Goodbye Earl

Thursdays for the past few years have been my favorite night for television. I always turn to NBC for the comedy line up. 30 Rock gets better each season. The Office cracks me up. And my favorite show in the line-up, My Name is Earl. A show with a balding protagonist (played by Jason Lee) and his side-kick, his more balding brother, Randy (played by Ethan Suplee). A show that left us with a big cliffhanger at the end of last season, and then was subsequently canceled. So here's to you Earl - small hairline, but big mustache and even bigger heart!

Bruce 'the Boss' Springsteen

Thanks to Anthony N. for suggesting this post. Anthony writes "Hi, as someone whose hair is slowly beginnign to recede, I greatly enjoy your blog. I enjoy reading about the many celebs who go to such lengths to hide what they simply cannot control.

This video will not let me embed it, so you have to go to youtube to check it out. Click on the link below for a video of Bruce from 1988. You can see his hair is badly receding, the sides of the front hairline almost completely gone, with just a stump in the front:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmpq0CWxMWo


The Boss became the boss of his hair and began to try and hide the hairline. He wore headbands more often than a grown man should:




He was also lucky - his hair is thick. He was able to grow it long and puff it out or comb it forward to hide the hairline.



The Boss with Sting (look at the hair on Sting!) in 1988.
Credits: Corkery, Richard


However, Bruce isn't just lucky - he is rich. He can afford the best hair care in the world. And he has taken advantage of this wealth. Here he is in 2001, with a very bald scalp:






Then here he is more recently. Notice the growth in the hairline:








Anthony also comments, "As you can see, The Boss was indeed born to run...out of hair." So true, Anthony, so true...

Kobe Bryant!

I'm originally from LA so by default I am a Lakers fan, and I do think Kobe has a lot of talent. However, I also think he knows it. And won't let us forget it. Ever. Although after all of his personal drama (cheating, rape charges, etc.) became public he has calmed down a bit. Or maybe it was his balding head that calmed him down.


Here's Kobe in 2002, with a nice full head of hair:




Here he is 2007. You can see the hairline has receded a little bit, but not too noticeable. What is noticeable is that Mr. Bryant used to do more with his hair, and around this time he just kept it shaved.




And here are some pictures from this month. You can see the hairline has definitely receded and he is keeping his hair as short as possible.

Benji Madden Rerun

I already posted on Benji's rapidly balding head: http://baldouting.blogspot.com/2009/05/benji-madden-of-good-charlotte.html

However, I just found this picture and I had to post it. It is an older picture and you can see where his hair line was receding. I just love this picture, it cracks me up!




Who would ever do that to themselves? And then think it's cool?

Neil Diamond!

Thanks to reader Anthony N. for bringing Neil Diamond to my attention, and for providing the pics for this post.


I've had a bone to pick with this guy for a long time now. When I was younger, I got into classic movies and the Jazz Singer was recommended to me. I went to the video store and asked for the Jazz Singer. Instead of giving me the classic Al Jolson Jazz Singer, the guy gave me the Neil Diamond one. Not knowing any better, I rented and watched it. As I'm writhing in pain trying to stick it out until the end of the movie, my dad walks by and asks me why I'm watching this movie. I explain to him why and he laughs and fills me in on the fact that this is a remake.

For this role, Neil Diamond was awarded the first ever Worst Actor Razzie. Guess I wasn't the only one who thought he was awful in that movie. Neil butchered a classic. And almost turned me off to older movies. For that I'll always be angry with him. Even if I love Sweet Caroline.

But back to what this blog is all about - we all know Neil has been balding for years. What we may not know is he is balder than he leads on. Take a look below at a before and after:


Here's Neil with Quincy Jones in 1998. You can see the top front of his head is totally bald.


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Here's Neil more recently. You can see more hair on top.



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Hmm if it looks like a toupee and feels like a toupee, it must be one.

Ryan Getzlaf!

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No this is not Vanilla Ice. Although it could be his long lost cheeseball brother. This is Ryan Getzlaf, a pro hockey player (currently with the Anaheim Ducks). If you can bring your eyes away from those things he calls his teeth, you can see his hairline is clearly receding. Usually he wears hats or hockey helmets to cover it up, but as you know from all the other posts, sooner or later we get to the truth!



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Above is an earlier picture of Ryan at an autograph signing. You can see how thin his hair is on the top.

ANT!

Thanks to reader Marques J. for not only bringing comedian Ant (host of Celebrity Fit Club, judge on Steve Harvey's Big Time) to my attention but also for providing the commentary for this post. Marques writes:


"Yes, we know he's openly gay! Yes he used to be chubby himself at one time! But the real subject we don't know is what's more phonier: ANT's phony laugh routine or the thing on his head?





Is that a rug? Is that some type of miracle of science? Is it the worst-looking kind of hair plugs I ever seen?

We don't know! But in any event, after appearing on a few sitcoms, with a few years of stand-up comedy under his belt and shortly before Celebrity Fit Club even came in session, ANT was already losing his hair by the time the very late '90s/early 2000s came to town.




Here he is on To Tell the Truth in 2001, already losing hair by this point and still slightly chubby.





What all the chunkiness gone, here comes what apparently looks like an odd-looking toupee or plugs, probably toup!

Look at the pic of him with George Takei: notice how the color of the sides of his head do not match the top of head. Can anyone say: "TOUUUU-PEEEE!!!," anyone?





ANT, you might win people with your silly, phony stand-up routines but you deserve an oscar for epic fail in the hair department."





Sounds like reader Marques really dislikes Ant. Or that Ant just gets on his nerves. I don't know much about Ant, but just his name gets on my nerves!