Page 24 - All About History - Issue 58-17
P. 24

HAIR & BEAUTY


        Hall of Fame










       INSPIRATIONALSTYLISTS
        Meetthehairdressersandtrendsetterswhodefined entire

        eras with their iconic cuts



                                               LEÓNARD AUTIÉ FRENCH C.1751-1820
                                               Lavishly decorated hairstyles were the hallmark
                                               of Léonard Autié. His “magical comb” caught the
                                               eyes of many Parisian noblewomen, but he is
                                               best remembered as Queen Marie Antoinette’s
                                               hairdresser. He created a number of unique and
                                               extravagant hairstyles for her, including the famous
                                                   pouf, which became synonymous with her
                                                     time as queen. Autié opened his own salon
                                                                                                                   Vidal Sassoon
                                  In 1791, Autié       and hairdressing school, the Académie                     perfecting one of his
                                   founded and          de coiffeur, in 1787, at a time when  VIDAL SASSOON     legendary avant-garde
                                                                                                                 cuts on Mary Quant
                                                         hairdressing was emerging as a real   BRITISH 1928-2012
                              managed the Italian        profession. While Marie Antoinette and  One of the most iconic hairstylists entered his
     Léonard’s creations    opera company Théâtre        many of the other women he styled   career after a premonition from his mother
    defined Marie Antoinette
      as a fashion icon      de Monsieur alongside       lost their heads during the French   that hairdressing was the right path for him.
                                                         Revolution, Autié escaped to Russia.  Vidal Sassoon’s sharp, geometric looks like
                                Monsieur, Comte                                          the five-point cut catapulted him to fame
                                   de Provence                          Kenneth’s clientele   duringthe1960s.His hairstyles were easy
                                                                                         to maintain and liberated women from the
        JEAN HARLOW                                                   included Judy Garland,
        AMERICAN 1911-37                                               Jackie Kennedy and   time-consuming hairdos that dominated the
        Theoriginalblonde bombshell,                                    Marilyn Monroe   1950s.Successledhimtolaunchsalonsacross
        actressJeanHarlow’sstrikingplatinumblondehair                                    London and the US, a product line and a series
        captivated audiences across America. It caused                                   of training academies that still run to this day.
        numerous women to reach for the dye in an                                        His clients included Mia Farrow, Elizabeth
        attempttorecreateHarlow’siconiccolour, although                                  TaylorandMaryQuant,makinghim oneof
        she always maintained that her hair was natural.                                 the world’s first celebrity hairdressers.
        Her stylist, Alfred Pagano, later admitted that he
        used a combination of Clorox bleach, ammonia,
        peroxide and Lux soap flakes on a weekly basis to                              “If you don’t look good,
        achieveher icycolour.It hasbeensuggested that
        this toxic combination, which produces noxious                                 we don’t look good”
        gas, mayhavecontributed toherearly deathfrom
        kidney failure, aged just 26.                                                  Vidal Sassoon


                                                                                       KENNETH BATTELLE
                                                           Kenneth was                 AMERICAN 1927-2013
                                                                                       Sassoon’s American counterpart, Kenneth Battelle,
                                                         the first and only            became famous for popularising soft, romantic
                                                        hairdresser to ever            looks devoid of thick hairspray and heavy bleaching.
                                                                                       He created Jackie Kennedy’s signature bouffant to
                                                     win the Coty American
                                                                                       frame and enhance her features. Battelle even cut
                                                          Fashion Critics’             her hair the day before her husband, President John
                                                         Award, which he               F Kennedy, was assassinated. Interestingly, Battelle
                                                                                       came to the rescue of Marilyn Monroe when her
                                                            won in 1961
       Jean Harlow was                                                                 hair began to fall out in 1958 after years of perms
       Marilyn Monroe’s                                                                and bleaching. He styled her hair ahead of her
        childhood idol                                                                 infamous ‘Happy Birthday’ performance and for her
                                                                                       last Vogue shoot, just a few weeks before her death.


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