Learning to be a hairdresser at age 50

Learning Japanese to speak to relatives in Japan FBI raids home and arrests father Working as a seamstress in Hollywood Learning to be a hairdresser at age 50 Husband George in the 442nd Battalion

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I was 50 then and I relocated to back home and then I decided to go to Bartmore College, and I thought I’ve always wanted to learn hairdressing so at age 50 I’m among the high school graduates. Went to school and learned about cosmetology, and that was a 9-month course and then I had to take a state board. I thought oh my gosh I’m going to flunk this. And I had to go to LA to take the test and take a model and she said Miko, you passed, you missed only one, and I said good. And so now she said you can look for a job. So I went into hairdressing and I did that for 37 years.

Date: June 1, 2018
Location: California, US
Interviewer: Akira Boch
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum

bartmore college cosmetology hairdressing