Elvis presley and the legacy of the quiff
Published
08th Jan 2014
by rachael
Elvis Presley would have been 78 today and as well as changing the face of rock 'n' roll music forever and leaving a legacy of some of the greatest songwriting of all time, the great man also made a mark on the world of hairdressing by giving us the quintessential quiff.
Named for the Marquise de Pompadour, the pompadour - or quiff - rose to fame as a towering hairstyle for women in the 1700s, usually built around a wire frame for added height. The modern quiff is a lot less fiddly, with hair combed back off the face without a part to create a vertiginous mound of hair above the forehead.
Elvis made the look his trademark in the 1950s but he certainly wasn't the only one to sport the style - Marlon Brando and James Dean were equally synonymous with quiffs while Bette Davis and Betty Grable made feminized versions of the look popular.
The legacy of the quiff is still strong today and it remains a hairdressing favourite in collections year in, year out. Take a look at some of our favourite interpretations of Elvis Presley's most iconic look below!