Athens, Greece
Remember Grecian Formula? There was nothing “Greek” about the hair colouring product, but marketing people thought men would relate to having hair the colour of the Greek God, Adonis.
Dark-haired Adonis and his dog.
Grecian Formula came on the market in the 1970s and it worked. Applying the product to the hair resulted in a return to its natural colour.
This newspaper ad and the TV commercial below from 1973, extol the virtues of applying Grecian Formula to darken men’s hair, thereby keeping their wives turned on… Click the link below.
The active ingredient in Grecian Formula and other hair dyes is lead acetate. It is made by boiling elemental lead in acetic acid and hydrogen peroxide. Mixed with water and glycerine, the product has the ability to turn grey hair back to its natural colour.
The problem is that lead acetate has carcinogenic side effects.
Lead acetate in crystal form has a slightly sweet taste.
Long before it was used as a hair dye, lead acetate was added to food as a sweetener and as a preservative in wines. The chemical was also used in textile printing, and to help paint dry.
A toxicological examination of the remains of Pope Clement II confirmed that he died (in 1047) as a result of lead poisoning, probably from the use of lead acetate in his daily wine ration.
Ludwig van Beethoven also died of lead poisoning. He used crystalized lead acetate as a food sweetener, even though it was already illegal as a food additive at the time of his death in 1827.
Merriweather Lewis, of Lewis and Clark Expedition fame, used “sugar of lead” crystals as an eye medication, with poor results. Lewis died in 1809 at the age of 35 of a gunshot wound, an unrelated form of lead poisoning.
This formula, Pb(C2H3O2)2,is the chemical sequence for lead acetate. It has been banned as a hair dye since 2017.
Grecian Formula is still sold, but the active ingredients have changed. They are now “isopropyl alcohol, triethanolamine, bismuth citrate, sodium thiosulfate, fragrance, and panthenol”.
When I go to the barber this afternoon, I am going to ask him for one of these Greek hairstyles, but I will tell him to skip the ….
… Grecian Formula
I had hoped to post something profound today. We are in one of the most fascinating cities in the world, surrounded by art, history, culture, and natural beauty but the best I can come up with is Grecian Formula! I blame it on jet lag and promise to do better.
Autumn Downey
Hilarious, Russ. Your researches and humour make it an adventure just to follow along on your trips.
Russ Paton
Well, thank you but I am sitting here in the shadow of the Parthenon writing about hair dye?😵💫