Perpetual bad-hair days fluster a few

By Ann Oldenburg
USA Today

Donald Trump's show, "The Apprentice," airs Thursdays. What seems to be drawing the most attention is his hair. NBC

Pat O'Brien asked the real estate mogul about it last week on "Access Hollywood," and then the show morphed a shot of Trump, changing his comb-over into a slicked-back blond coif.

Jay Leno joked about Trump's hair in his Friday "Tonight Show" monologue, saying: "I think we set a new record. We had Pete Rose Monday night, Donald Trump Tuesday night, Al Sharpton on the show tonight. Between the three of them, we had 30 hair stylists quit."

But joking about Trump's 'do isn't new.

In 2002, David Letterman shared the Top 10 Ways to Describe Donald Trump's Hair. They included:

• No. 7: Trumpy.
• No. 6: Strangely hypnotic.
• No. 5: Unbe-weave-able.
• No. 4: Wiggy.
• No. 1: Taj Ma-helmet.

"It's been good for me over the years," Trump told USA Today. "No," he says, he has never had a stylist. "Maybe that's my problem."

And take note, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy": Trump says he wouldn't let them make him over. "I'm not particularly thrilled with the way they look."

Then he slyly adds, "But that would get good ratings, wouldn't it?"

It seems only fitting to come up with some suggestions for the most talked-about tycoon of the moment, whose reality show, "The Apprentice," airs at 8 p.m. Thursdays on NBC. Two top hairstylists — one from New York, one from Los Angeles — do have some ideas for The Donald:

• Ouidad, owner of the Ouidad Salon in Manhattan, says Trump's hair is "over the top — no pun intended."

  The stylist, who has coifed Sarah Jessica Parker, Rita Wilson, talk show host Ananda Lewis and others, says, "He's overdone on everything."

  She says that he looks "like Donald Duck. I would definitely change it. He has small eyes and a tiny mouth, believe it or not. That big sweep overpowers his face. It looks like a visor. It shadows his eyes."

  Her suggestions? "I would cut off that long sweep, cut the top short, still keep it with a side direction and let it flow naturally. I'd taper the sides in to bring out his cheekbones and his eyes. I could actually make him look good."

  "And the color needs help," she adds. "I would deepen it a little bit. He could look stunning."

• Etienne Taenaka, manager of the Vidal Sassoon salon in Beverly Hills, says, "I think he looks like Scrooge McDuck. ... Most men who do comb-overs are trying to hide receding hairlines or baldness. I don't think he has anything to hide. We've seen his apartment."

  Taenaka wouldn't go very short with Trump. "I think he's slick enough, he doesn't need to slick it back. But I think a nicely layered, conservative haircut would work really well."

  Taenaka also would change the color. "I would do lowlights, basically put back in some of his natural color. It would make him look more distinguished."

  Taenaka adds, "He should trim his eyebrows. Certain men think that bushy eyebrows are a signature for them.

  "I think his presence is enough that he doesn't need to make a statement with his hair."