The Many Hairstyles of Ginger Rogers

[slaytonf]

Ginger Rogers was one of the most attractive women in movies.  She also had one of the greatest varieties of hairstyles of any actress.  Unfortunately, most of them were. . . .unfortunate.  They either competed with, or detracted from her beauty.  Her best styles were in her earlier movies.  For instance, from Swing Time (1936):

 

This is a publicity still, I think:

 

 

But later, especially in the 40s, she was attacked by the likes of this:

 

 

And this:

 

 

 

[RoyCronin]

Tight Spot: one of the most unfortunate hair creations in cinematic history. I mean, looking butch is one thing in prison,....but seriously girl.

[speedracer5]

With the exception of that hairstyle in the second to last photo, I always thought Ginger looked pretty with the brunette hair.  In her autobiography that I read, she said that her real hair color was auburn and it was bleached in the early 1930s for one of her first film roles.  It was bleached without her permission and originally she was furious, but then came to like it.  I am not sure how someone can bleach your hair without your knowing it, but that's what she claimed.

 

I liked her little girl braided pigtails in The Major and the Minor:

 

 

I also like this bob style that she sported in the later part of the 1930s:

 

[Movie Collector OH]

I don't often think much about hairstyles, unless they are exceptionally good or exceptionally bad.  Having said that, I remember thinking the short hair she wore in Tight Spot (1955) wasn't that great.

 

On the other hand, I am quite opinionated that between her hair and this dress from Weekend At the Waldorf (1945), she appeared her very best.  It also helped that Walter Pidgeon accompanied her with one of his coolest characters ever.  At least in my mind's eye.

 

[Arturo]

Ginger Rogers was one of the most attractive women in movies.  She also had one of the greatest varieties of hairstyles of any actress.  Unfortunately, most of them were. . . .unfortunate.  They either competed with, or detracted from her beauty.  Her best styles were in her earlier movies.  For instance, from Swing Time (1936):

 

This is a publicity still, I think:

 

 

But later, especially in the 40s, she was attacked by the likes of this:

 

 

And this:

 

I'm not.particularly partisan about Ginger Rogers, but.I like her in just about everything. She was great as a.comedienne, and excelled as a dancer, and even did well in.drama. She always looked good, at least through the 50s; keeping her figure trim, although, truthfully, the only thing I can recall her in the 60s was as Mama Bello in one of the competing HARLOW films of 1965. Here she was garish, what with the huge hairstyles and heavy makeup of the period, never mind it was supposed to be three decades earlier, and it underscored her natural brassiness.

 

Anyway, while the upswept 40s do's of the war years are not my cup of tea, she doesn't look bad at all in the third pic you posted, and she looks great in the last one fwiw.

[LornaHansonForbes]

Tight Spot: one of the most unfortunate hair creations in cinematic history. I mean, looking butch is one thing in prison,....but seriously girl.

 

came here SPECIFICALLY to cite TIGHT SPOT and you bet me to it.

Congratulations.

 

It's actually a good movie, but YIKES!

 

[Dargo]

Here's some shots of Ginger and her various hairstyles later in her career and while doing television from the 1950s-'80s....

 

http://www.classicactresses.byethost3.com/Ginger%20Rogers/Ginger%20Rogers.htm?i=1

 

(...btw...while working the boarding gates at LAX for Hughes Airwest in the late '70s, Ginger was one of the celebs I'd often have contact with during that time...she'd very often fly from LAX to Palm Springs on us, and I remember her always being very gracious to everyone...and of course, also perfectly made-up without a hair out of place...the very epitome of an "old school" movie star) 

[slaytonf]

 

(...btw...while working the boarding gates at LAX for Hughes Airwest in the late '70s, Ginger was one of the celebs I'd often have contact with during that time...she'd very often fly from LAX to Palm Springs on us, and I remember her always being very gracious to everyone...and of course, also perfectly made-up without a hair out of place...the very epitome of an "old school" movie star) 

 

 

Lucky dog.

[RoyCronin]

I think that Tight Spot is great entertainment...especially that fracas between Ginger and her sister...but the hairstyle was so distracting it took me a good 20 minutes to start focusing on the film.

[TopBilled]

Getting Ginger camera ready for her scenes as Dolley Madison in MAGNIFICENT DOLL: