lunatic fringe

[Joel S. Berson]

At 10/8/2009 01:11 PM, Shapiro, Fred wrote:
>...Below are some citations:
>
>1874 _Oliver Optic's Magazine_ Feb. 140 ff. (American Periodical Series)
>"The girls!" exclaimed Miss Lizzie, lifting her eyebrows till they met the
>"lunatic fringe" of hair which straggled uncurled down her forehead.

I see an 1876, in 19th Century U.S. Newspapers (Gale):

Inter Ocean, (Chicago, IL) Wednesday, May 24, 1876; pg. 2; Issue 52;
col F ("People and Things):
"The 'lunatic fringe' is still the mode in New York hair-dressing."

And (but not exactly the same as above) in
      St. Louis Globe-Democrat, (St. Louis, MO) Sunday, May 28, 1876;
pg. 2; Issue 9; col C
and
      Daily Evening Bulletin, (San Francisco, CA) Saturday, June 03,
1876; Issue 49; col G

Joel


>1877 _Christian Union_ 14 Mar. 234 (American Periodical Series)  "LUNATIC
>fringe" is the name giving [sic] in New York to the fashion of cropping
>the hair and letting the ends hang down over the forehead.
>...

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