Historically and Hysterically Trendy: The Bob Cut Then and Now
It was Lily Collins during the premiere of Season 4 of Emily in Paris and Angele at the Olympics closing ceremony who heralded this autumn’s hottest trending haircut: the razored bob.
But actually, any version of a bobbed haircut will definitely do — especially the Italian bob and the timeless French bob, both of which are starring among the top haircut trends of this fall at Paris Fashion Week. While other bob styles have come and gone, the French Bob was also popular last year. Grown-out French bobs are also trending, as are many other variations of it.
As trends usually are, the bob cut is an incarnation of a fashionable breakthrough from the past. But in this case, the now-trending bobbed style was considered absolutely scandalous before gaining huge popularity exactly a century ago.
MyHeritage’s Research team dove into the historical newspapers on OldNews.com to learn more about the iconic haircut in its historical context. Here’s what we found.
The French women who were ahead of their time
The bob cut gained popularity during the Roaring Twenties in the U.S., a period of significant social and cultural shifts, specifically for women.
Prior to that, the bobbed haircut was considered unacceptable, even in the subversive fringes of society. Among the very few brave women who couldn’t care less about social norms was the French actress Polaire. In the late 1890s Polaire was already known in France for her bobbed hair, and during the 1910s, she brought the fashionable artistic statement to North America during her tours in the U.S. and Canada.
The bob can even be dated all the way back to 15th century France: the French heroine Joan of Arc, who defied traditional gender roles in almost every aspect, sported cropped hair.
The Toronto World, November 24, 1913, reporting that Madame Polaire would be performing at theaters that week. Source: OldNews.com
The ‘Roaring Twenties’ flappers
The bob cut is mostly associated with the flappers of the 1920s: young women who challenged traditional norms by embracing a new and modern lifestyle reflected clearly in their looks. The bob cut was a defining characteristic of the flapper look, and accordingly became a salient symbol of women’s liberation and independence.
To introduce the flapper phenomenon to the public in an orderly manner, the Weekly Journal-Miner dedicated its front page in August 1922 to describing the characteristics of typical flappers: “You’ve often heard ’em called that, but did you ever really understand what it meant? This will straighten you out,” the newspaper promised. Under “a picture of a flapper, 100 percent, head to foot,” the newspaper specified 13 qualifications for a real flapper, including “bobbed hair” coupled with a “flapper curl on forehead,” as well as “exposed, bare knees” and “rolled hose with fancy garter.”
The Weekly Journal-Miner, August 2, 1922. Source: OldNews.com
A 110-year-old (unintentional) starting point
The famous head under the trailblazing bob is widely considered to belong to the dancer Irene Castle. Exactly 110 years ago, in the summer of 1914, Castle paved the way to the hot trend of 2024 autumn — quite unintentionally.
Castle (born 1893 in New York) became famous during the early 1910s, together with her partner on and off stage, Vernon Castle (born 1887 in Norfolk, England). As part of this power couple, and a celebrity in her own right, Irene Castle was a fashion trendsetter. But the bobbed hair wasn’t meant to be a bold fashion statement to begin with — nor was it meant to be a societal critique. Castle simply cut her hair before going through an appendix removal surgery in 1914. Focused on her convenience during the week-long hospitalization, she saw it mainly as a practical solution.
When Castle later dared to appear in public with no hat or scarf, people were deeply shocked by what they saw as an inappropriate, distasteful hairdo. But for some women, Castle’s haircut — so short it barely covered her earlobes — felt exhilaratingly liberating. It didn’t take long for more and more American women to catch up with what gradually evolved into a “Castle bob” (or any sort of bob) mania.
Castle became a model for hairstyle enthusiasts and flappers alike. In September 1920, several newspapers in the U.S., like The Washington Herald, Arizona Republican, The Evening Independent, The West Virginian and the Canadian Morning Leader published a similar article titled “On with the ‘Bob’ — Let Curls Be Unconfined.” The opening sentence of all the articles declared: “No style of modern hairdressing has appealed to all ages as much as the “Bob,” which seems even to be growing in popularity.”
Arizona Republican, September 15, 1920. Source: OldNews.com
The Cheyenne State Leader published a richer version, adding several testimonies of “artists and business women (who) sing praises of short cut looks.” One of those singers-of-praise was a magazine “woman editor, Miss Millin Davenport” who said: “I am a busy woman. I have only so many hours a day in which to accomplish my work… and I know that having short hair makes many things possible that would be lost to me otherwise.”
Cheyenne State Leader, September 19, 1920. Source: OldNews.com
The praises, however, were no indication that the social cultural transition was smooth. Almost every characteristic of the flappers became the target of social backlash.
The flappers, sometimes referred to as “the Modern Girls,” broke a considerable amount of social taboos with their independent lifestyle that apart from hairstyle included dancing the Charleston, smoking cigarettes and drinking in public, and attending jazz clubs.
For example, on June 2, 1922, South Bend News-Times dedicated an entire page to an article with the headline “Big Business Banishes the Flapper.” At that point in time it was already widely realized that the flappers are not merely a passing phenomenon. However, according to the article, flappers “will at least be made non-existent during working hours in several big banks. All of which, as part of a movement for de-flapperizing female employees of business hours.”
South Bend News-Times, June 2, 1922. Source: OldNews.com
Eventually, the bobbed haircut was everywhere, with and without a connection to flappers. The Milwaukee Journal examined the matter empirically and on April 24, 1926 revealed:
“75 Per Cent of City’s Women Bob Hair; Most of ‘Em Satisfied.” According to this consumer analysis in 1926, the data indicated “that the peak has been passed” for bob cuts. But the reason was “not necessarily because bobbed hair is falling into disfavor, but more likely because a comparatively small percentage of women remain to have their hair bobbed.”
The Milwaukee Journal, April 24, 1926. Source: OldNews.com
During the early 1930s bob cuts were already considered old news.
The bob experienced a resurgence in popularity in the 1960s, thanks to the influence of iconic fashion figures like Twiggy and the hair stylist Vidal Sassoon. Sassoon’s geometric and angular cuts redefined the bob as a symbol of modernity and sophistication.
But it was the women of the 1920s who made the bob much more than just a popular hairstyle: it was a cultural icon. Among the early popular iterations of the hair style was that of actress Louise Brooks. Her sleek, chin length cut, known as the “Lulu bob,” had a cinematic appeal. Accordingly it starred in blockbuster movies as Pulp Fiction (worn by Uma Thurman), Leon (Natalie Portman), Amélie (Audrey Tautou), and many more.
What place did your own ancestors have in important cultural moments like these? Explore historical newspapers on OldNews.com to discover the stories that shaped their lives and influenced the times they lived in.
