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Long pencil mustache8/6/2023 ![]() ![]() The actor not only changed clothes and personas but shifted facial hair for each character. Stream it now.įrank Morgan as “Professor Marvel,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “The Gatekeeper,” “The Carriage Driver” and “The Guard” in “ The Wizard OF Oz” (1939)įrank Morgan may not have been Oscar-nominated for pulling a Peter Sellers and taking on five -count ‘em, five - roles in this perennial MGM musical favorite, but his facial hair certainly merited a special award. Indeed, it broke his heart when he was forced to shave it off the following year for “Mutiny On The Bounty.” Throughout the rest of his career, Gable’s trademark mustache connoted manliness and, frankly my dear, not giving a damn. But by 1934, when the so-called "King Of Hollywood" grudgingly did the comedy that would win him his only Oscar, he and his mustache were inseparable. In the beginning of Gable’s film career, his trademark “pencil” was strictly an on-and-off affair. ![]() Hail, Freedonia! Stream it now.Ĭlark Gable as “Peter Warne” in “ It Happened One Night” (1934) But it did the trick time and again in the siblings’ classic comic romps, especially in this spot-on satire where Groucho plays the newly-appointed leader of a country about to go to war. Of course, Groucho’s mustache was phony, drawn with grease paint. It’s not every star that gets their own brand of disguise sold for decades in stores around the world, but the plastic version of Groucho Marx’s iconic fake mustache, round glasses and cigar are staples at Halloween shops and toy stores all over the place. This deft mix of pathos and comedy leaves you smiling while your heart aches. For this, his first feature, Chaplin was 32 years old, but the accoutrements made him seem more mature, as he plays a surrogate father to a boy (Jackie Coogan) abandoned as a baby by his unwed mother (Edna Purviance). To appear older, Chaplin used a fake toothbrush mustache for his early silent shorts at Keystone Studios, which, along with his derby and cane, became an essential part of his ongoing “ Tramp” character. ![]() We hope this inspires you to grow one yourself, if you haven’t already.Ĭharlie Chaplin as “A Tramp” in “ The Kid” (1921) Here is our rundown of the ten most memorable mustaches in the movies. Various heroic characters played by the likes of Robert Redford, Burt Reynolds, Will Smith, Brad Pitt and many more have adopted the macho mustachioed look. Of course, it’s not difficult to draw a line from the old days to contemporary times only the mustaches have gotten thicker. Many actors who sported pencil-thin mustaches in Hollywood’s Golden Age had dashing, romantic personas and became screen idols like Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., John Barrymore, Ronald Colman Clark Gable, and Errol Flynn. Still, mustaches could be a positive accessory, if worn the right way on the right man. Remember Gabby Hayes? He always needed a shave, but he was too ancient to care. Facial hair signaled bad intentions, dissolution, or old age. Later, in the Western genre, the ornery guys with the black hats often had mustaches or whiskers, while the good guys wore white hats and were most always clean-shaven. In the realm of silent comedy, the sight of well-placed follicles on the kisser also could elicit laughter from audiences, as evidenced by Charlie Chaplin, Ben Turpin, Andy Clyde, Oliver Hardy and others. These “types” would go on to inspire the indelible character of Snidely Whiplash in the “Dudley Do-Right” segment on “The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.” I loved that guy. In silents and old-time serials, they would twirl them to signify a dastardly deed was being contemplated. In a variety of interesting ways, mustaches make the man in movies.Īt the dawn of film, it was usually the villain wearing the ‘stache. ![]()
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