SerpApi.Org
Originally appeared on E! Online
Conan O’Brien is always looking on the bright side.
That’s why the comedian was able to make light of his polarizing hair transformation, explaining he was forced to ditch his pompadour style due to a painful sunburn he got June 18 at the grand opening celebration of former President Barack Obama’s presidential library in Chicago.
“It’s three hours-plus, and when it’s over, I’m so glad that I put the sunblock on,” O’Brien explained on a behind-the-scenes clip of his Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend podcast obtained by Entertainment Weekly July 22, “and I’m feeling really good about myself. Like, smart move.”
In fact, the former late night host felt even better when he ran into Stephen Colbert and David Letterman at the event, who he said looked like they had been “playing in a sandbox with plutonium—their faces are just bright, bright red.”
However, O’Brien had to dismount his high horse after a while when he felt that something was amiss.
READ Why Conan O'Brien's Head-Turning New Hairstyle Is Dividing the Internet
“A day or two later, after the event, I feel like my skull is on fire,” he continued, “and then two days after that, my [scalp] is really itchy, and whenever I itch it, it looks like a snow globe. It looks like white freckled confetti is pouring off of my head. It’s disgusting.”
Eventually, O’Brien realized that the top of his head had been “roasted” by the sun and needed to be treated.
“Someone said to treat this, you’ve got to rub oil into it,” he shared. “So this morning, I rubbed oil into it, not thinking about the podcast when we went on camera, and then I come in and I look like I’m in [the band] Sha Na Na. I’m a grease ball. I’m so greasy.”
Indeed, fans took notice of O’Brien’s slicked back hairstyle during the July 20 episode of his podcast, which was recorded less than two weeks after his visit to the presidential library opening.
But as he put it in the clip, the oil was preventing his classic poofy hairdo because it was “weighing my hair down and my hair can’t do its normal thing.”
Still, O’Brien had fun with his temporary appearance.
“I look like I want to fight one of you in the parking lot by swinging a chain at you in 1952, or a little switchblade,” he quipped. “I really feel different. I just want to fight people on the street. I want to get a hot rod and drive it around. I want to get Rizzo pregnant, so that Rizzo has a bun in the oven. You know what I mean?”
Lamenting that he’s learned his lesson to wear a hat in the future, O’Brien conceded, “I’m a grease ball now, and I’m just gonna keep rubbing oil into my head until my skull heals.”
For more stars who have made notable transformations to their hair over the years, keep reading…
