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happy retirement babs!
March 29, 2013

Barbara Walters: A Hair Retrospective

By Sally Holmes and Christina Han

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Photo: Raul Vega/© Corbis. All Rights Reserved.

Barbara Walters, one of America’s favorite blondes, will be handing in her press pass next year and settling into a life of retirement. After 52 years of speaking to the American public from behind the news desk as the first female anchor on the Today show, followed by the ABC Evening News, 20/20, and most recently from the couch on The View, she, along with her perfectly coiffed, floofy towhead, will be greatly missed (where will we go for our Barbara Wawa fix?). From this point on, we can expect a year of commemorative specials celebrating her illustrious and celebrity-filled career. To start the party off right, the Cut offers you this slideshow devoted to her beloved blonde hair. Click through the images to see Walters before she was blonde, during her Hillary Clinton phase, and when she could’ve been mistaken as a cast member of Dynasty. Cheers to you, Barbara Walters’s hair, for always being perfect in every way, for over half a century.

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1 / 19 Photos
Circa 1964 Just think of all the secrets that passed through that beehive. Photo: Hulton Archive
August 1967 Did you even know she was a natural brunette? Photo: © Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
Circa 1973 Her impeccably windswept hair means she must have sprinted straight from the salon to report some breaking news (or shoot this promo s... Circa 1973 Her impeccably windswept hair means she must have sprinted straight from the salon to report some breaking news (or shoot this promo shot). Photo: © Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
1976 Everyone has that regrettable First Day of Work shot that lives for all time on your I.D. badge for security guards and coworkers to laugh a... 1976 Everyone has that regrettable First Day of Work shot that lives for all time on your I.D. badge for security guards and coworkers to laugh at. Photo: © Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
September 1976 "Betty Ford, eat your heart out." Photo: © Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
October 1977 That hair is doing its best Mrs. Robinson. Photo: Ron Galella/1977 Ron Galella
December 1982 Barbara is all "Why are you even looking at my hair when I've got something really great going on twelve inches south?" ... December 1982 Barbara is all "Why are you even looking at my hair when I've got something really great going on twelve inches south?" Photo: Ron Galella/1982 Ron Galella
June 1986 Miss Texas 1986. Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./1986 Ron Galella, Ltd.
March 1987 Barbara: the pioneer of curtain bangs. Photo: Ron Galella/1987 Ron Galella
1988 The day after they saw this photo, writers at CBS penned Murphy Brown to stake a claim in the network hair war. Photo: Raul Vega/© Corbis. ... 1988 The day after they saw this photo, writers at CBS penned Murphy Brown to stake a claim in the network hair war. Photo: Raul Vega/© Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
1988 Everyone, even Barbara Walters, wanted to be Princess Diana. Photo: LGI Stock/© Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
August 1989 Her "casual" ponytail look still includes a Chanel accessory. Photo: Ron Galella/1989 Ron Galella
November 1989 What Walters must look like after a long night of partying and trimming her own bangs. Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./1989 Ron Galella, ... November 1989 What Walters must look like after a long night of partying and trimming her own bangs. Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./1989 Ron Galella, Ltd.
January 1990 These women could star in the sassiest Pantene Pro-V commercial ever. Photo: © Corbis. All Rights Reserved.
May 1992 Walters debuts "The Hillary." Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./1992 Ron Galella, Ltd.
September 1993 The woman never met a perm she didn't like. Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd./1993 Ron Galella, Ltd.
May 2004 A sophisticated blonde-to-boobs ratio. Photo: Robin Platzer
February 2008 It looks like dealing with Elisabeth Hasselbeck every day really took the air out of Barbara's hair. Photo: Brad Barket/2008 Getty... February 2008 It looks like dealing with Elisabeth Hasselbeck every day really took the air out of Barbara's hair. Photo: Brad Barket/2008 Getty Images
November 2012 83 years old and that hair still looks damn good. Photo: Cindy Ord/2012 Getty Images
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  • today show
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