Why Conan O’Brien ditched signature hairstyle for ‘greaseball’ look after fan uproar
Conan O’Brien blamed his headline-making “greaseball” hairstyle on a scalp sunburn.
The comedian explained in a podcast clip, obtained by Entertainment Weekly on Wednesday, that his “skull [was] on fire” — and then “really itchy” — from attending the Obama Presidential Center grand opening in Chicago last month.
The former “Conan” host, 63, thought he was “going crazy,” noting, “Whenever I itch it, it looks like a snow globe. It looks like confetti — white freckled confetti is pouring off of my head. It’s disgusting.”
He pointed out that since he has “so much hair,” he isn’t “used to” needing to protect his scalp from being “roasted.”
O’Brien was told to “rub oil into it” as treatment — and was “not thinking” about filming his “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” podcast episode with Molly Shannon when he did so.
“I come in and I look like I’m in Sha Na Na,” he said, referencing the 1950s doo-wop band. “I’m a greaseball. I’m so greasy. I’m Frankie [Valli of the Four Seasons].”
The Emmy winner joked, “I look like I want to fight one of you in the parking lot by swinging a chain at you in 1952, or come at you with a switchblade. I really feel different. I just want to fight people on the street. I want to get a hot rod and drive it around.”
“I want to get Rizzo pregnant, so that Rizzo has a bun in the oven,” he continued of the “Grease” character. “You know what I mean?”
Still referencing the 1978 movie, he quipped, “I’m one of the Thunderbirds that is easily 55 years old. I’m going to put a bubble-gum cigarette behind my ear.”
Declaring himself a “greaseball” covered in WD40, he clarified, “I’m just gonna keep rubbing oil into my head until this my skull heals.”
O’Brien, additionally, praised Hillary Clinton for wearing a “giant … huge” hat at the June event, saying, “She’s smart. She’s laughing at me right now.”
The former “Saturday Night Live” writer’s new ‘do sparked chatter on Monday, with social media users comparing O’Brien to a “Sopranos” actor, a used car salesman and more after he ditched his usual pompadour.
He re-posted a few of the funniest comments to his Instagram feed on Tuesday.
“Who hosed down Conan?” one read, with another admitting that “seeing Conan’s hair like this feels illegal.”
O’Brien’s signature wave dates back to high school, with him explaining on “60 Minutes” in 2010 that he needed it as a “hook” to make it in Hollywood.
At the time, the former late night host called it “structurally sound” and told viewers, “If there’s an earthquake and you’re in the Pacific Northwest, get under my hair.”
