The Bob is back

(Published in Yehey! Lifestyle)

In the 1920s, the United States of America entered its version of Pax Romana, a period of peace and economic boom that enabled the prosperity of American culture and its art. World War I has just been won and the nation stayed away from global politics. It is during this period that the Philippines had been an American colony for some 20 years and thus shared the mother country’s period of greatness. The culture of this period is characterized by rebellious fashion. It was during this time that the U.S. Government enforced the Prohibition, an act that outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcohol. American high society indulged in illegal alcohol, women shortened their skirts to knee length (an abominable deed with the world just fresh from the Victorian age of innocence) and sported a hairstyle known as The Bob.

The bob cut is a short hairstyle in which a weighted area is left to fall between the ears and chin notably the bangs. It is short enough at the back to expose the nape, which at the time was barely seen by the opposite sex and so considered seductive. The bob cut was created in 1909 in Paris by the hair dresser Antoine, who was inspired by Joan of Arc. In Britain, it became popular in Bloomsbury circles before the end of the First World War, but made widely popular in the 1920s by flappers. The American film star Colleen Moore was extremely influential in spreading the fashion around the world. It was the fashion of the liberated woman. In 1924, the razor cut shingle bob was introduced.

After the roaring 20s, the bob cut was made popular for men in the 1970s. In the 1960s, Vidal Sassoon made it popular again, using the shape of the early bob and making it more stylish in a simpler cut. Its resurgence coincided with the arrival of the “mop top” Beatle cut for men. Those associated with the bob at that time included the fashion designers Mary Quant and Jean Muir, actress Amanda Barrie and singers as diverse as Cilla Black, Billie Davis, Juliette Greco, Mireille Mathiew and Beverly Bivens of the American group WE FIVE. Many styles and combinations of the bob have evolved since. In the late 1980s, Siouxsie Sioux, lead singer of Siouxsie and the Banshees, had a bob cut for a short time. Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of American Vogue since 1988, apparently had hers trimmed every day. More recently the bob was identified with Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction (1994) and adopted n 2006 by the singer Madonna and, as a move away from boho-chic by actress Sienna Miller.

From 2006 on, the “bob” came back into fashion in Ireland and the United Kingdom. This can be traced to the influence of fashion icon and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham having had her hair bobbed. In the early 1990s, Cyndi Lauper had a bob haircut with very unusual colors. In 2007 R&B singer Rihanna had a bob haircut in the video for the international smash “Umbrella”. She has stated that she got her inspiration from Charlize Theron in AEon Flux. Keira Knightly had a bob in her short TV ad for Coco Mademoiselle.

In the Philippines, there has been a following of The Bob lately. It appears that in this country, the proponent is Victoria Beckham. Although Philippine culture has produced their own renowned hairstylists, Filipinos closely follow developments in America and Europe.