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Writer's pictureHeather Pepe

VERONiCA LAKE



11/14/1922-07/07/1973

The femme fatale responsible for the Uber glamorous “peekaboo” hairstyle & the inspiration for Jessica Rabbit💋

It was during the filming of “I Wanted Wings”(1941) that Veronica developed her signature look. Her long blonde hair accidentally fell over her right eye during a take and created a "peek-a-boo" effect. "I was playing a sympathetic drunk, I had my arm on a table ... it slipped ... and my hair — it was always baby fine and had this natural break — fell over my face ... It became my trademark and purely by accident", she recalled.


Her femme fatale looks became all the rage & young women everywhere wanted those soft sultry waves. Unfortunately, Veronicas rise to fame coincided with America going to war (World War II, 1941-1945). Men left for the battlefield & women went to work in war industry factories. Veronicas pin up poster was a popular amongst the young G.I.s. the women factory workers wore their hair down even at work, which began to present a safety issue. The U.S. government intervened, asking Veronica not to wear her hair down for the duration of the war. She obliged, putting her hair up, and was praised widely for her patriotism, giving up her peekaboo look for the war effort & filming a public service announcement titled “Safety Styles” where Lakes “hair is out of the way & combed in a simple and becoming fashion.” That fashion was called a #victoryroll making a “V” shape when seen from the back and a “victory” because of the gesture of choosing country over vanity.


Although the change helped to decrease accidents involving women getting their hair caught in machinery, doing so may have damaged Lake's career indefinitely. Veronicas acting career slowly diminished over the years due to alcoholism and health issues. She passed away in 1973 at the young age of 50....




*Wikipedia

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