Height Advantage : Beehive Hairdo Contest at the Fair Proves to Be a Creative Crowd Pleaser

Step aside Marge Simpson. Homer may groan a “Doh!,” but your blue ‘do has competition: Thirteen contestants held their hair high at the Beehive Hairdo contest at the Orange County Fair on Saturday.

Marydith Currie of Anaheim trotted onto the stage balancing a bouffant that measured in at 14 inches tall. But that wasn’t big enough to beat out Michael Osborne of Orange. His 15.5-inch creation--with a mock honeybee hive balanced uneasily on top--won most creative and best overall.

This isn’t the first time the wigged-out event turned up at the fair. Four years ago, hairy hopefuls showed off, but then the event took a hiatus. Organizers say they may do it again next year, because so many people seemed to enjoy last weekend’s contest.

Currie’s coif did receive an award for the best use of insects. She decorated the thing, which was supported by a mass of chicken-wire, with a swarm of the plastic variety.

Contestants too young to remember the hair-sprayed hairdo that unaccountably thrilled the country in the ‘60s joined in any way, sporting bumble-bee motifs. It worked just as well, tying in with the fair’s sub-theme of “We’re Putting a Bug in Your Ear,” which salutes insects that help out in the garden.