History Main / PleaseKeepYourHatOn

* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} is horribly scarred all over his body as the result of the process through which he got his powers. When this idea was first introduced, it was given as the reason why he had never been seen previously without his costume (which covers every inch of his body, like ComicBook/SpiderMan's) on. Over the years, he's varied between always wearing his costume even in private and warning anyone who asks him to remove it that they won't like what they see to walking around in casual clothing as if he doesn't realize (or doesn't care) that he's unpleasant to look at, DependingOnTheWriter and/or [[DependingOnTheArtist artist]]. He ''is'' insane, though, so the degree to which his condition bothers him may actually change from day to day.

** Death also keeps his hood up because underneath it he has a rotting, unmoving skull.

* In ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', the reason [[PosthumousCharacter Joshua]] wears a hat all the time is to hide the scar he got from [[spoiler:[[MrSeahorse giving birth to Jake]].]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Aang disguises himself in the Fire Nation by covering his tattooed forehead with a headband. When a teacher scolds him for this NonUniformUniform he [[InvokedTrope Invokes]] this to preserve his cover identity. He claims he wears it to cover an embarrassing scar.
** The teacher accepts this excuse without question. FridgeBrilliance reveals that, in a land full of angry firebenders, burn scars may be common.

* ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'': Edd [[NeverBareheaded always wears a hat]]. Sometimes it comes off and the other characters stare at it in horror and shock, although what is being seen is never shown to the audience.

* In ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'', Dipper admits that beneath his hat is a birthmark he does not want anyone to see. This DistinguishingMark on his forehead is a perfect likeness of a constellation: the Little Dipper. He explains that [[AllOfTheOther Reindeer other kids teased]] him about this when he was young until the nickname became his AppropriatedAppellation.

* Used as a DiscussedTrope in the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Almost Got 'im" (and undoubtedly many times in the comics as well), with Penguin and Joker wondering if Batman covers his head with a mask because someone blew part of his face off.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCurseOfTheWereRabbit'', a policeman removes his old-fashioned British police helmet to reveal that his head is the same shape as the helmet.

* ''Disney/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'': Yes, everybody loves Dr. Facilier's personality and style, but when he takes off his NiceHat... [[spoiler:his hair has the same form. And we're talking about a ''top hat''.]]

* A 2016 ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' episode hosted by Creator/KristenStewart featured her in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K79n-yRmTR0 skit about]] underage college students forced to attend a "Dry Friday" event after getting caught with booze. As the students share tales of the bad decisions they've made while drunk, Stewart pulls off her beanie to reveal a "nohawk" (the exact opposite of a mohawk) she got after she "did a 10-minute solo keg stand." For the remainder of the skit, the counselors assigned to the group repeatedly suggest that she "just pop that beanie back on" because the sight of her bald streak is so awful.

* All the illustrations of Captain Sam Vimes from the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' stories show him wearing the Watch regulation helmet, except in ''Discworld/WheresMyCow'' (a defictionalization of Sam Jr.'s favorite book), where Vimes is shown without his helmet and with a corresponding case of greasy-looking helmet hair. But that's probably only that artist. Paul Kidby depicts Vimes with short, tousled, unremarkable hair that couldn't grease down like that if he tried. And according to ''Feet of Clay'' he's actually starting to go bald.

* ''Film/StarWars''. Darth Vader is probably the most popular example of this. In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', we see the back of Vader's bald, scarred head. In the next movie we see that from the front. He can only survive without the helmet if he's in that meditation chamber we saw in ESB.

* ''TabletopGame/Orpheus'': You'd think that the dapper, white-suited Mr. Jigsaw keeping his hat on wouldn't be much of a big deal; after all, it's obvious he's a disturbing human-shaped blob that uses the faces and voices of others to communicate. Then you find out how those faces probably got in there. Because when Mr. Jigsaw removes his hat, he's about to bow, and when he bows, his upper body splits in half to make a massive maw. His black leather tie becomes a tongue which he uses to pull his victim into its toothy terribleness, consuming them without hope of recovery. In short, when Mr. Jigsaw takes off his hat... ''run''.

* Why does [[spoiler:Karasawa]] in ''Manga/DailyLivesOfHighSchoolBoys'' always wear a cap? It's to cover a large scar on his forehead courtesy of [[spoiler:the girl who live next door.]]
* Celty Strulsen from ''{{LightNovel/Durarara}}'' is understandably reluctant to take her helmet off anywhere outside her own apartment, what with the [[HeadlessHorseman headlessness and all]].

* ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} is horribly scarred all over his body as the result of the process through which he got his powers. When this idea was first introduced, it was given as the reason why he had never been seen previously without his costume (which covers every inch of his body, like SpiderMan's) on. Over the years, he's varied between always wearing his costume even in private and warning anyone who asks him to remove it that they won't like what they see to walking around in casual clothing as if he doesn't realize (or doesn't care) that he's unpleasant to look at, DependingOnTheWriter and/or [[DependingOnTheArtist artist]]. He ''is'' insane, though, so the degree to which his condition bothers him may actually change from day to day.

!! Examples:

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* Zydos from ''Series/GoseiSentaiDairanger'' looks rather freaky when finally seen sans headgear. He has two volcanoes atop his head. Also a VisualPun on the phrase "cranial eruption".

* ''Series/{{Firefly}}'': It's more like "please keep your ''hair tie'' on," but River gets ''very'' frightened when Shepherd Book lets out his CompressedHair. Even Zoe admits that it's alarming.
--> '''Zoe:''' River, honey, it's OK. He's putting the hair away now.
--> '''River:''' Doesn't matter. It'll still be there...''waiting.''
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': In [[Recap/DoctorWho2007CiNSTimeCrash "Time Crash"]], [[Creator/DavidTennant Ten]] was put off by (temporarily-aged) [[Creator/PeterDavison Five]]'s bald spot:
--> '''Ten''': Sorry, not something you see every day, the back of your own head. Mind you, I can see why you wear a hat. I don't mean to sound vain, but would you mind putting that back on?
* ''Series/ADifferentWorld'' had an episode where the guys gave Ron a really bad haircut while he was asleep as a joke. It was bad enough that the ROTC professor told him he could leave his hat on during class.
* A 2016 ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' episode hosted by Creator/KristenStewart featured her in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K79n-yRmTR0 skit about]] underage college students forced to attend a "Dry Friday" event after getting caught with booze. As the students share tales of the bad decisions they've made while drunk, Stewart pulls off her beanie to reveal a "nohawk" (the exact opposite of a mohawk) she got after she "did a 10-minute solo keg stand." For the remainder of the skit, the counselors assigned to the group repeatedly suggest that she "just pop that beanie back on" because the sight of her bald streak is so awful.

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* In the early 1950s, when ComicStrip/BeetleBailey was still a college student, he removed his hat exactly once in the classroom. The professor told him to put it back on.
* ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}''. B.D. has been wearing some manner of helmet for decades. When it's finally removed, it is...[[spoiler:quite normal hair and he wasn't sure what the big deal had been]].
* One storyline in ''ComicStrip/GetFuzzy'' has Rob accidentally going bald when Bucky puts hair removal cream in the shampoo. He spends his period of baldness with a baseball hat on, except when showing Joe what happened. At that point, a coworker looks alarmed and tells him, "Woah! Keep the lid on, Kojack!"
* Happens in a ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' strip when Peppermint Patty wears her ski cap into class. Her teacher tells her to take it off, but when she does, her hair is so wild and unruly that she is immediately told to put it back on.
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* [[InTheHood The Hunter]] from ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'', whose hood hides TearsOfBlood and possibly a complete lack of eyes. ("Possibly" because they may have been left unrendered to save on polygons. It's not like that part of his face was meant to be visible, after all.)

* The ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'' episode "Let's Watch the Boxmore Show" reveals that Ernesto wears his tall top hat to hide that his head is balding.

* In "Musical Scales" from ''WesternAnimation/DragonTales'', Enrique spends most of the story wearing a bright, multicolored hat, trying to hide a bad haircut that his ''abuelita'' (grandmother) gave him. "I don't think she's cut hair in a long time." In the end, because Zak and Wheezie have been bothered the whole story by their bare skin from the scales that they're shedding, he takes it off in a gesture of empathy. As it turns out, the males of the Doodle Fairy kingdom that Zak, Wheezie and Enrique are performing a song number for all sport the same hairstyle, which they show Enrqiue by removing their ceremonial hats. So, ultimately, more or less [[SubvertedTrope subverted]].

* In ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'', Ruby wears his iconic hat to hide a scar that he got fighting a wild Salamence barehanded to impress a pretty girl ([[spoiler:who turns out to be Sapphire]]) in the backstory.

* ''Disney/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'': Yes, everybody loves Dr. Facilier's personality and style, but when he takes off his NiceHat...[[spoiler:his hair has the same form. And we're talking about a ''top hat''.]]

* {{Deadpool}} is horribly scarred all over his body as the result of the process through which he got his powers. When this idea was first introduced, it was given as the reason why he had never been seen previously without his costume (which covers every inch of his body, like SpiderMan's) on. Over the years, he's varied between always wearing his costume even in private and warning anyone who asks him to remove it that they won't like what they see to walking around in casual clothing as if he doesn't realize (or doesn't care) that he's unpleasant to look at, DependingOnTheWriter and/or [[DependingOnTheArtist artist]]. He ''is'' insane, though, so the degree to which his condition bothers him may actually change from day to day.

[[quoteright:320:[[Manga/{{Naruto}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/episodes-22982_6989.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:320:[[WesternAnimation/TheSpongebobSquarepantsMovie BALD]]! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint BALD]]! [[MemeticMutation BALD]]! [[OverlyLongGag BALD]]![[note]][[EyeScream MY EYES!]][[/note]]]]

* In ''WesternAnimtion/AdventureTime'', the reason [[PostHumousCharacter Joshua]] wears a hat all the time is to hide the scar he got from [[spoiler:[[MrSeahorse giving birth to Jake]].]]

* The ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'' episode "Let's Watch the Boxmore Show" reveals that Enresto wears his tall top hat to hide that his head is balding.