Valvoline Forelock
originally posted: 11/01/01
Brought to you by who else but my literary hero James Lileks, describing the
well-lubricated hair of 1950s matinee idols. You could tell the hero of the
movie had rolled up his sleeves and gotten down to the business of saving
the world when his Valvoline forelock became slightly mussed. Ah, those were
the days! Or so I'm told.
These days it's hard to tell the flawed hero from the noble villain unless
you read the fine print on their tattoos. Still, I think my favorite heroes
are the ones played by Harrison Ford, who's always cast as a Regular Guy
thrown into Distressing Circumstances. Ford is the greatest RG of all time,
despite having perpetually bad hair. Nobody's better at pulling off the
grim-lipped trifecta of consternation, determination and defenestration that
characterizes his roles.
Tomorrow's band: Grim-lipped Trifecta