’Net Junkie
Jheri curl trying to
slip back into vogueIt was the hair-happy1980s and the jheri curl was all the rage. Not since the Elizabethan Era had the common man put so much emphasis on hair maintenance. Through a variety of chemical applications, the once-popular lock-loosener gave its innumerable proponents (Philip Michael Thomas and Ready For The World chief among them) that wild "wet look."
We are reminded by www.kthxbi.com/archives/00000002.html that it was also the preferred 'do of brash, Uzi-toting gangsta rappers (refer to Ice Cube, Eazy-E and DJ Quik), and that in 1984, stage pyrotechnics on the set of a Pepsi commercial sparked a small fire on Michael Jackson's head.
A scant few Jacko fans are still intrigued by the luxurious look, as evidenced by this written plea at www.petitiononline.com/082958/petition.html: "We have noticed that it has been a tumultuous time for Michael Jackson since he opted to stop sporting the jheri curl in favor of 'good hair,' " reads the online entreaty. "As dedicated fans, we only wish the best for the King of Pop and thereby must request that he restore the curl in all of it's (sic) juicy glory. Thank you. Sincerely, (sign name here)." Can you say quintuple platinum in 2003?
At www.blackathlete.net/Football/football080901.html, Marc Johnson introduces us to "The E.D. Theory." That's "E.D." as in Eric Dickerson, the nimble Reagan-era running back whose wondrous feats of athleticism on the gridiron earned him a place in pro football's record books. "Others might believe he was a genetic marvel with birth-given abilities that were beyond the average man," he writes. "Not me. It was in the juice. No, not the juice flowing through his veins, or the kind that somehow finds itself soaked through the winning coach's team sweater, but the juice on his head."
According to Johnson, the jheri curl "personified style and attitude" and helped catapult accomplished athletes into superstardom. Which begs the debate: was it really activator spray that put the "neon" in Deion Sanders? Now there's a question that's "2 Legit 2 Quit."
’Net Junkie drops every Monday.
Contact Shawn "Speedy" Lopes at slopes@starbulletin.com.
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