Episode 114

The Permanent Wave

Hairdressers descended upon Oxford Street on October 8th, 1906 to witness Karl Nessler’s first public demonstration of his pioneering new ‘perm’ - a style which didn’t have its heyday until some eighty years later. Creating a long-lasting curl had been a goal for many stylists over the decades, but Nessler had hit upon a winning combination of technique and chemicals. He achieved this by subjecting his wife, Catherine, to a seemingly endless onslaught of painful and laborious experiments. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal the system of weights, pulleys and chandeliers that facilitated these early experiments; discuss the parallel movement for (yet more risky) chemical relaxers in the African-American community; and compare notes on the weirdest hairdos they’ve permitted on their own heads...&nbsp; Further Reading:• ‘The Story Of Hair and The Nessler Wave’ (Timeless Tales, 2018):&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Pi11YxY4ww" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Pi11YxY4ww</a>• ‘Inside the heated history of the permanent wave machine’ (The State Museum of Pennsylvania):&nbsp;<a href="http://statemuseumpa.org/wave-machine/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://statemuseumpa.org/wave-machine/</a>• ‘Making waves: Celebrating the centenary of the perm’ (The Times, 2006):&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/making-waves-tnttbrtt30n" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/making-waves-tnttbrtt30n</a> For bonus material and to support the show, visit<a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/Patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Patreon.com/Retrospectors</a>We'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:<a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">podfollow.com/Retrospectors</a> The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.&nbsp; #1900s #Invention #Person #UK <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Today In History with The Retrospectors

October 8, 202111m 23s

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Show Notes

Hairdressers descended upon Oxford Street on October 8th, 1906 to witness Karl Nessler’s first public demonstration of his pioneering new ‘perm’ - a style which didn’t have its heyday until some eighty years later.

Creating a long-lasting curl had been a goal for many stylists over the decades, but Nessler had hit upon a winning combination of technique and chemicals. He achieved this by subjecting his wife, Catherine, to a seemingly endless onslaught of painful and laborious experiments.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal the system of weights, pulleys and chandeliers that facilitated these early experiments; discuss the parallel movement for (yet more risky) chemical relaxers in the African-American community; and compare notes on the weirdest hairdos they’ve permitted on their own heads...