Thomas John Kummer, known professionally as Jay Sebring, was an American celebrity hair stylist, and the founder of the hairstyling corporation Sebring International. Sebring was murdered by members of the Manson Family along with his ex-girlfriend Sharon Tate.
Early life
Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Sebring was the son of an accountant, Bernard Kummer, and his wife, Margarette Gibb. He grew up with one brother and two sisters in a middle-class home in Southfield, Michigan. After graduating from Detroit Catholic Central in 1951, Sebring served in the Navy for four years, and during this time he fought in the Korean War. He then moved to Los Angeles, where he adopted the name Jay Sebring: Jay, after the first initial of his middle name, and Sebring after the famous Florida car race. In Las Vegas, on October 10, 1960, Sebring married modelBonnie Lee Marple, nicknamed Cami – a union which ended unofficially in August 1963.
Career
In Los Angeles, he graduated from beauty school and promptly "invented a whole new way of cutting men's hair". His innovations including shampooing men's hair before styling it, cutting their hair with scissors instead of clippers, and using blow dryers, which were popular in Europe but not well known in the United States. He used hair spray in an era when Brylcreem was the accepted hair product for men. In Los Angeles, his modish salon and his style of cutting hair proved popular. He taught his methods to others who then opened Jay Sebring Salon franchises; his styling techniques were still being taught 40 years after his death. In 1967 he opened the company Sebring International to franchise his salons and sell hair care products. At a time when barbers charged $1 to $2 for a haircut, Sebring charged $50 and more. His hair styling clients included Warren Beatty and Steve McQueen. He flew to Las Vegas every three weeks to cut the hair of Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. At Kirk Douglas' request, Sebring did the hair styling for the movie Spartacus. He later designed The Doors' Jim Morrison's free-flowing style. His business, Sebring International, was flourishing by the late 1960s, with profitable salons in West Hollywood, New York City and London. Sebring maintained a playboy lifestyle, with high-profile Hollywood personalities like Beatty among his closest associates. According to a Hollywood Reporter article published in 2019, Sebring used his salon to distribute drugs and was nicknamed "The Candyman" by his Hollywood clients. Sebring assisted with launching the film career of Bruce Lee, after meeting him at the International Karate Championships in Long Beach in 1964. He introduced Lee to his producer friend Bill Dozier, who started Lee's career with The Green Hornet. Although not seeking an acting career himself, Sebring made a cameo appearance in the of the TV showBatman, playing a character based on himself called Mr. Oceanbring. Sebring also appeared in a 1967 episode of The Virginian titled "The Strange Quest of Claire Bingham", playing a frontier barber. Sebring also appeared as himself on the January 28, 1963 episode of To Tell the Truth. He received three of four possible votes. Jay Sebring was one of the people profiled in the 1967 cult documentary, Mondo Hollywood. Future members of the notorious Manson Family were also seen in it.
Relationship with Sharon Tate
Sebring was introduced to Sharon Tate by journalist Joe Hyams in October 1964 and they began a relationship. Sebring bought the former home of Paul Bern, husband of Jean Harlow, on Easton Drive in Benedict Canyon, then owned by Sally Forrest. Tate went to London in early 1966 to work on The Fearless Vampire Killers with film directorRoman Polanski. They began a relationship, and Tate ended her relationship with Sebring, who travelled to London to meet Polanski. He befriended Polanski, while remaining a friend to Tate. Polanski would later comment that despite Sebring's lifestyle, he was a very lonely person, who regarded Tate and Polanski as his family. In the summer of 1968, Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate introduced Sebring to Polanski's friend Wojciech Frykowski and his girlfriend, Folgers coffee heiress Abigail Folger, who had recently moved to Los Angeles from New York. Folger later invested in Sebring's hair-care products for men. In early May 1969, Sebring opened a new salon at 629 Commercial Street in San Francisco, and a champagne reception followed. Guests included Abigail Folger and her mother, Ines, as well as Paul Newman and his wife, Joanne Woodward.
On August 8, 1969, Sebring, Tate, Frykowski, and Folger went to El Coyote, a Mexican restaurant, together. After they returned to the Polanski residence on Cielo Drive, Patricia Krenwinkel, Susan Atkins and Charles "Tex" Watson, members of the "Charles Manson Family", entered the home. After coercing the four occupants of the house into the living room, they ordered them to lie face down on the floor. Sebring protested and asked the intruders to consider Tate's advanced pregnancy. He was then shot by Watson, who kicked him several times in the face as he lay dying, breaking his nose and eye socket. He was then stabbed seven times and died from blood loss caused by his stab wounds. The group then murdered Frykowski, Folger, and Tate. On Wednesday, August 13, funerals for Tate and Sebring took place the same day; the funerals were scheduled several hours apart to allow mutual friends to attend both. Sebring was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield, Michigan. Steve McQueen gave the eulogy.
Documentary
In 2020, a documentary film about the deceased stylist was released by Shout Factory.
