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Conan O'Brien arrives at the 73rd Emmy Awards
Conan O’Brien’s career is defined by a number of distinct eras that have unfolded over the past few decades, but one thing has largely remained the same: his signature hairdo. As a result, plenty of people were understandably caught off guard after he recently decided to switch things up without offering any explanation.
Most comedians would kill to have the staying power (and the résumé) of Conan O’Brien, who is still going strong close to 40 years after he got his first big break by landing a job as a writer on Saturday Night Live.
He followed that up by taking his comedic talents to The Simpsons, and in 1993, he pivoted to late night and introduced the masses to the unique brand of weirdness, absurdity, and irreverence that would define the three distinct gigs that took up the bulk of his time for around 25 years.
In 2018, he decided to give podcasting a shot as the host of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, the show that recorded its 400th episode earlier this year. It most recently featured Molly Shannon, and most people were not prepared for the sight they were treated to when they went to check it out.
Conan O’Brien switched up his hairdo out of the blue and didn’t address it at all
O’Brien doesn’t really need any help standing out as a 6’4″ redhead. However, when he was in high school, he decided he needed a way to be more memorable as he eyed a potential career in entertainment, and his solution was the poofy wave of hair that eventually became his signature look.
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Conan briefly abandoned the style in the late 1990s, but that was really the only point in his career where he strayed away from the look that many people refer to as a “pompadour” (even though it doesn’t really fit the definition).
However, plenty of fans sounded the alarm after tuning into the most recent episode of the aforementioned podcast, as O’Brien sat down with his fellow SNL alum while rocking the kind of slicked-back style favored by guys who drive a white Ferrari and live for New Year’s Eve.
Fans flooded the comments to voice their surprise at the switch, which went entirely unaddressed in an episode that lasted over an hour.
Part of me wonders if O’Brien was running late or was unable to take advantage of the services of the stylist he seems to keep very busy when he does have the time to get his hair in place.
I’d be very surprised if this ends up being a permanent change, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see.