Conan O'Brien divulges painful reason for greaseball look
Conan O'Brien said a painful scalp sunburn forced him into the slicked "greaseball" look that sparked a fan uproar. After the Obama Presidential Center opening left his skull "on fire" and raining flakes, he rubbed oil into his hair before filming — then joked he resembled Sha Na Na and Frankie Valli.
That is why interest in conan o8217brien divulges painful scalp drama keeps rising: the Emmy winner, 63, traced the temporary makeover to June sun damage, not a permanent style reboot. Fans erupted after he appeared on Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend with Molly Shannon looking unusually slicked down.
Key Takeaways
- O'Brien blamed a scalp sunburn from the Obama Presidential Center grand opening in Chicago for the greasy look.
- He treated the burn by rubbing oil into his hair, then filmed his podcast without realizing the visual impact.
- He joked he looked like Sha Na Na, Frankie Valli, and an aging Grease Thunderbird.
- Social media compared him to a "Sopranos" actor and a used car salesman; he re-posted funny comments on Instagram.
Why did Conan O'Brien ditch his signature pompadour?
According to a podcast clip obtained by Entertainment Weekly and reported by Page Six, O'Brien said his "skull [was] on fire" — and then "really itchy" — after attending the Obama Presidential Center grand opening last month.
Because he has "so much hair," he said he is not "used to" protecting his scalp from being "roasted." Whenever he itched it, he said it looked "like a snow globe," with "white freckled confetti" pouring off his head.
He was told to "rub oil into it" as treatment and was "not thinking" about filming when he did so before the Molly Shannon episode. The result, he admitted, made him look like a total "greaseball."
How did fans react to the greaseball look?
The new 'do sparked chatter on Monday after he ditched his usual pompadour. Users compared O'Brien to a "Sopranos" actor, a used car salesman and more. One asked, "Who hosed down Conan?" Another said "seeing Conan's hair like this feels illegal."
O'Brien re-posted some of the funniest comments to his Instagram feed on Tuesday. For more celebrity headlines, browse our Celebrity Breaking News hub.
He leaned into the jokes himself, saying he looked like he was in Sha Na Na and calling himself "Frankie [Valli of the Four Seasons]." He also quipped that he looked ready to "fight one of you in the parking lot" with a chain "in 1952," wanted a hot rod, and joked about getting "Rizzo pregnant" from the 1978 movie Grease.
Will Conan keep the oily look until his scalp heals?
Declaring himself a "greaseball" covered in WD40, O'Brien clarified he is "just gonna keep rubbing oil into my head until this my skull heals." He also praised Hillary Clinton for wearing a "giant … huge" hat at the June event, adding, "She's smart. She's laughing at me right now."
His signature wave dates back to high school. On 60 Minutes in 2010, he said he needed it as a "hook" to make it in Hollywood and called the style "structurally sound," joking that if there is an earthquake in the Pacific Northwest, people should "get under my hair."