The Scissors Are Out

You would think they were talking about a defaced historical landmark, the way the gossip was going: "The place used to be so serene, I didn't even mind that it took three hours to get my hair done," said one highlighted regular of the John Frieda Salon on Melrose Place. "I loved it before they redid it. Now it looks like a coke den," chirped another.

Change is hard -- especially for those who shell out $600 for the ne plus ultra of SoCal blond highlights. And, for a certain social set in L.A., the John Frieda Salon has been an oasis since it opened eight years ago, a steadfast spot where chitchat flies and stylists are intimate with every cowlick, split end and gray strand on the heads of their clients, including Hollywood royalty Jennifer Nicholson, Hollywood wife Shawn Southwick (the sixth Mrs. Larry King) and Hollywood actresses Jane Fonda, Katie Holmes and Kate Hudson.

The salon's white minimalist interior, centered around a light-infused courtyard with a crystalline pool brimming with floating flowers, was part of the pampering experience. So was its California-born coif star Sally Hershberger, famous for creating Meg Ryan's shag -- charging $800 for that signature cut -- and rumored to be the inspiration for the character Shane on "The L Word," the Showtime series about chic lesbians living in Los Angeles. She built and managed the salon, then called the Sally Hershberger at John Frieda Salon, and cultivated the considerable talent there, including queen colorist Negin Zand.

But when Hershberger split with Frieda in 2006 to focus on other projects, including two Manhattan salons, her namesake hair-care line and a gig on Bravo TV's hair-styling competition, "Shear Genius," the salon's luster began to fade like 8-week-old highlights. Now the tension between old and new is reshaping the loyalties of the stylists' oh-so-pampered clientele.

For those who think this is much ado about nothing, remember that in Hollywood, hair can be a shortcut to fame and fortune. Jose Eber made his name with his winged style for Farrah Fawcett, and Chris McMillan's "Rachel" cut for Jennifer Aniston spawned a million look-alikes. Before Jon Peters was a producer and studio chief, he was clipping the head of Barbra Streisand. And Warren Beatty got a career boost playing a sexy Beverly Hills stylist in the 1975 film "Shampoo." His character was based on Jay Sebring, the consummate ladies' man (who was killed, along with Sharon Tate and others, in the brutal Manson murders).