@ www.theotherpress.ca

Feature

 

statement has been
embraced since at least
the 1970s (see: David
Bowie, Alice Cooper,
Boy George, Michael
Jackson, Brett Michaels,
etc.) one only has to
look to the wigged,
powdered, hose-
wearing aristocratic
men of the 18th century
as a prime example of
androgynous fashion.
Both genders wore
elaborate powdered
wigs, garters, hoses,
and pointed shoes,
though only women
enjoyed the spine
warping joys of
corseting. For both
sexes, this elaborate
style of dress served to
highlight one’s position
in society, since anyone
who had to toil for a
living would not wear
heels. Nor could they
afford to do so.

And what about
the modern incarnation
of this trend, the
Metrosexual? If you
take a man, remove all
his body hair, shape his
nose until it’s too small
to breathe through,
plump his lips, give
him a spray tan, apply
guy liner and lip gloss,
buff his nails, and
feather his hair, you are
going to have a pretty
feminine looking dude.
Undeniable. Spurlock
didn’t manage to find
any truck drivers or
loggers or fishmongers
for his documentary,
who actually claimed
to be going to these
lengths as part of
their daily regime. His
wealthy, show business
test subjects don’t
exactly speak to the
needs or preferences
the masses—which is
not to say that there
are not those of us
among the commoners
who don’t aspire to
this aesthetic. For the
wealthy heterosexual
men who choose to
partake, androgynous
style was, and still

is, an assertion of
status. And those who
follow these trends are
searching for the same
status. So spins the
big wheel of human
weirdness.

 

“Uslnerability marketing: the accidental brilliance of
Sy Sperling and the Hair Club for Men

hen Sy Sperling went to his marketing team for a TV ad campaign, they

gave him two options. The first advertisement showcased an attractive,
chestnut-locked man playing tennis, horseback riding, and just generally being
a stud. The other spot featured Sy Sperling, holding up a photo of himself in less
hirsute days and mumbling those iconic words: “I’m not only the president
of Hair Club for Men, I’m also a client.” Stiff and wooden, Sy was no television
actor, so the team went with the first ad. When it didn’t do as well as expected,
they pulled the ad, and gave Sy a try.

According to the documentary Roots: The Hair-Raising Story of a Guy Named
Sy, this is when things took off for the company. Men remembered the slogan,
but they also identified with Sy, who had actually felt the social sting of
premature baldness. Sy’s presence was, in the words of mustachioed ‘80s icon
Geraldo Rivera “so disarming,” men couldn’t resist.

Sy’s willingness to appear vulnerable in front of his client base paid off
hugely for him. He also allowed his brand to appear in several jokes and top 10
lists on The David Letterman Show. He’s appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien
and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, leaving no doubt in the minds of potential
clients that he’s in on the joke.

This kind of marketing was revolutionary in the ‘80s, but it’s still pretty
untapped today. Makes you wonder how it would go over in the botoxed,
tweezed and airbrushed marketing world of 2012.

 

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