Behold the 21st Century Man!

This Gilbert Rhode illustration is actually the way Vanity Fair envisioned the man of the 21st century — from their 1939 perpective. It appeared in a futurist write-up in their February 1st issue. A contemporary description by S.J. Perelman explains:

On this man’s head Mr. Rhode places an “Antenna Hat”, rather similar in design to the coils of a copper still: ‘It snatches radio and Omega waves out of the ether - here, at last, is man’s opportunity to escape from the deadly monotony of the twentieth-century male hat.’ The delightful prospect of having Guy Lombardo playing about your head and ears is enough to stir the pulse of the most apathetic.

So perhaps Rhode was a little off on the Antenna Hat. Our modern wifi and mobile phone devices operate on higher frequencies than imagined 60 years ago, making 21s Century Man’s lightning rod chapeau somewhat unnecessary. But he’s hit pay dirt with the return of facial hair — something relegated to ne’er-do-wells and swashbucklers back in the day.

Beards are the new hotness, if Starre and our fashionable Green friends at Eco-Chick are to be believed.

Facial hair owns late night television, thanks to David Letterman and Conan O’Brien’s impressive strike beards. But the fuzzy look has made a general comeback of late. Look over the Eco-Chick article, you’ll spot several friends of snarfd sporting manly beardage. Look closely enough, and you might even find our very own Shea Gunther.

Come to think of it, the entire writing staff at snarfd is bearded — a testament to our powerful masculinity and modernity. Here’s to the future. Now if we can only snag one of those bitchin’ Omega Wave hats …

Link: Paleo-Future (a snarfd favorite) and Eco-Chick