Preston Sky King, seated, is about to say ‘good-bye’ to his hair, as Jon Elliott of Mike’s Barbershop prepares to send it off to the great beyond, and Preston’s wife, Sarah, reads a eulogy. Submitted photo
People these days hold memorial services for more than just relatives and loved ones. Some folks hold a service for the loss of a beloved pet — cats, dogs, horses, and more. But a Morro Bay man recently ventured into virgin territory when he organized a memorial service for his receding hairline.
As Jon Elliott, owner of Mike’s Barbershop in Morro Bay, explains, one of the shop’s long-time regular customers, Preston Sky King, decided to give in to the inevitable and shave his hair off.
“For the past 10 years,” Elliott says, “we had talked about this ‘Hair Funeral’ and memorial party as his hair got thinner and thinner.”
King’s patronage of Mike’s pre-dates Elliott’s taking over the shop, though it doesn’t go back to the shop’s origins on Dec. 6, 1941, one day before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
Like most major decisions a man makes, his wife played a part. “His wife,” Elliott says, “had been telling him it was time for a few years, and he posted a picture on Reddit to a group asking if it was time to cut it off?”
The overwhelming response, Elliott says, was “Yes!”
I know what you’re probably thinking, any excuse for a party, right? And where better to hold a funeral for something most everyone spends so much time and money caring for than a funeral parlor?
“He wanted to do it at a funeral home and rent it out.” Elliott explains. “He called them and they said no way and gave a few excuses and reasons why not. So, we did the haircut in the barbershop and had the memorial in the Pizza Port courtyard.”
Pizza Port is next door to Mike’s Barbershop, and its outdoor dining area often hosts celebrations, though this one could be a first. Plus, they serve beer.
Ending the life of a man’s hairdo doesn’t just involve a buzzing set of clippers.
“We started by washing the Pomade out of his hair,” Elliott says. “Then I gave him a Marine, military-style, horseshoe flattop to show him his last option to hide the bald spot, if he ever wanted to grow it back.”
But such a monumental decision is not made lightly, and it was apparently too late to turn back.
“I then buzzed his whole head,” Elliott says, “and gave him a hot towel shave.”
And what memorial service would be complete without someone saying a few kind words.
“I read a brief eulogy,” Elliott says, “and his wife [Sarah] read a longer one. I made him a homemade, custom, red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting that said ‘Hair today, Gone tomorrow!’”
With the deed done, it was time to celebrate.
“About 50 people total attended,” Elliott says. “This was the first of its kind on the Central Coast and we welcome more as a great time was had by all!”
If you’ve been thinking about putting an end to the war against a receding hairline, and think this sounds like a fun way to send it off into the great hair bin in the sky, Mike’s Barbershop, located at 280 Morro Bay Blvd., is open for appointments, call 805-772-9262.
