A toothbrush moustache (also called a Hitler moustache due to its most famous use being by Adolf Hitler) is a bushy moustache, shaved at the edges, except for three to five centimetres above the centre of the lip. The sides of the moustache are vertical rather than tapered.
This moustache is most famous for having been worn by German dictator Adolf Hitler, although it was worn earlier by movie star Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin took advantage of this unlikely similarity between the two men for his role parodying Hitler in The Great Dictator. The style is now unpopular in the West due to its strong association with Hitler. According to an blank">essay written by a fellow soldier who served with Hitler during World War I, Hitler had a longer mustache in the "Kaiser" style, but was ordered to clip it so that it would fit under the respirator masks worn during mustard gas attacks. The prosaic explanation comes in a new biography of the writer Alexander Moritz Frey.
Other sources state that it was adopted by Hitler to provide a visually striking and distinctive appearance when he was attempting to become nationally known as a politician.
In China a trimmer version of this moustache is viewed as a stereotype of Japanese people, especially of Japanese soldiers from the _Second World War. An extreme variant of the toothbrush moustache narrows it to the philtrum only. Robert Mugabe is noted for this style.
Notable people known to sport a toothbrush moustache include:
Well-known fictional characters who sport a toothbrush moustache include:
