The character who epitomizes fearlessness in the new WB series "Smallville" (Tuesday, 8 p.m., Ch. 30) is, of course, Clark Kent (Tom Welling), the future Superman.
But the actor who had to show the most courage before filming started was Michael Rosenbaum, who plays future arch-criminal Lex Luthor. Rosenbaum had to make a major sacrifice — his hair.
"I had no choice, really," he said. "It was kind of an ultimatum. 'You want to be Lex Luthor? Shave your head.' "
The producers didn't initially tell Rosenbaum that they wanted him to shave his head instead of using a bald cap and makeup, but that's what they had in mind from the beginning.
"We didn't want a bald cap because they just look fake," executive producer Alfred Gough said, "but to sort of get Michael emotionally prepared we brought him over to the studio . . . so that we could see how much time it took each day to put a bald cap on."
The results didn't please anyone, including Rosenbaum.
"I looked like a conehead," he said. "I said, 'We're going to shave it. I'm not going to be dealing with this every day.' It takes you out of reality when you're watching a show and you see some guy's bald cap with a crease in it."
So he threw caution to the wind and gave up his hair for the good of the show.
"I said, 'What the heck?' " Rosenbaum said. "You've got to take some risks as an actor, and this was one of them."
Rosenbaum said he wasn't so much afraid of being bald, he was afraid that removing his hair would reveal some sort of defect in his head.
"I was, like, 'OK, OK — do you guys see any bumps? Any holes? Any knots? . . . Scars?' " he said. "The true test was really a straight-edge razor."
And he was relieved to see there were no deformities. Both he and the producers were pleased with the results.
"I shaved it and there were no big dents in my head, which is a good thing," he said. "And it grows back."
To make sure it would continue to grow back, he nixed the idea of using any hair-removing or hair-inhibiting chemicals on his head.
"I said, 'No, we're not doing that. I've got to work later in life, hopefully,' " said Rosenbaum, who added that he's not particularly worried that his current lack of hair might cost him other work in the short term. "I can wear wigs for other parts," he said. "I like being bald."
"Mike looks sexy bald, I think," Gough said.
The reaction of those closest to him wasn't exactly encouraging, however.
"My dad laughed," Rosenbaum said. "He goes, 'You look like an idiot.' "
Not exactly supportive and not exactly true. (Or so thinks this bald man.) It's just that the difference after shaving his head is rather startling — as you can see in the accompanying pictures.
And the bald look is rather high-maintenance for both Rosenbaum and the show's hair (or is that hairless?) and makeup team.
"They buy all the skin products, the hair products. . . . I really don't need that much — just a lot of aloe," he said.
And going bald certainly hasn't hurt Rosenbaum's self-image.
"I think if you have hair, a little hair or islands of hair, it's all about confidence, I guess, and personality," Rosenbaum said. "At least that's what I think. I didn't change, really. I'm still a complete moron with my friends."
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