This post begins an ongoing series on seriously old-sk00l mens' hair care products. The background is that I have suffered from either dry scalp or outright dandruff for a very long time. Dandruff shampoo didn't help. Prescription-strength dandruff shampoo didn't help. Bizarre, scary, steroid-containing substances only helped temporarily - when the prescription ran out, the dandruff came back.

In utter desperation I decided to deal with it the same way I deal with dry skin elsewhere - keep it good and greased up! I have some patches of skin that are so dry and flaky the only thing I can do with them is to keep lotion (especially Eucerin) on them 24/7. So I decided to try the same thing with my hair.

And let me tell you, for a nice, oily scalp there is nothing like the mid-20th-century hair products. Before the "dry look" came along and ruined everything. Most of these are still available. Look in the "mens hair" section of any drugstore right next to the Grecian Formula and such you will find things you probably didn't know they still sold. Creams, tonics, pomades of every persuasion. (Not to mention the shaving brushes and soap cakes... hmm, cake) Every Walgreens and CVS is slightly different, too, so there are plenty of opportunities to explore.