Tuesday, January 19, 2016

That's all Folks!


It's been a great pleasure writing this blog over the years. But we feel the time is now right to move on - and to let Bill Shatner settle in to his autumn years with a lasting, secure toupee free from the prying rays of our all-powerful touposcopes.

This blog and it's collection of articles will remain online for readers to continue to discuss Bill Shatner's hair, or lack thereof. After all, in our complex world, we know sometimes Bill Shatner's toupee is the only thing that seems to make sense. So please do continue the heated debates that have fueled this site over the years.


 Scientists continue to learn of the crucial role played by glue in holding together the original Star Trek series. Source.

Thanks so much to all our readers, including those who contributed in various ways since we started back in 2009. We've greatly enjoyed analyzing not only Bill Shatner's hairline, but his various works stretching back to the 1950s.

Recently released (click for larger) production memo from Star Trek. Source.

Permit us to end with a hopeful call to arms: TV series and movies shot on celluloid are being remastered and restored thanks to the advent of high-definition video. But largely left behind in all this have been an array of TV movies shot on film, in particular during the 1970s. We sincerely hope that weird and wonderful gems such as Bill Shatner's 1973 The Horror at 37,000 Feet  (perhaps as a double-bill with Murder on Flight 502), or 1971's epic mini-serial Vanished, or the 1968 oddity Perilous Voyage, or the thrilling Disaster on the Coastliner (1979), also get a shot at being preserved and reissued on Blu-ray. Here's hoping...


Thank you and farewell!


-ST
 

The rest is history...

94 comments:

  1. A sad news....Thanks for everything !

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  2. And feel free to change your mind ! ;)

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  3. To paraphrase Jack Klugman "A world without ShatToup is a world I don't recognize" I could see this coming, the one year break, the sporadic posts. All I can say is THANK YOU to you and your imaginary team of one thousand toupologists. It's been a highlight of my day checking in for new info and when I'd see a new post, I'd always be delighted. As for me I'll be scouring Craigslist looking for "one slightly used toupascope" Thanks again ShatToup!

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  4. The writing, as is said, was on the wall for the last few years. As is also said, all good things . . .

    This momentous study of some of the most mysterious objects in the known universe shall remain a shining beacon to those who are always in search of the truth. My heartfelt thanks and a tip of the hat in appreciation for the insight, the humor, and the eloquent prose.

    I, for one, should get an opportunity to study the latest edition of what Bill sports on his follicle-free top up close and personal in two days! Maybe I should wear my beer goggles.

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    1. Oh, please report here after it’s over. ST might check in and see your report, too. Now that he is a unemployed person (see below), we can expect him to do what he has to to keep his toupological knowledge ship-shape, including gathering reports from the field!

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    2. Well, where to begin? Too much to share in such a short post. The Denny Katz that Bill wore yesterday was surprisingly good, even up close (and I mean inches close). However, once you know what you are looking at, it is hard to imagine anyone mistaking it for real hair. In any event, during the performance (Shatner's World) there were numerous photos on the screen behind Bill that were like an anthology of the ShatToup blog . . . many (and I really mean many) of the pictures shown and toupologically analyzed on this blog were on full display . . . Was Bill begging the audience for a toupological analysis? A mystery onto itself.

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    3. Amazing...Bill probably scours this blog for pics he likes. How did you get inches close?

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  5. Wow, I just noticed (ok I placed it) an ad from a toupologist looking for work! They are not wasting any time letting the hair grown under their feet!

    http://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/res/5410438059.html

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    3. Another major achievement is the discovery of a phenomenon now known as the "real hair reflex".

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  6. Besides the other stuff, I really liked how you folded movie and TV history into toupee analysis and cooked it all into a kind of sweet marble cake, Shatner stuff in brown (like a toupee), industry stuff in white or yellowy. Frosted with toupee glue! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

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  9. A most fun and entertaining read over the years. Do live long and prosper.

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  10. Thomas Jefferson CurlyJanuary 22, 2016 at 12:13 AM

    of all the blogs I have encountered in my surfing.. STB was the most..toupological..

    it was... fun

    oh my..



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  11. oh no ive just realised the remaining Trek movies (III-VII) weren't analysed by STB!!

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  12. This is the end of an era.

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  13. shats own real syrupJanuary 23, 2016 at 2:22 PM

    Oh dear!!!! What is this now. No more posts, to enjoy, where do I start? Thanks for the last 7 years, of highly entertaining posts. In a way, it makes sense, but in another way it doesn't? I must also say, thanks to everyone who has written, some very very entertaining reples to these posts.

    Thanks for the many happy hours, of toupeed filled pleasure.

    All the very best too you all.
    Shats own real syrup.

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  15. Fellow toupe enthusiast, what was your favorite Shat Toup story? Mine was Toupgate. A combination of investigative reporting and full toupological analysis. Truly a high point for ShatToup. I also loved learning bout the RHR (real hair reflex)

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  16. ShatToup since we can expect this page to be up for hundreds of years, future generations will be looking for its wisdom long after we're gone. Can you change the final page from "That's all Folks") to guidepost of sorts explaining what the blog is all about and and how to navigate though? I'd love to sit down with my grandkids some day and explain how I spent my time when I should have been working.

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    1. shats own real syrupJanuary 28, 2016 at 12:29 AM

      Saddest thing, is there's still, so much about shats toupee, out and about, that would make, a great post on here. So, could this be rekindle, in some fashion? Would love to hear, any thoughts on that.

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  17. With 70 something episodes of the original star trek, and the rest of the shatner star trek movies, as well as the hundreds of pictures on getty images, some of them current, showing toupee anomalies, this blog could go own with enough material for years.

    I really wish shattoup could pass the reigns over to another interested party such as that stallion cornell fellow who offered to do it a few years ago. At least I hope they change the "That's all folks" picture to something more fitting to celebrate the achievement of having a truly entertaining blog.

    This blog has been a constant source of pleasure for me over the past six years, and has made me happy during really dark times in my life, including the passing of loved ones.
    As silly as it sounds, I feel real pangs of sadness knowing it's the end of an era.

    I'm going to still keep checking in, and I hope the comments keep flowing, and that the author of this blog has a change of heart.

    Yours truly
    Jordan (BaldyB")

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    1. That's kind of your Andrew. Maybe we could open source it like Linux?

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  19. I took this pic of Shatner last year just before I pulled that rug off of his head and got the only toupless photo of him since 1960. I will post that pic sometime in the future. http://postimg.org/image/71ggoj823/

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    1. This photo just begs for a toupological analysis. The line separating the toupee from the sliver of what he still has left at the back of the head is quite noticeable, which is exactly what I saw about two weeks ago. Interestingly, Shatner retwitted a picture of himself taken last week, and the toupee he used was almost twice as thick as the one I saw and was of a somewhat different color.

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    2. 1980 Hybrid Toup
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMDsfxUqxqc

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    3. TouperUp, he probably goes by the rule of one on, one off and one in the wash!

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  20. adidas - I could imagine that being somewhat similar to the hologram Shatner scene that was supposed to be at the end of the 2009 movie

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    1. I risked much to uncover the truth of Shatner's toupee. What I found was startling, almost unbelievable. I hesitate to post it for it may be too much for people to handle. The ST blog agrees and I should probably respect their wishes.

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  21. A great job! I follow the blog because I´m a big fan of Shatner and here i can see all he´s career!

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  22. Andrew,

    You can't be serious. While I admit the blog has some interesting pics and insights, it's clear he's worn a wig for 95% of his career. So what else is there to know?

    Either you're fantastically wealthy and don't need to work and thus have tons of time on your hands, or you're completely cra-cra. :)

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    1. “What else is there to know?”

      If you have read this blog and have to ask that question, you must be sadly lacking in imagination. And no one’s afraid of an unimaginative enemy - unlike a cra-cra enemy!

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  24. This site has given me so much enjoyment over the years. Thank you so much for the great analysis of this important subject.

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  25. How dare you close the institute when there is more to discover! From startrek.com:

    There’s also an anecdote about Leonard being angry at you for the way you handled matters when a TV Guide photographer came on the set of The Original Series to take pictures of him. You take the risk there of being honest and not coming off in a great light, but the reader learns a lot about your relationship with Leonard through that story. Take us through relating the details of that incident…

    Well, there was a photographer coming into makeup, and that’s the most vulnerable moment actors have, when you’re without makeup. You’re there, it’s early morning and suddenly this guy is taking pictures of me. He’s snapping pictures, and the frame is containing me, I either imagined or I knew. So, I objected to being photographed. It wasn’t about Leonard being photographed, it was about me being photographed. I don’t know… it was one of those incidents that I’d totally forgotten about, but I was reminded of it by the fact that Leonard had talked about it. I keep thinking, "Oh yeah, I guess that happened." I don’t quite remember all the details, but there was a photographer doing stuff in the morning when everybody was doing their sleepy, 6:30 a.m. thing… and why is the photographer there? It seemed to be a reasonable question that got out of hand among emotional actors. I don’t know.

    See more at: http://www.startrek.com/article/william-shatner-talks-nimoy-book-trek-past-future-part-1#sthash.3zw2IEwV.dpuf

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    1. That incident has already been written about here at this blog, prompted by Shatner mentioning it several years ago in one of his other stupid, er... stellar books.

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  26. what. areyou. doing. in. my. makeuptrailer. getouttahere. damnyou. Leonard

    Ok Fred. now. that.. *photographer* ..hass..leftthebuilding. you. can.. apply.. myhair.

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  27. that new book 'Leonard' shatner wrote is a mustbuy. I never knew Shatner and Leonard hadn't spoken in several years before his death. I have read in previews that shatner believes it may have been partly due to his including some footage of Leonard at a con in his Captains documentary. as well documented Nimoy was furious with his image being used without permission back in the 70s so this could have touched a significant 'raw nerve'..

    that aside the book is pretty much the real life equivalent of Kirk eulogy speech at the end of TWOK..

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3445111/Alcoholic-alien-worst-enemy-best-friend-Star-Trek-s-William-Shatner-tells-emotional-story-friendship-star-Spock.html

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    1. We speculated in a previous post that Bill Shatner and Leonard Nimoy had had some kind of falling out. The vibes seemed very odd for the last few years - no mutual Tweeting etc. Very sad...

      PS:

      We have been trying to encourage non-registered commenters to select the "Name/ URL" option and type in a username (anything at all). This eliminates the "anonymous" tag and helps other commenters to know who is saying what. Thanks! -ST

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    2. Ha, even in his toupular unemployment, ST cares about the quality of the posting. He is one of a kind!

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  28. I could envision that being fairly like the visualization Shatner scene that should be toward the end of the 2009 motion picture

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  29. ***BREAKING NEWS***

    SHATNER REVERTS BACK TO THE TJ CURLY!!! (or at least 'TJs' the Denny Katz)
    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cb6KSpOUUAI9nkY.jpg:large

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  30. follow up vid
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW_j7DtF0Gg

    kind of going back to the Trek VI look wouldn't you say (the blonde brown saltnpepper TJ). might just be a Katz that's been 'poofed' up? looks much better than the standard Katz. damn that man is looking great for his age! almost like a slightly older version of his Trek VI self.. I wonder... is it just..possible.. hes looking his best/gotten in good shape, nice Trek VI/TJesque new piece to film an extended cameo for Trek Beyond?

    I hope so

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  31. Ratty Lost Years PieceFebruary 24, 2016 at 9:24 PM

    Interesting findings at the right temple: Possible a Toupee Tan Line and visible lace architecture. Does anyone have a Touposcope?

    ST, I'm looking in your direction.

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    1. I have a very recent photo, of bill downloaded on my cell/mobile phone! If I knew how, too upload it on here, I would love to do so, and then, we could kick start, this baby again! Whose in?

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    2. Shatner Toupee Blog mentioned in The Guardian
      http://tinyurl.com/gmdy92m

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    4. To quote Bill Shatner: "Irony can be pretty ironic sometimes..."

      Fun to be mentioned by the Guardian!

      -ST

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    5. My heart swells when I think of the thousands of Shatner fans who now see the world anew, thanks to that link in the Guardian.

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  32. This blog needs to be brought back by the Genesis Toupological Effect

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  33. As Leonard Nimoy has done on many an occasion, ShatToupBlog should come out of self-imposed retirement. We yearn for toupological analyses, however infrequent, as this is one of the most noble quests of our time. To paraphrase, understanding better Bill's toup brings us one step close to understanding humanity.

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    1. shats own real syrupMarch 1, 2016 at 11:36 AM

      I absolutely, second what you said touperup. I really don't mind, if shattoup can only do, 2 or max 3 a year! So what! Would be great to know, you're still around shattoup! Now what do say?

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    2. We're genuinely touched by the support and continued enthusiasm. And we're still around (grumbling at anonymous commenting!). So is this site. As for the future: it's second star to the right, and straight on till morning...

      -ST

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    3. You've done some amazing work here, ShatToupBlog.

      I love Shatner in all his uniquely-phrased forms - from Trek to The Barbary Coast to TJ Hooker to his current (and most pleasing) incarnation as a global pop culture icon alongside Adam West and Stan Lee (another man who's battled his follicles with variable results for many years).

      I've always been fascinated with balding male celebrities and the extremes they will go to in order to defy nature - even more so in this day & age when carefully-handled hair loss is no impediment to sustained international success (Bruce Willis, Jason Statham, Dwayne Johnson, Marc Strong, the list goes on).

      But what I really like about your blog is the feel-good undercurrent of love & respect for the one and only Mr Shatner.

      Thanks for all the years of great reading, ShatToupBlog - I DO wish you'd hung up your scissors & comb AFTER analysing the post-TJ Curly/pre-Denny Katz hybrid that Shat wears as The Big Giant Head in 3rd Rock From The Sun (full & curly on top, replete with a neat short back & sides). One of his better pre-final Katz looks (I'm guessing it's an early Katz when they were still experimenting with what worked best).

      But, all in all, I've got no complaints.

      Excellent, affectionate work all round.

      Thank you.

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    4. I wonder if there's a moral or cautionary element to Shatner's Toupee. The toupee represents all the false things that people can value too much: illusions, looks, narcissism and adulation. Shatner never took an interest in Nimoy or other people while they were alive, instead preferring to obsessively chase the rainbows of career success and fame and cling to his ever-present toupee.
      Shatner did invite speculation by writing this book in the first place so it's not unfair to bring up the question.

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  34. It's too bad this blog has been shut down. I just found a moment of toupological interest from his appearance on What's My Line? in 1965: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qT0QG6G4Cjk

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  35. Looks an early form of the JK lace , very similar to the 'Where No Man' version. Shatner was very Kirk like in his demeanour, his line of questions, his flirtation . Its basically a young Jim Kirk sat here asking questions, just prior to WNMHGB

    The woman sat next to him looks abit like Sigourney Weaver

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    1. The Final Front-hairMarch 7, 2016 at 11:24 PM

      Toupological interest towards the end of the show: there's a section where the panellists are blindfolded. Check out from 23.33 onwards. Shatner removes the blindfold (mostly off camera) but then we see him carefully flatten down the back of his 'hair'.

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    2. Possibly of interest is when he puts the blindfold ON, very carefully avoiding as much of his hair as possible, on 14 March 1965. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqPXZ5QaNmc&t=15m50s

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  36. The always-industrious Most Jerk posted this on one of the other comment trails but I reckon it's worth re-posting here.
    Burt Reynolds openly discusses his toupee-wearing (as he always has) - and Shat introducing him to Edward Katz:

    http://www.gq.com/story/burt-reynolds-trump-toupee-paul-thomas-anderson

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    1. A most interesting find indeed! We've often speculated (inconclusively) on the degree to which Bill Shatner might be open about his toupee wearing outside of the public sphere. This would suggest that out of public view he can place a telephone call along the lines of: "You've got to try this amazing toupee, Burt. Come over and give it a tug if you like - it's really resilient! Plus, if you tell Ed I recommended him to you then I will get 50 percent off my next toupee - so it's win-win!"

      Is this realistic-sounding dialogue?

      -ST

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    2. This sounds utterly convincing to me, ShatToupBlog!

      Plus, like Shat, Burt used to favour a TJ Curly style before he went for close-cropped Katz (his Smokey & The Bandit 2 and Stroker Ace full rugs are very curly on top - before he transitioned to experimenting with a close-crop, which suits him far better, in flicks like City Heat).

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    3. Thanks for the plug Gary! ShatToup, If I may be so bold, it was a mistake for you to accept ending this. Commanding the ShatToup blog is your first, best destiny; anything else is a waste of material.

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  37. ShatToup, with today's celebration of Bill Shatner's birthday and the upcoming 50th anniversary of the airing of the first Star Trek episode, another major anniversary is just a few short years away - 60 years since Shatner graced the world with his first toupee. I believe this calls for a major special event, full of toupological analyses, anecdotes, investigative pieces into the origin of that first fateful early JK lace piece, and perhaps interviews with those in the know! I bet Walter Koenig has a story or two about his fellow follicle-challenged colleague.

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  39. Idea for a new Shatner TV series
    Title: "Talkin' Toupees

    Host William Shatner will review famous movie stars who wore toupees such as Sean Connery, John Wayne, Burt Reynolds, etc. and discuss and rate the toupees the different actors used in both their most celebrated and lesser-known roles.

    At the outset, Shatner will promise to reveal whether or not he wears a toupee on the show's final episode. This show will be broadcast live from a theater in front of an audience and would undoubtedly set a record for the most-watched TV show in history.

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    1. Wow, that is an incredible idea. Well done Adidas

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  40. Shatner goes back to the TJ Curly
    http://pagesix.com/2016/03/28/man-claiming-to-be-william-shatners-son-sues-for-170m/

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    1. Watch "Chaos On the Bridge", the Shat-written and -hosted doc on the early years of TNG. Wide shot on the hair he had been wearing for several year; VERY close-up shots on interviews wearing a different piece with a hairline he's never had—since his teens, anyway.

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  41. I think part of the reason Shat is denying that guy is his son is because of Jr.'s hairline and nearly balding head (yes, you also get it from your father's side, not just your mom's dad)

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  42. just seen BvS

    I noticed Affleck is wearing something similar to the 'Jim Kirk' lace to give his hair that quiff 'superhero look' like Shatner had in TOS. it actually made me think Shats hair in the 60s might not have been too bad as dunno if Affleck wears a toup in real life or not its like they wanted him to have that look so had him in the Jim Kirk lace.. so maybe shatner wasn't all that bald in TOS and they wanted him to have that superhero looking hairline?

    maybe he will continue the series of JL/bat films sporting the ratty Lost Years piece, the TJ Curly, and the Denny Katz

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  43. btw BvS isn't as bad as everyone is making out.. about as good/bad as MOS and that wasn't all that bad.

    best to worst in superman films id put it:
    SII, STM, MOS/BvS, SR, III, IV

    and Batmsn:
    TDK, BB, TDKR, Bat89, BvS, BR, BF, B&R

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  44. If peter shatner wore a toupee, then bill shatner would accept him as his son. There, problem solved.

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    2. It's as if Shat is avoiding the reality of what he would look like without the piece, a reluctance to accept what might have been, had he not chosen to share his life with the toupee.

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    3. I did what you didnt want.. I stayed away

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    1. I like Shatner's you-yank-the-rug-and-I'll-yank-the-teeth response and knowing look to the audience.

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    2. What is more commonly known as the 'Katz like reflex'

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    3. Great response from Shat. Shocked but full of good-natured winking-at-the-audience humour also. The whole thing is pretty charming from beginning to end. Great find, Andrew G

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  46. shats own real syrupApril 12, 2016 at 3:29 AM

    What a great find! And of course, Mr Nimoy, would be in a perfect position, too know about bill's lack of hair! He saw it go on dozens of times! Even burt reynolds, has lighten up about his toupee, about time that bill did the same!

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  47. This was the best blog EVER. Thanks for keeping it up, the archives will get better like fine wine.

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  48. This saddens me tremendously. You’ve opened my eyes to THE TRUTH. It’s inncence lost, but at the price of mental freedom. This is the greatest blog that the world has ever seen, or ever will see. May the Master Toupologist R.I.P. Your service to mankind will never be forgotten.

    Also, I’m drunk.

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  49. A thinly veiled toupee reference:
    https://www.pinterest.com/pin/403564816581935780/

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  50. How's the toup looking?
    https://media.giphy.com/media/XFcRQ9uOFT5yo/giphy.gif

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  51. The seams on the side are still visible in 2020! Yes!
    https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/William_Shatner_Photo_Op_GalaxyCon_Richmond_2020.jpg

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  52. Hey there, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues. When I look at your blog in Opera, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, amazing blog!

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  53. You guys are playing with fire! Look what Bill did to Nerine when she threatened to leave him, bust his ass for alimony and sell the toupless shots to the Enquirer. Tread lightly amigos!

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