Haircuts

[sophiegirl]

Would Olivia or Grandma cut the girls hair? In the Thanksgiving episode Grandma cuts John Boy’s hair so I’m wondering about the girls. On one episode Grandpa says something about Ike cutting hair and later on Yancy opens a barber shop for a short time. If Grandma cut the girls hair I’m sure they didn’t always agree on length and style.

[Brenda]

It’s interesting that you brought up the subject of the girls’ hairstyles, because it’s something that I’ve been thinking about. The Walton girls’ hairstyles were not typical of that time period. I have lots of family photos and old school photos that belonged to my mother and grandmother. Most girls in the 1930s had a short bobbed hairstyle. If they had longer hair, it wasn’t straight. It would have been wavy. The long straight hairstyle of the Walton girls was more typical of the late 1960s-early 1970s (when the show was filmed). Then as the series went on, Mary Ellen and Erin even adopted the Farrah Fawcett hairstyle of the mid to late 1970s.

To answer your question, I don’t know if Grandma would have cut the girls’ hair or not. I’m sure there were some women back in those days who thought women should not cut their hair. There are religions even now who believe women should wear long hair. I can imagine that Grandma might be one of those women and would likely be critical of the girls if they had wanted to cut their hair short. 

[Brenda]

I did a quick google search and found this 1933 school photo online. I have no idea where this was, but it shows typical hairstyles of girls in the time of The Waltons.

Click the image to enlarge it.

Attachments:

[sophiegirl]

Yes I agree the picture shows what their hairstyles should had been in that time period. Shorter hair definitely would make it easier to care for too. After thinking about it most of the girl actresses on the show did have long hair. Guess production couldn’t make them cut their hair to look like the 1930s/40s.
On some scenes you can tell the boys have their long hair pulled up on the sides. I still have an image of Grandma giving them all haircuts every few weeks and Grandpa and John not wanting it done.

[pinkbaker07]

Sept 25, 2020 22:30:20 GMT -5 sophiegirl said:

Yes I agree the picture shows what their hairstyles should had been in that time period. Shorter hair definitely would make it easier to care for too. After thinking about it most of the girl actresses on the show did have long hair. Guess production couldn’t make them cut their hair to look like the 1930s/40s.
On some scenes you can tell the boys have their long hair pulled up on the sides. I still have an image of Grandma giving them all haircuts every few weeks and Grandpa and John not wanting it done.

I have long hair. I would refuse to cut it for a show. I would have thought as the girls got older they would have pulled it up like Olivia does.

[Deleted]

Sept 25, 2020 20:47:23 GMT -5 Brenda said:

I did a quick google search and found this 1933 school photo online. I have no idea where this was, but it shows typical hairstyles of girls in the time of The Waltons.

Click the image to enlarge it.

The last season of Downton Abbey covers 1925. The last season has Mary Crowley cutting her hair to a bob which was a big thing. Most women had long hair braided and then wrapped around to give it the illusion of short hair. 

In Anne of Green Gables, Dianna says that so and so has her hair up and she is only 17 ( I think she said 17) and that she looks ridiculous. Apparently having the shorter look meant you were older or married. 

I wonder why so many women had long hair, but wanted it too look short? Were they trying to fit into the mold of the bible saying that long hair is crowing glory yet they were tired of it?

I never noticed that the girls hairstyles were inappropriate for that era. I knew the 50s was a time for short hair on older women, but not the 30s.

I have heard it said that the 30s was the beginning of the end of the religious patriarchy. Maybe the shorter hair styles were the proof of that.

[pinkbaker07]

Sept 26, 2020 9:01:19 GMT -5 @tankeryanker said:

Sept 25, 2020 20:47:23 GMT -5 Brenda said:

I did a quick google search and found this 1933 school photo online. I have no idea where this was, but it shows typical hairstyles of girls in the time of The Waltons.

Click the image to enlarge it.

The last season of Downton Abbey covers 1925. The last season has Mary Crowley cutting her hair to a bob which was a big thing. Most women had long hair braided and then wrapped around to give it the illusion of short hair. 

In Anne of Green Gables, Dianna says that so and so has her hair up and she is only 17 ( I think she said 17) and that she looks ridiculous. Apparently having the shorter look meant you were older or married. 

I wonder why so many women had long hair, but wanted it too look short? Were they trying to fit into the mold of the bible saying that long hair is crowing glory yet they were tired of it?

I never noticed that the girls hairstyles were inappropriate for that era. I knew the 50s was a time for short hair on older women, but not the 30s.

I have heard it said that the 30s was the beginning of the end of the religious patriarchy. Maybe the shorter hair styles were the proof of that.

Its possible. I like my hair longer. I wouldn't look good with short hair.

Olivia got a perm. John liked her hair long but she rebelled and did what she wanted.

[Johnny]

How about asking some of the Walton siblings who are still with us?  They could shed some light on what happened  (who cut their hair and how long or short it was). .

[Deleted]

^^^
Do you mean if they themselves wore their hair short or long?

I could see not forcing the actors to wear their hair the same as the people being portrayed, especially for years and years. 

[Brenda]

You can see childhood pictures of the Hamner siblings here:

www.allaboutthewaltons.com/ham-fam.php

[carol]

Mary McDonough wrote in her book Lessons From The Mountain that the producers insisted that they all keep their hair as close as possible to what it would have been in the time they were portraying or in such styles that the hairstylists could style it to the period.. She said the producers and hairstylists flipped out when she came back from summer hiatus in one of the later seasons with a perm!.

If they were so concerned with hairstyles and keeping with the time they were portraying why didn't the boys have military haircuts in the seasons where they were in the military?

[sophiegirl]

So true . Never saw a military cut on the boys.

[ransomr]

Didn’t everyone do some sort of a bowl cut some loner , some shorter??