If you’ve been rocking the same hairstyle for over 30 years, you can’t just show up at work one day looking totally different and not say a word about it. Well, technically you can do that, but people are going to have a lot of questions. Such is the case with Conan O’Brien, who appeared on the latest episode of his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, with his signature ginger pompadour slicked back with gel.
The episode opens with O’Brien sporting his classic look in the intro before it cuts to his interview with comedian Molly Shannon. For the entire 45 minutes of chatting, neither says a thing about O’Brien’s hair. Not a joke is cracked, not even a compliment is offered on how brave one has to be to debut a new hairstyle in such a public forum.
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It’s not as though O’Brien’s hair is just a little different, like he was feeling too lazy to style it that day. It’s very intentionally slicked back and flat. Was he shooting something that day that required the look? Is he, at 63, exploring new modes of self-expression? Did his Dyson break? We don’t know because, again, no one said anything about it. People were much more vocal in the comments on O’Brien’s Instagram post about the episode, which featured a photo of him, Shannon, and his greased-up hair.
One person compared him to Paulie Walnuts from The Sopranos, and another suggested this was O’Brien trying out an “Irish mobster” look. One commenter just cut to the chase and said what everyone else was thinking: “Girl talk to us about this hair!!!!”
If O’Brien is trying out new dos, I have some suggestions. Has he considered a perm? Maybe some extensions to give him a severe little bob? Let’s have some fun with this!
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