Site icon Awkward.com

15 Photos That Celebrate The Glory Of The Mullet

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

There’s perhaps no haircut more loathed than the mullet, the short-in-the-front, long-in-the-back ‘do that’s synonymous with the 1970’s and 80’s. But it wasn’t always so hated! There was a time when having a mullet made you the coolest dude or dudette in your neighborhood. So, how did we get here?

The name “mullet” is relatively recent, but the haircut itself goes way back. There’s evidence that ancient cultures had mullets, from the ancient Mesopotamians to the Ancient Greeks. And it makes sense–cutting it short in the front keeps the sun out of your eyes, and keeping it long protects your neck from the elements. Mullets stuck around in one form or another for thousands of years, but they didn’t really become popular until the 1970’s, when David Bowie rocked one.

Photo Credit: Mental Floss

Bowie’s look inspired entertainers everywhere to copy it, from Patrick Swayze in Roadhouse to country singer Billy Ray Cyrus to Macguyver star Richard Dean Anderson.

But then, in 1994, it all fell apart, thanks to the Beastie Boys and their song, “Mullet Heads.” Simultaneously, the song gave the haircut a name–“mullet head” is slang for “idiot” that goes back at least as far as Mark Twain–and destroyed its popularity. Just look at the first two lines from the song:

You’re coming off like you’re Van Damme,
You’ve got Kenny G, in your Trans Am

And that was that. Soon, mullets became an object of ridicule.

Like everything else, the mullet will have a comeback some day. But until it does, here are 15 photos from the mullet’s golden years.

 

1. Behold, the mullet’s majesty.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

2. The mullet is also known as “The Ape Drape”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

3. Or a “Squirrel Pelt”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

4. Or an “Arkansas Waterfall”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

5. Or a “Tennessee Top Hat”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

6. There are several variations on the classic mullet, like the “permullet.”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

7. The spiky mullet

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

8. The flat-top mullet

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

9. His haircut came with a free pair of parachute pants.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

10. He’ll see you in the boys’ room after 4th period for a smoke.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

11. He just got done fixing up his El Camino in the driveway.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

12. The look that says, “Waterbed salesman.”

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

13. Cobra Kai forever.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

14. Just scored two tickets to see Foreigner at The Meadowlands.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

15. Warning: the amount of awesome in following photo below far exceeds FDA recommendations.

Photo Credit: Vintage Everyday

 

 

h/t: Vintage Everyday

Exit mobile version