Culture
Haircuts on US Dollar Bills: Ranked
We see the haircuts on US dollar bills constantly. Yet which one is best, and why? A veteran hairdresser ranks the best, down to the rest.
#4 Ben Franklin – $100 US Dollar Bill
US Treasury Style on the $100 US Dollar Bill:
In ranking haircuts on US dollar bills, Benjamin Franklin’s appearance on the US $100 dollar bill is a paradox. Franklin was a well known bon vivant, exceptionally well educated, a man of letters, political radical, genius, and a true renaissance man. Franklin is quoted as saying, “many people die at twenty five and aren’t buried until they are seventy five.” Franklin was a man that possessed an insatiable zest for life.
Despite his reputation for loving the high life, being a natural fit in French Bourbon aristocratic society, and selective sensualist; Franklin’s haircut tells a very different story.
Based off his appearance on the US $100 dollar bill, Benjamin Franklin does not look like the kind of guy who wants to fuss with his hair at all. His hair has a distinct utilitarian quality, very much at odds with the lavish circles he walked amongst that worshiped couture.
Strength:
Franklin’s haircut presents him as a busy guy. He looks like someone that just wants to get his hair out of his face, so he can continue his work. It is likely the easiest way to wear his hair, without having to fuss with frequent trips to a barber.
Franklin’s haircut emphasizes the other side of his nature: someone who cherished pragmatism combined with an appetite for hard work. It is a professorial appearance projecting supreme intellect, but is otherwise unconcerned with his hair – so long as it doesn’t interfere with his work.
Weakness:
Ben Franklin was far too shaggy in a portrait that has since immortalized his appearance to generations of Americans. If Franklin had known this particular likeness would have been used in that way, he might have put a little more energy into his appearance.
How to Improve:
In Ben Franklin’s case, there is only so much that can be done – or he would have allowed a barber to do. On the whole, Franklin desperately needs to be trimmed on his ends. Doing so would make him look a little more well-kempt. In his ends being tightened up, it would at least help create a tidier appearance.
For what it is worth, you cannot help but admit that Franklin’s look was original.
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#5 Abraham Lincoln – $5 US Dollar Bill
US Treasury Style on the $5 US Dollar Bill:
My first impression of Lincoln on the $5 dollar bill is that his hair looks like it was cut with a clamshell. As a man born in Kentucky and raised in Illinois, Lincoln was a US frontiersman of his time. Abraham Lincoln was considered the first western president, and his upbringing didn’t necessarily give that much thought for mens hairstyling.
Lincoln married into wealth when he tied the knot with Mary Todd Lincoln, so his personal affectations could not have been too far below par. Though Lincoln didn’t seem to value something like a haircut, and only as much as was politically necessary to get his job done as president. As Commander-in-Chief of the Union during the Civil-War, Lincoln had bigger fish to fry.
Strength:
Interestingly, Lincoln’s beard is a real asset as he’s portrayed on the $5 dollar bill. He gets points for originality, that seemingly suits his practical manner and sardonic sense of humor. He has a certain James Taylor look in his eyes.
Weakness:
Lincoln’s haircut does nothing to balance his long face, and gauntly overall appearance. His hair also overexposes the size of his ears, which does his appearance on the $5 dollar note no credit at all. Moreover he has far too much weight at the top of his oblong head.
How to improve:
Lincoln would have looked better with longer hair. He would have benefited from a cut similar to a young James Taylor from his “Sweet Baby James” era, incorporating a center part. He could also do something to cover up his large ears, namely by growing it longer on the sides. Additionally the top of his hair could improve by adjusting the layers to remove weight from the top. Or, alternately, Lincoln could have just grown out his hair entirely.
