The World's 10 Most Powerful Bald Men
For those of you who have watched Breaking Bad, you'll know that downtrodden Walter White's transformation into the feared Heisenberg was the central focus of the story. Visually, the evolution...
For those of you who have watched Breaking Bad, you'll know that downtrodden Walter White's transformation into the feared Heisenberg was the central focus of the story.
Visually, the evolution of White's character was reflected by his changing hairstyles, with the shaven-headed Heisenberg cutting a more powerful, influential and revered figure as the story progressed.
Of course this was entirely fictional, but a handful of scientific studies have revealed that bald men are often seen as being more successful, dominant and suited to leadership roles that those with hair.
In this article, we'll explore this concept in further detail by appraising the world's most powerful and influential bald men.
#1 - Jeff Bezos
Not only is Jeff Bezos an unashamedly bald man, but he also recently earned repute as the single richest individual of all-time.
The technology and retail entrepreneur has made his name as the CEO of the world's largest e-commerce outlet, Amazon. Bezos has built and incredible fortune while also changing the face of commerce in the digital age.
A former computer scientist and electrical engineer, Bezos recently hit the headlines as his net worth reached a staggering $105.1 billion.
This eclipses the record previously held by Microsoft lynchpin Bill Gates, with Bezos reaping the rewards after Amazon shares climbed by a total of 7% in January alone and added an estimated $1.4 billion to his wealth.
In fact, the value of Amazon's shares have risen by around 56% since the beginning of 2017, with Bezos' focus on diversifying the businesses revenue streams central to this success.
Outside of the e-commerce world, Bezos also founded the aerospace company Blue Origin in 2000, with this visionary brand set to launch the first commercial, suborbital space flight in the next couple of years.
Bezos also completed the $250 million purchase on the Washington Post in cash, which tells you everything you need to know about the wealth and the power of the man.
#2 - Steve Ballmer
Best described as high-wattage and renowned for his decibel-laden motivational speeches, Steve Ballmer is a man who oozes strength and power.
He is also one of the world's most recognisable bald men. Born in the right place at the right time in 1980, Ballmer accepted an offer to join the then-23 strong staff at a start-up called Microsoft.
His ambition and dedication quickly saw him rise up the ranks, as he eventually became the CEO and built an initial, $15 billion fortune.
Although he has since ended his association with Microsoft, he remains a major share holder and has used some of his wealth to become the owner of the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers.
Like Michael Jordan before him, he has also benefited financially from incremental increases to the value of franchises, with his net worth now measured at a hefty $38.7 billion by Forbes.
Ballmer is also involved heavily with his own philanthropic outfit Ballmer Group, which recently pledged 96 million over six years to the nonprofit group StriveTogether. This investment will go towards reducing economic disparities within local communities.
#3 - Domenico Dolce
Make no mistake; Domenico Dolce remains one of the most influential and powerful figures in the lucrative world of fashion, while the Sicilian half of the iconic Dolce & Gabbana has also emerged as a style icon for bald men across the length and breadth of the world.
A member of fashion royalty, Dolce has emerged from humble beginnings in Palermo to co-found one of the most popular designer brands in the world.
Although his father was a tailor and his mother sold fabrics at a clothing store, he was not born into luxury and had to work tirelessly to achieve his career goals.
Having left to study in Milan, Dolce dropped out of the Istituto Marangoni after barely a year and soon met Stefano Gabanna.
The two worked together at Correggiari until 1983, when they entered the brave world of freelancing and subsequently launched Dolce & Gabbana in 1985.
The brand debuted at the Milan Fashion Week and quickly became known for their extravagant style, with their designs entering the stratosphere after Madonna employed the firm to design costumes for her Girlie Tour.
Dolce & Gabbana remains a seminal fashion brand to this day, while Dolce has amassed a personal fortune of $1.7 billion over the last 30 years.
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#4 - Michael Jordan
His Royal Airness remains one of the most iconic sports stars of all-time, while he's widely acclaimed as the single greatest basketball player who has ever lived.
A six-time NBA Champion between 1991 and 1998, Jordan was almost unstoppable at his peak and achieved a stellar career shooting average of 30.1 points-per-game.
Incredibly, Jordan was also voted the NBA's most valuable player on five occasions and an NBA all-star 14 times.
The man also won two Olympic Gold medals in 1984 and 1992, as he played a leading role in the all-conquering U.S. side of those years.
The face of Nike during the 1990s, Jordan generated huge income from product endorsements during his career and he has also achieved considerable success as a businessman since his retirement.
He bought a controlling interest in the Charlotte Hornets in 2010, and a subsequent increase in the value of NBA franchises helped him to become the first billionaire NBA player in the history of the game.
Jordan has a real-time net worth of $1.65 billion according to Forbes, while interestingly he is also the third-richest African-American behind TV legend Oprah Winfrey and investor Robert F. Smith.
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Get Your Trial#5 - Marc Andreessen
Influence can come in many different forms, and the American entrepreneur and investor Marc Andreessen is living proof of this.
Not only is he exceptionally wealth and materially rich, but his various business ventures have helped to shape the past, present and future technology markets.
Andreessen's first claim to fame came in the mid-nineties, when he co-founded web browser firm Netscape as the World Wide Web began to expand.
This venture was subsequently sold to AOL in 1998 for a cool $4.2 billion in stock, which in turn enabled the entrepreneur to launch the venture capital outfit Andreessen Horowitz.
There's no doubt that this Silicon Valley outfit remains one of the most influential companies of its type in the world, while it continues to rely heavily on Andreessen's expertise and financial nous.
Recent investments have seen the firm plough capital in Instagram and Oculus VR technology, with both of these commitments part of Andreessen's hugely successful involvement as a prominent seed investor in social media giants Facebook.
Marc Andreessen is now worth a cool $1.21 billion according to Forbes, Andreessen is also renowned for co-founding Loudcloud, which was subsequently renamed Opsware and sold to Hewlett-Packard for $1.6 billion in July 2007.
#6 - Lloyd Blankfein
As the CEO of global finance giant Goldman Sachs, it's fair to surmise that Lloyd Blankfein boasts as much influence as anyone on our list.
After all, not only did Blankfein successfully help Goldman Sachs to largely avoid the fall-out from the global recession of 2008, but Forbes also deigned to put him 43rd on a list of the world's most powerful people as recently as 2011.
Blankfein joined the commodities trading firm J. Aron & Co. in 1982, with this outfit subsequently being purchased by Goldman. Back then, he worked as a precious metals salesman, but he diligently worked his way up the ranks to become the co-manager of Goldman Sachs' Currency and Commodities Division by 1994.
He then attained the level of Vice Chairman in 2002, before becoming the CEO in 2006 and commanding an annual salary in excess of $53 million.
As well as presiding over one of the most influential financial institutions in the world, Blankfein has also seen his personal net worth rocket in recent times. Forbes listed him as being worth around $450 million in 2015, but this was revised to an incredible $1.1 billion last year on the back of some exceptional share performances.
#7 - Larry David
Larry David remains one of the most recognisable figures on television, thanks largely to his now-returned hit comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm.
David, who plays an exaggerated version of himself in the show, is also instantly recognisable due his proudly bald head, which his occasionally for the target for his quick wit and self-depreciating humour.
David made his name behind the scenes on the set of Seinfeld, of course, where he worked as a writer and played a pivotal role in launching one of the most iconic comedy franchises of all time.
To this day, Seinfeld continues to be syndicated on TV channels across the globe, with a reported $3.1 billion deal currently in place for U.S. programmers to air episodes.
This contributed heavily to a net worth of around $900 million in 2009, and even after a difficult divorce he continues to boast cumulative wealth of between $400 and $500 million.
This will surely increase with the return of Curb, with the ninth series having aired last winter and a 10th run commissioned for later in 2018.
The show, which has won two Emmy Awards and been nominated for five Golden Globes, remains a hit with fans and continues to fuel David's growing legacy as an influential leading man.
#8 - Phil McGraw (or Dr. Phil)
One of the most well-known and revered faces of American television, Dr. Phil has utilised his immense gift and influence to benefit those around him for decades.
Also a qualified psychologist and a successful author, Dr. Phil has a loyal following of millions and continues to have a huge impact on others through the simple medium of words.
Starting out as Phil McGraw, the aspiring doctor earned a doctoral degree in clinical psychology at the Wilmington Institute, but after deciding that therapy was not for him he launched the innovative business Courtroom Sciences to provide consultation services to law firms.
It was through this firm that Phil met the iconic talk show sensation Oprah Winfrey, who soon enlisted him to appear regularly on her hit program. He became an overnight sensation with his empathetic style and soothing tone, earning a nationally syndicated talk show of his own in 2002 and writing the first of nine best-selling self-help books.
Perhaps the smartest bald man on our list, Dr. Phil now has an estimated net worth of around $400 million and his eponymous, CBS television is now well into its 16th season.
#9 - Dwayne Johnson (or The Rock)
With or without his iconic shaved head, Dwayne Johnson (or The Rock to you an me), remains one of the most recognisable and seminal figures in the pop-culture world.
Time Magazine labelled Johnson as one of the 100 most influential people in the world last year, and he is certainly an inspiration for anyone who has diverse career goals.
He is also the personification of strength and virility, and a clear role model for anyone who wants to shave their remaining locks.
Born in 1972, Johnson started his career as a lineman for the Miami Hurricanes football team, winning a national championship in 1991.
Having then been cut from the Calgary Stampeders just two months into the 1995 season, he began to train for a career in professional wrestling and subsequently became the first third-generation star to perform for the WWF (now WWE).
He is an eight-time WWF and WWR champion, and continues to make cameo appearances to this day.
He has since gone on to become a global movie star, boasting appearances in The Scorpion King, The Fast and Furious franchise and Snitch.
As a result of these efforts, Dwayne Johnson is now worth an impressive $220 million and widely established as one of Hollywood's most in-demand leading men.
#10 - Bruce Willis
While Jordan and Bezos have popularised baldness through their success and career achievements, the 62-year old actor and producer Bruce Willis has actively blazed a trail for other follically-challenged individuals across the globe.
He has emerged as a fashion and style icon for those with shaved heads, while also writing a book and middle-aged, virile baldness.
Above all else, Willis' decision to embrace his receding hairline and shave his locks arguably helped to make baldness sexy in Hollywood, creating an entire generation of similarly shorn stars in the process.
Willis, who first made his name as David Addison in the hit television series Moonlighting between 1985 and 1989, entered the entertainment stratosphere when starring as the iconic John McClane in the Die Hard trilogy.
He's also one of the few leading men in Hollywood who never seem to be out of work, starring in smash hits such as The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, 12 Monkeys and Armageddon.
According to The Richest website, Willis currently boasts a net worth of $180 million, which is up from $170 million in March 2017. This makes him one of Hollywood's most successful actors, both in terms of earnings and longevity.
The Last Word
The men on our list are not only bald, but they also happen to be among the most powerful and influential individuals in the world. Their collective impact has been felt throughout the diverse worlds of technology, fashion, sport and entertainment, while they continue to build wealth and their followings with every passing year.
Not only this, but these men have also helped to popularise baldness in the modern age, destroying outdated myths and stigmas while also adding credibility to the assertion that men without hair truly are more powerful and suited to the challenges of leadership.
