Comb over
Encyclopedia
A comb over or combover is a hairstyle
worn by bald or balding men in which the hair
on one side of the head is grown long and then comb
ed over the bald area to minimize the display of baldness. A variation of the comb over where baldness is concealed by long hair combed in three separate directions has a by Donald J. Smith and his father, Frank J. Smith, of Orlando, Florida
. The Smiths were awarded an Ig Nobel Prize
in Engineering for their effort.
on products. The "barcode style" is called "bākōdo na kamigata" （バーコードな髪型）.
comedian
Gregor Fisher
lampooned the comb over style with his character The Baldy Man, which featured in a television advertisement before graduating to its own TV show.
Stand-up comedian Heywood Banks
sometimes sports a comb over despite having a full head of hair, stating "I'm not going bald, but I like the look!"
On an episode of Room 101
, newsreader Lorraine Kelly
called comb overs "Pedal Bin Hair".
One of the villains from Cars 2
, Professor Zündapp, has a broken roof rack
that resembles a comb over.
Hairstyle
A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human head. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.-History of...
worn by bald or balding men in which the hair
Hair
Hair is a filamentous biomaterial, that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Found exclusively in mammals, hair is one of the defining characteristics of the mammalian class....
on one side of the head is grown long and then comb
Comb
A comb is a toothed device used in hair care for straightening and cleaning hair or other fibres. Combs are among the oldest tools found by archaeologists...
ed over the bald area to minimize the display of baldness. A variation of the comb over where baldness is concealed by long hair combed in three separate directions has a by Donald J. Smith and his father, Frank J. Smith, of Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
. The Smiths were awarded an Ig Nobel Prize
Ig Nobel Prize
The Ig Nobel Prizes are an American parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early October for ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research. The stated aim of the prizes is to "first make people laugh, and then make them think"...
in Engineering for their effort.
Synonyms
In Japan, men with comb overs are called "bar code men" （バーコード人）, referring to the similarity between the striations caused by the comb and the UPCUniversal Product Code
The Universal Product Code is a barcode symbology , that is widely used in North America, and in countries including the UK, Australia, and New Zealand for tracking trade items in stores. Its most common form, the UPC-A, consists of 12 numerical digits, which are uniquely assigned to each trade item...
on products. The "barcode style" is called "bākōdo na kamigata" （バーコードな髪型）.
Famous comb overs
- The Emperor ConstantineConstantine IConstantine the Great , also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, Constantine and co-Emperor Licinius issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of all...
combed his hair forward to disguise his baldness. - In the UK, two people noted for comb overs were the former chairman of Call My Bluff, Robert Robinson (known as the "king of the comb over") and World CupFIFA World CupThe FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
winner Bobby CharltonBobby CharltonSir Robert "Bobby" Charlton CBE is an English former professional football player, a member of the England team who won the World Cup and Ballon d'Or for European Footballer of the Year in 1966...
. - Former University of Illinois basketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
coachCoach-Transportation:* Coach , an automotive vehicle for long-distance travel** Coach , the mode of transport using such vehicles** Coach USA, an American bus transport company** Coach Canada, a Canadian bus transport company...
Lou HensonLou HensonLou Henson is a former college basketball coach. He retired as the all time leader in victories at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with 423 victories and New Mexico State with 289 victories...
had his combover style termed the "Lou-do" by ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
announcer Dick VitaleDick VitaleRichard J. "Dick" Vitale , also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well-known as a college basketball broadcaster and for the enthusiastic and colorful remarks he makes during games. He is known for his...
. Earlier in his career, when Henson was a coach at New Mexico State UniversityNew Mexico State UniversityNew Mexico State University at Las Cruces , is a major land-grant university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States...
, he sported a close-cropped hairstyle that did not conceal his baldness. - Donald TrumpDonald TrumpDonald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
is known to sport a highly elaborate version of the comb over. - In Spain, the BasqueBasque peopleThe Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
nationalist politician Iñaki AnasagastiIñaki AnasagastiIñaki Anasagasti is a Venezuelan Spanish politician, belonging to the Basque Nationalist Party.-Biography:Anasagasti was born to exiled Spanish parents in Cumaná, Venezuela. His father was a Basque nationalist and a member of the Basque Nationalist Party , who had fled the country after the...
is noted for his comb over, giving his name to comb overs ("hairstyle a la Anasagasti"). - AlgeriaAlgeriaAlgeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n presidentPresidentA president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Abdelaziz BouteflikaAbdelaziz BouteflikaAbdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
is known for his comb over in AlgeriaAlgeriaAlgeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
and neighbouring countries. - Gen.GeneralA general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Douglas MacArthurDouglas MacArthurGeneral of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
wore a comb-over. His GI Joe action figure also has a comb-over.
In popular culture
The ScottishScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
Gregor Fisher
Gregor Fisher
Gregor Fisher is a Scottish comedian and actor.-Early life:Fisher was born in Glasgow and following the death of his parents was brought up in Edinburgh, Langholm and Neilston and attended Barrhead High School...
lampooned the comb over style with his character The Baldy Man, which featured in a television advertisement before graduating to its own TV show.
Stand-up comedian Heywood Banks
Heywood Banks
Heywood Banks is an American comedian, and writer and performer of humorous songs.His songs include "Toast", "Fly's Eyes", "Wiper Blades", "Pancreas", "Big Butter Jesus" , and "18 Wheels ".Heywood frequently appears on the nationally syndicated radio program The Bob and Tom Show...
sometimes sports a comb over despite having a full head of hair, stating "I'm not going bald, but I like the look!"
On an episode of Room 101
Room 101 (TV series)
Room 101 is a BBC comedy television series based on the radio series of the same name, in which celebrities were invited to discuss their pet hates and persuade the host to consign them to a fate worse than death in Room 101, named after the torture room in the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, which is...
, newsreader Lorraine Kelly
Lorraine Kelly
Lorraine Kelly is a Scottish television presenter, journalist and actress, best known as a presenter for TV-am, and later GMTV and ITV Breakfast, on Lorraine.-Early life:...
called comb overs "Pedal Bin Hair".
One of the villains from Cars 2
Cars 2
Cars 2 is a 2011 American computer-animated action film produced by Pixar, and it is the sequel to the 2006 film, Cars. In the film, race car Lightning McQueen and tow truck Mater head to Japan and Europe to compete in the World Grand Prix, but Mater becomes sidetracked with international espionage...
, Professor Zündapp, has a broken roof rack
Roof rack
A roof rack is a set of bars secured to the roof of a motor car. It is used to carry bulky items such as luggage, bicycles, canoes, kayaks, skis, or various carriers and containers.There is a long history of the use of roof racks and their designs...
that resembles a comb over.