The pioneer
Signs of Ora Green’s Hollywood career fill the inside of her South L.A. home. There are photos of her grooming rock star Alice Cooper’s hair, a signed photograph from late actor Bernie Casey, a more recent photo with new Lakers star LeBron James and her commemorative director’s chair.
Green, 89 and impeccably dressed, is sitting with her granddaughter, actress Jaquita Ta’le, describing how she came to find a place in the largely white industry. Born in Goodman, Miss., Green began doing hair at 16 but was a Hollywood late bloomer when she began as a hair stylist on “Good Times” at 36. Green went on to work with the pioneer hairstylist of Hollywood’s Golden Age, Sydney Guilaroff, on a home movie featuring the late movie star Elizabeth Taylor.
After getting into the hair and makeup union, Green worked for Universal Studios, and from there, the work just kept coming. She was first nominated for an Emmy for a dreadlocked style on the 1987 TV series “Frank’s Place.” She’s worked on 1986 TV series “Dynasty,” 1991’s “Hook,” 1998’s “Blade” and many other films and TV shows. In 2005, she designed wigs for a LeBron James billboard campaign.
Green often did simple hairstyles using a straightening comb and curling iron, but her biggest challenge and greatest joy was working on period hair styles. “The only time you had a creative look, you could do something creative with your wisdom and your ability, was when I started doing period hairstyles,” she said.
Throughout her career, she was typically one of the industry’s few black hairstylists. “When I started, there must’ve been four, the most would be six. And they were good.”