Mullet ( haircut ) - wikipedia Mullet ( haircut ) The mullet is a men 's hairstyle that is short at the front and sides, and long in the back. Contents 1 Etymology 2 Fashion history 2.1 Ancient mullets 2.2 1970s 2.3 1980s 2.4 1990s 2.5 2000s 2.6 2010s 3 References 4 Further reading 5 External links Etymology According to the Oxford English Dictionary, use of the term mullet to describe this hairstyle was `` apparently coined, and certainly popularized, by U.S. hip - hop group the Beastie Boys '', who used `` mullet '' and `` mullet head '' as epithets in their 1994 song `` Mullet Head ''. The term `` mullet head '' had previously always or nearly always been used to refer to a person of dubious intelligence, e.g. as in the movie Cool Hand Luke, where defeated villains had been referred to as `` mullet heads ''. Fashion history Early example of a `` skullet '' ( long at the back and bald on top ) worn by Benjamin Butler in 1870. Ancient mullets In the sixth century, Byzantine scholar Procopius wrote that some factions of young males wore their hair long at the back and cut it short over the forehead. This non-Roman style was termed the ' Hunnic ' look. 1970s Mullets were worn by rock stars Rod Stewart, David Bowie, Andy Mackay of Roxy Music, and Paul McCartney as far back as the early 1970s. 1980s The 1980s saw the zenith of the mullet 's popularity in 1980s continental Europe. In the United States of the 1980s, the mullet became popular within lesbian culture, where it came to be used as a way of identifying oneself as a member of that culture in public. 1990s In the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, area, the mullet was glamorized by several members ( including Jaromír Jágr ) of the Pittsburgh Penguins ( winners of the NHL 's Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992 ). The mullet remains popular to this day, even mocked to much acclaim by WDVE radio hosts in particular. After the much - publicized 1992 DC Comics storyline in which Superman apparently died, the character returned in the 1993 follow - up storyline `` Reign of the Supermen '', in which he was depicted with a mullet. He remained with that hairstyle until 1997, and this look was depicted in an action figure released by Mattel in 2009. The cancelled Superman film, Superman Lives, depicted Superman with a mullet. Punk rock band the Vandals sang of the mullets worn by country music singers and guests of The Jerry Springer Show and listed regional names for the style in the 1998 song `` I 've Got an Ape Drape ''. Country music singers Billy Ray Cyrus, Travis Tritt, Alan Jackson, and Joe Diffie were also known for their mullets. Vocalist Wesley Willis wrote and released the track `` Cut the Mullet '' in 1998 and frequently performed it at live shows. 2000s The mullet and its associated lifestyle have been central themes in movies such as Joe Dirt `` business in the front, party in the back '' ( 2001 ) and the television show The Mullets ( 2003 -- 2004 ). Christian ska band Five Iron Frenzy sang about the mullet in `` The Phantom Mullet '', a song off of their 2000 album All the Hype That Money Can Buy, referencing Billy Ray Cyrus and REO Speedwagon in the lyrics. The 2001 film American Mullet documents the phenomenon of the mullet hairstyle and the people who wear it. Indie rock duo Tegan and Sara sported mullets during their The Con album era. Tom O'Neill, famed hair stylist and underwriting thief, was also known to sport the mullet hairstyle in the early 2010s. Between 2009 and 2012, the mullet was in fashion among individuals of Lebanese descent in Australia. The style had already been popular with the bogan subculture. The fashion trend quickly waned by late 2009. This was the type of a mullet that had a crew cut at the front, top, and sides and long hair at the back. 2010s The mullet has lowered in popularity over recent years but was recently brought back into the spotlight in 2015 by K - pop idol G - Dragon during his band BIGBANG 's Made World Tour.. Byun Baekhyun of EXO also sported one in promotion for the group 's 2017 song Ko Ko Bop. Other K - pop artists who have worn mullets include Block B 's Zico, Song Min - ho, Nam Joo - hyuk, DEAN, Stray Kids ' Chan and Han, VIXX 's N, B.A.P. 's Himchan,, Seventeen 's The8, GOT7 's JB and SF9 's Youngbin. The mullet has also experienced a revival within American sports. After winning back - to - back Stanley Cups, Phil Kessel was spotted in Pittsburgh Penguins training camp in September 2017 bringing the mullet back to its native roots of Pittsburgh Hockey. Similarly, Oklahoma State head football coach Mike Gundy wore a mullet starting in early 2017 ; the popularity of his mullet supposedly earned Oklahoma State millions of dollars in marketing revenue. In addition, from 2010 to 2015, Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks popularized the `` playoff mullet, '' an alternative to the traditional NHL playoff beard. The Combination ( 2009 ) showcased the mullet hairstyle, which was popular among the Lebanese youth in Australia, in the mid-late 2000s. References ^ Jump up to : `` '' mullet, n. 9 `` ''. Oxford University Press. OED Online. September 2013. Jump up ^ `` Mullet Head Lyrics ''. Metro Lyrics. Retrieved 3 May 2015. Jump up ^ Toner, J.P. ( 2013 ). Popular Culture in Ancient Rome. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0745654908. Jump up ^ Heather, Peter ( 2013 - 07 - 04 ). The Restoration of Rome : Barbarian Popes & Imperial Pretenders. ISBN 0230772307. Jump up ^ Wilson, William ( 2011 ). Gobbledygook. p. 166. ISBN 1440529256. David Bowie 's Ziggy Stardust rocked a mullet, and so did Wings - era Paul McCartney. Jump up ^ Andrew Grant Jackson ( 2012 ). Still the Greatest. ISBN 081088223X. he sported the mullet that Bowie would as Ziggy Stardust ; cousin to the shag popularized by David Cassidy, Florence Henderson, and Rod Stewart. It almost looks cool in those early days, but when McCartney added the mustache... Jump up ^ Bianco, Marcie ( 5 February 2015 ). `` 9 Ways Lesbians Have Given Straight Women A Fashion Edge ''. Curve. Jump up ^ Johnson, L.A. ( 7 October 2003 ). `` For ' mulletheads, ' it 's not just a hairstyle, it 's a lifestyle ''. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Jump up ^ Weitz, Rose ( 12 January 2005 ). Rapunzel 's Daughters : What Women 's Hair Tells Us About Women 's Lives. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Archived at Google Books. Jump up ^ Bennett, Conswella ( 6 June 2011 ). `` Mullets, Flannel, and Hipster Jeans : Lesbian Fashion Now and Then ''. Edge Media Network. Jump up ^ Kesel, Karl ( w ), Grummett, Tom ( p ), Hazelwood, Doug ( i ). `` Reign of the Superman ! '', The Adventures of Superman # 505 ( October 1993 ). DC Comics. Jump up ^ Kesel, Karl ( w ), Immonen, Stuart ( p ), Marzan, Jose Jr. ( i ). `` Dead Man Walking '', The Adventures of Superman # 544 ( March 1997 ). DC Comics. Jump up ^ `` The Nicolas Cage Superman Documentary Reminds Us Of the Man Of Steel 's Bad Hair Days ''. GQ. July 25, 2014. Retrieved December 12, 2017. Jump up ^ `` The Vandals : I 've Got An Ape Drape lyrics ''. AllTheLyrics.com. Retrieved 3 May 2015. Jump up ^ Loux, Brian ( 14 September 2001 ). `` Wesley Willis Live ''. The Tech. Retrieved 13 June 2015. Jump up ^ `` American Mullet ( 2001 ) ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 3 May 2015. Jump up ^ http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/bogans-of-today-evolved-beyond-stunned-mullets/story-e6frep2f-1225953040665 Jump up ^ Stark, Jill ( 19 December 2015 ). `` Bogan Bingo ! Get your mullet and flannies ready, it 's bogan time ''. The Age. Retrieved 27 March 2018. Jump up ^ BIGBANG Official Facebook ( 2015 - 10 - 11 ), M.A.D.E Tour in Newark, NJ, retrieved 2017 - 09 - 25 Jump up ^ `` Netizens are afraid the mullet hairstyle is becoming a trend due to idols - allkpop.com ''. allkpop.com. Retrieved 27 March 2018. Jump up ^ `` Update : B.A.P Drops Another Beautiful Trailer For `` Honeymoon '' - Soompi ``. www.soompi.com. Retrieved 27 March 2018. Jump up ^ `` Gundy : Mullet worth ' millions ' in OSU marketing ''. espn.com. Retrieved 27 March 2018. Further reading Hoskyns, Barhey ( 2000 ). The Mullet : Hairstyle of the Gods. ISBN 1582340641 Henderson, Alan ( 2007 ). Mullet Madness !. ISBN 1616088605 External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mullet ( haircut ). Dweck, Jessica ( 10 July 2010 ), `` Whence the Mullet ? The history of Iran 's forbidden haircut '', Slate Human hair List of hairstyles / facial hairstyles Classification by type Lanugo Androgenic Terminal Vellus by location Nose Ear Eyebrow Eyelash Underarm Chest Abdominal Pubic Leg Human hair color Hair color Black Blond Brown ( varieties : Chestnut Auburn ) Red ( varieties : Auburn Titian ) White / Grey Hair coloring Blue rinse Grecian Formula Hair dye stripping Hair highlighting Henna Hydrogen peroxide Blue hair Other Disappearing blonde gene Fischer -- Saller scale Fischer scale Melanocortin 1 receptor Hairstyles Afro Asymmetric cut Bald Bangs Beehive Big hair Blowout Bob cut Bouffant Bowl cut Braid or Plait Brush cut Bun ( odango ) Bunches Burr Businessman cut Butch cut Buzz cut Caesar cut Chignon Chonmage Chupryna Comb over Conk Cornrows Crew cut Crochet braids Croydon facelift Curly hair Curtained hair Devilock Dido flip Digital perm Dreadlocks Duck 's ass Extensions Feathered hair Finger wave Flattop Fontange French braid French twist Frosted tips Hair crimping Harvard clip High and tight Hime cut Historical Christian hairstyles Hi - top fade Induction cut Ivy League Jewfro Jheri curl Kinky hair Kiss curl Layered hair Liberty spikes Long hair Lob cut Marcelling Mod cut Mohawk Mullet 1950s 1980s Pageboy Part Payot Pigtail Pixie cut Pompadour Ponytail Punch perm Princeton Professional cut Queue Quiff Rattail Razor cut Regular haircut Regular taper cut Ringlets Shag ( Shaggy hair ) Shape - Up Shimada Short back and sides Short brush cut Short hair Spiky hair Straight hair Standard haircut Surfer hair Taper cut Tonsure Updo Undercut Waves Wings Facial hair Beard Chinstrap Designer stubble Goatee Moustache Fu Manchu handlebar horseshoe pencil toothbrush walrus Shenandoah ( Chin curtain ) Sideburns Soul patch Van Dyke Hair loss Cosmetic Removal waxing threading plucking chemical electric laser IPL Shaving head leg cream brush soap Razor electric safety straight other Alopecia areata totalis universalis Male - pattern hair loss Glabrousness Hypertrichosis Management Trichophilia Trichotillomania Pogonophobia Haircare Products Brush Clay Clipper Comb Conditioner Dryer Gel Hot comb Iron Mousse Pomade Relaxer Rollers Shampoo Spray Wax Haircare Techniques Backcombing Crimping Curly Girl Method Hair cutting Perm Shampoo and set Straightening Documentaries My Nappy Roots : A Journey Through Black Hair - itage ( 2008 ) Good Hair ( 2009 ) Related Topics Afro - textured hair ( Kinky hair ) Bearded lady Barber ( pole ) Eponymous hairstyle Frizz Good hair ( phrase ) Hairdresser Hair fetishism ( pubic ) Hair follicle Hair growth Hypertrichosis Trichotillomania Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mullet_(haircut)&oldid=835406270 '' Categories : 1980s fashion 1990s fashion American fashion Australian fashion British fashion Canadian fashion New Zealand fashion Hairstyles Hidden categories : Use dmy dates from January 2013 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from November 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from May 2015 Articles with inconsistent citation formats Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français Italiano עברית Latviešu Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Suomi Svenska Українська 9 more Edit links This page was last edited on 8 April 2018, at 14 : 38. 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Question: where did the mullet haircut get its name
Answer: U.S. hip-hop group the Beastie Boys"