"It is my considered opinion that the hairdresser is the most influential person in any community. When the public goes to a hairdresser, something happens to them. They feel safe, they relax. The hairdresser knows what their skin is like under the makeup, they know their age, they don't have to keep up any kind of pretense. People tell a hairdresser things they wouldn't dare confess to a priest and they are open about matters they'd try to conceal from a doctor. When people place their secret lives in the hairdressers hands, the hairdresser gains an authority few other people attain. I have heard hairdressers quoted with complete conviction on art, literature, politics, economics, child care and morals. I tell you that a clever thoughtful ambitious hairdresser wields a power beyond comprehension of most people."
-John Steinbeck