309 replies to this topic

[Freebooter]

Hello all,
I am curious as to what some of y'all think of something: I have noticed in some of the posts on these forums some have commented on Conan's hair being long, etc.. Was it!!?? What is y'all's interpretation of his hair descriptions? It is my interpretation that it was not all that long. If you lived by the sword, and by the strength of your hands and your wits, you would want nothing that could be of any help to an enemy or hender you or get in the way in combat. I have seen a few fights, male and female, back in the good old long hair days and seen the victor be decided by whoever had the best grip on the other's hair. Once back in the '70s at a beer-joint I saw a bad fight. One guy, after trading blows and wrastling around and battering one another, finally got his hand good and wrapped up in the other's long hair and got a death grip in that hair. I saw him drag the guy around by his hair, and his face and head kneed, punched, elbowed (the elbow is a deadly weapon), slammed into car bumpers, brick walls, pavement, etc.. The poor fellow no matter what he did or tried could not get loose from the guy who had him by his hair. If their friends had not have broken it up the guy could have killed the guy whose hair he had a hold of. I never forgot that sight, and never grew my hair or my beard long after that (what the heck, in the long run most of my hair fell out anyway). Not that I was a bad arse or fought all the time or anything, but I decided that just in case I ever did get into a serious fight, long hair would not get in my way, hender me, or help the enemy and it would not provide a death grip for him either.
Now then, Robert E. Howard always described him as having a square cut mane of black hair, etc.. In my opinion, not counting the fact that I feel Conan was an intelligent, resourceful barbarian warrior and had enough sense not to provide the enemy an easy hold such as long hair, that
REH's description of a square cut mane was more like a selfdone hair cut where you grab your hair and with your knife cut it at about level with your ear or something, something easy to maintain, and less likely to get in the way in work or fighting nor give an enemy an easy hold. At the most maybe long enough to touch your collar or top of shoulders, almost something like Prince Valient's square cut hair.
What do y'all think?
Take care,
Freebooter

[Gorulga]

Earlength is still long enough to grab. Crom, I don't think Conan would be sensitive to someone pulling on his hair. Remember what he went through on the cross. The people you witnessed were all puny citybred weaklings. By Ymir, the guy would be gutted like a pig the moment he reached for the hair.

[TheFreebooter]

some quotes from Shadows in the moonlight:

a great spout of blood deluged the sward as the severed member fell, twitching horribly but even as the sword bit through, the other malformed hand, locked in Conan's black mane.

Only the iron neck muscles of the cimmerian saved him from a broken neck that instant.

the ape maintained his grasp in Conan's hair, dragging him toward the tusks that glistened in the moonlight.


"Crom!" he panted, "I feel as if I'd been racked! I'd rather fight a dozen men. Another instant and he'd have bitten off my head, Blast him, he's torn  a handful of my hair out by the roots."

It was an ape, but he was still grabbed by the hair and dragged. An ape has large hands, so I believe he had longer hair, maybe shoulder length. just my opinion

[Kane]

As someone with shoulder length hair, I know just how much of a liability it can be in a fight.
Thing is, if you opponet grabs your hair you know were one of his hands is. If you can be quick and mean enough it does give you a moments advantage.
If you slow, or to focused on the pain, then you've let him win before the next punch lands.

[Dragon Girl]

I remember his hair being described as square-cut just above or at the shoulders, which would be kinda long. Conan survived any number of beatings, tortures, and knife wounds; I doubt he worried too much about being grabbed by the hair.

I always wondered about guys with lots of piercings. If anyone with a pierced eyebrow, lip, or whatever attacked me, I'd do whatever I could to yank that ring right off his face.

[Brackus]

I agree all the way with Gorulqa.

I have shoulderlength hair,none have ever grabbed them in a fight.

Imagine Conan

[Ironhand]

If you have long hair, and someone grabs it in a fight, you don't try to escape, you press forwards towards the hands that have grabbed your hair; that way he can't control your motions, because there is too much slack.

Alexander the Great ordered his troops to shave, so enemy soldiers coudn't grab their beards, pull their chins up, and slit their throats.

[blacksagelobo]

Long hair is a complete liability in a fight, no matter how much of a bad ass you are. After the first few cage fights, when the longhairs got pummeled into submission, NO fighters wore their hair long.

There are a few martial art techniques that are very effective against a hair grab. They will make the person let go and in best case break the opponents wrist. But these techniques put the fighter in a bad position if there are multiple opponents.

[Gorulga]

Crom's devils!! If you are ever attacked by a lion try yanking it's mane. When it whimpers in it's pitiful defeat drag it to the ground and put it out of it's misery.

[Viking_Lord]

I can't imagine Conan being grabed by the hair and shrieking like a girl"Let go of of my hair you brute!"

[IcEdMoJo]

I just cut my hair but to tell the truth i never even considered a real man would grab another mans hair just like a woman would,lol,but even Conan would run across a fruity bastard every now and then.......

[budgie]

I am tempted to agree with the shoulder cut length too, like Dragon Girl Im sure I recall a description like that.

For those not aware thats the haircut I have on my Conan conversion model Im working on at the moment, its based on the Arnie figure but how he should have looked (hair wise at least and no furry undies or boots..)

Upper torso pic

Anyone interested in seeing the rest of the work in progress can do a picture search on "conan"..

budgie

[Jason Durall]

Upper torso pic

The link wasn't working.

[THOOM!]

I'd like to make out a few points that may (or may not)
settle this "Misconception About Conan's Hair".
Firstly, and I think most importantly I'd like to point out that REH would, more often than not describe Conan as having a
"Mane" of black hair. Now, if one (whomever) would take the time to look this word up in the Dictionary one would see that it suggests that the hair be long and heavy.
Not unlike a Lion which has hair all over its body, and yet
only the thick lengths of hair that grow about the males
head and nape are regarded as a "Mane".
This definition is something I think, that would not go unnoticed by the author...and even greater still, an author who illustrates his characters for we the readers so descriptively... REH.
Secondly, I'd like to point out a couple of things that I thought should be oblivious.
One, that Conan is a "Barbarian" and not civilized, which is why the author (REH) takes the time to point out in almost every story in which He (Conan) comes into contact with civilized people, that He becomes very critical of their appearance and foppish ways...and also, that He (Conan) comes from the North (Cimmeria) where is often cold and snowy...hair helps keep your head (and ears) warm.
And lastly, someone suggested something about long hair hampering you in a scuffle..? Well, Conan evidently felt that all he needed to cut, was enough for visiblity.
"Square cut mane"

[TwZtdJuGGalo]

That pretty much sums it up about Conan's mane. Just wondering if that gray ape in "Shadows in the Moonlight" thought it had f'd up by tangling with this hippie fellar?........If anyone ever grabbed Conan's hair would definitely be in harm's way: in reach of Conan's strangling hands......wouldn't want to be that close to the Cimmerian........ but of course we are talking about Conan, long hair,short hair,no hair, it matters not, if you let someone to grab your hair, mayhaps you were already in trouble before that,no?

[Freebooter]

Yep, now that I think about, I have to agree with some of y'all. I did not think about it before, but knowing Conan if someone grabbed his hair and yanked, when he didn't move much they would have thought they had grabbed a young tree. Then Conan would probably have grinned at them and then torn their arm out of the socket or at the very least broke it!!
Thanks for making me back up and think about this. Conan was no ordinary man, and definatly not a modern man, or someone half drunk being slung around some gravel parking lot.
Take care,
Freebooter
Millbrook, Alabama

[Bri]

... Conan's hair being long, etc.. Was it!!??

I always think of Conan's hair as shoulder-length, black, with bangs cut straight across. As for Conan getting his hair grabbed, I would think it more usual that the would-be grabber would lose their arm to an impossibly swift sword stroke.

Historically, northern barbarians are generally regarded has having had long hair. I read somewhere that the Lombards used to part theirs in the middle, bring it forward in two pony tails, and slather it in animal grease or butter. But don't ask me why.

-Bri

[Ironhand]

The Vikings braided their long hair, and coiled it up beneath their helmets as a substitute for padding.

[Orkin]

I always wondered how Conan shaved.

Suppose it was with his razor-sharp sword...

[Dragon Girl]

Why, he shaved with his Gilette dagger, of course. It's the best a man can get!