By Halie Holland

You’ve most likely grown up watching his commercials. From advertising the magic eraser to multi-purpose cleaning sprays, Mr. Clean has become the face of our everyday cleaning products. A distinct trait that sticks out about Mr. Clean, is that he is bald. Have you ever wondered why he rocks his shiny noggin?

Before we dive right into why he is bald, let’s get some background information that rose the company and the face to be what it is today.

In the 1950s, a man named Linwood Burton ran a company that cleaned boats, which required a significant amount of elbow grease and toxic cleaning products. So, to solve this issue, he formulated a super-strong cleanser that wouldn’t harm the health of his employees. He named it “Mr. Clean”. Within six months of its debut, it was one of the best selling cleansers on the market.

Mr. Clean’s image was inspired by a bald sailor from Pensacola, Florida. He was designed by Harry Barnhart and Ernie Allen, two employees at an ad agency based in Chicago. This is true, however, many have speculated and have come up with a few conspiracy theories on why he is bald and I’d like to share a few of my own.

Theory #1

Mr. Clean has a bald head from a hereditary thing passed through in his family. He then found his passion in life, cleaning and turning his passion into a business in which he sells his specially formulated products to the public. In doing this, Mr Clean set himself up for likeable attention from the general public making him a home care icon.

Theory #2

Mr. Clean let the chemicals used in creating his perfect cleaning formula get to his head… Literally, allowing for his luscious locks to never see another day.

Mr. Clean may have been and will continue to be a household name for us for generations. His shiny clean bald head will forever hold a special place in our hearts and in our cleaning closet. Long live Mr. Clean.