who had auditioned and rehearsed for tour. I liked Michael much more than I expected I would.
The theater crowd was interesting. Not just young people, but lots of seniors, too.
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Teri, I’d like to see This Is It, too. I think it’s only running for a few weeks. Thanks for checking in about it. It does make you think about all the people on the concert tour who had worked hard with Michael when all that came to an abrupt stop. It makes you wonder how he’s going to be remembered down the line. After all the hype has passed. And what legacy his children will carry on. I thought I heard that Paris might have seen him rehearse. Was she in the movie at all? I think they said it was the first time she’d seen him perform.
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I read yesterday that Sony will likely extend the run of “This Is It” until Thanksgiving weekend is over. None of Michael’s children were in the movie–no reference made to them at all.
As soon as Michael died I regretted never seeing him perform live. I thought the same thing in 1977 when Elvis died, even though I was a kid living on a farm with no means to get to a concert. Seeing this movie is like seeing the concert I never will.
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Teri, I’m looking forward to seeing the movie. I think my oldest daughter will also want to see it.
I never did like big concerts. I went to see Elton John, Peter Frampton (remember him?) and a few other big names at the largest stadium in Albuquerque, and every time I felt like a little person in a faraway seat, more attuned to the people near me and the pillar in front of me blocking my view and the huge crowd that kind of freaked me out. Maybe I’m a touch claustrophobic. Or maybe I just didn’t buy my tickets soon enough and ended up with lousy seats. 8)
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