What Happened to the Witch Hats in Harry Potter?

[View on the web]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( News [Why Alex Jones, Mike Cernovich, and Joe Rogan Are All Selling Skin Care]( Alex Jones, the man who once said that the government is using “[gay bombs](” that “turn the frogs gay,” is getting into skin care. The founder of Infowars, Jones is infamous for espousing conspiracy theories, like that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was [faked]( by the government or that the government [controls the weather](. But on his online store, nestled among emergency survival gear and supplements like [the “Real Red Pill”]( (which claims to “support optimal cognitive function”), there exists an unlikely little collection of skin care called Emric’s Essentials. Since skin care is typically considered a [vain enterprise for women](, it might come as a surprise that the [extremely macho]( Alex Jones sells his own. But interest in skin care is booming, with [projections]( that it’ll grow to a $135 billion industry by 2021; the most vigorously expanding category is natural and organic skin care, which is estimated to grow 10 percent from 2016 to 2025. So when you’re Alex Jones, a media personality who traffics in pseudoscience and fear, an industry like skin care [prone to pseudoscience]( (and a little dose of fear) becomes an excellent market opportunity. Jones isn’t the only hypermacho, conspiracy-loving internet personality to hawk skin care, either. So I decided to look into these new, surprising ventures — and, of course, try the products myself. Mike Cernovich, the self-branded “[American Nationalist](” who’s best known for broadcasting the [Pizzagate]( conspiracy, is also the founder of Gorilla Mind, a “cognitive enhancement” brand that promises to “unlock human potential.” In addition to selling three cognitive enhancement supplements (a.k.a. nootropics), Gorilla Rush, Gorilla Mind Smooth, and Gorilla Dream, the brand offers its latest product, a “[youth serum](,” much like the kind sold by [the Ordinary](. UFC commentator and comedian Joe Rogan, whose hugely popular podcast covers diet and fitness alongside [conspiracy theories](, is a partner and promoter of Onnit Labs. The company specializes in nootropics but also sells workout equipment, branded apparel, and several personal care products such as toothpaste and deodorant. Common among these brands, and their founders, is a strong, almost pervasive misogyny and heightened male anxiety. “Modern feminism is anti-woman! Modern feminism is anti-goddess,” Jones growls in an [interview]( with former Breitbart editor [Milo Yiannopoulos](. In another[video](, Jones opines about the dangers of “soy boys” or “beta males,” claiming that “it’s critical for people to understand the soy boys get together and mimic their bosses … who wear camouflage uniforms of Patagonia vests and little skinny jeans and all the rest of it … so that other alpha males that are left, despite the chemical warfare and the social warfare and the biological warfare, don’t know that they’re being taken control of and being enslaved.” [Read the rest of the story here>>]( Ad from our sponsor Feature [Why Harry Potter’s Witch Hats Disappeared and Jedis Wear Robes]( On Twitter earlier in June, [nerds were arguing]( about whether Obi-Wan Kenobi’s iconic hooded brown cloak makes logical sense for the character. It hinged on the fact that when we first meet him in hiding, the cloak is actually a disguise — he’s wearing one so that he’ll blend in on the planet Tatooine, rather than be suspected as the Jedi he truly is. Later in the series, though, that cloak [becomes the actual Jedi costume](, which wouldn’t make sense if it were meant to be inconspicuous. But then another fan [rebutted this theory](, claiming that the Jedis’ earth-toned robes aren’t all that different from what everyone else in the Star Wars universe wears, and that it would make sense for the Jedis who study under Obi-Wan to naturally adopt his style. Anyway, the whole thing was all very nerdy, and it ended the way literally no argument on the internet has ever ended: with both parties politely disagreeing while also complimenting each other. But it made me think of a different, extremely nerdy, and equally non-timely debate: What happened to the fucking witch hats in Harry Potter? In the first scene of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (and we’re talking about the films here, so shut up, even though I, like you, have also read the books one zillion times), Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall wear pointed hats as they walk through Privet Drive. The hats show up again in the crowds of Diagon Alley, on the teachers at Hogwarts, and, of course, on the students in the Great Hall at the end of the film, before they throw them all up in the air in celebration. But after the first film, witches’ hats are all pretty much sidelined in the series, save on the head of McGonagall (so much so that it becomes one of the defining aspects of her image, but even she mostly abandons them by the end), and, of course, the Sorting Hat. It’s part of a larger trend of the movies to downplay the 17th-century-inspired wizard fashions the book describes; when Harry, Hermione, and Ron return to Hogwarts in the final film, none of the students are wearing robes at all. It’s a small but noticeable inconsistency, and one that’s made starker by a memorable part of the Goblet of Fire book (yes, we’re talking books now) when an old Ministry wizard thinks a nightgown is acceptable to wear in the Muggle public. (Because he “likes a healthy breeze round my privates, thanks.”) There are also repeated references in the books to how strange Harry finds witches and wizards dressed as Muggles, whereas in the films, adults like Mr. and Ms. Weasley and members of the Order of the Phoenix are frequently shown wearing average-looking (if a little quirky) clothes. [Read the rest of the story here >>]( Did a friend forward you this email? [Sign up for the Racked email newsletter](. [MORE GOOD STUFF TO READ TODAY](#) - [California Bill Would Make Companies Add Women to Their Boards]( - [Why Celebrities Keep Calling Hotel Toiletries Racist]( - [Trump Chose a Crooked Tie and Wrinkled Pants for His Meeting with Kim Jong Un]( - [Kat Von D’s an Anti-Vaxxer — Will It Sink Her Brand?]( - [Why Those Free Bikinis on Instagram Aren’t Really Free]( Ad from our sponsor From the Archives A selection from the editors at Racked [Ocean's 8 movie]( [All the Fashion Easter Eggs in Ocean’s 8]( There’s a big one on Sandra Bullock’s Met Gala gown. [Read More]( [A couple in a store]( [Why Do Couples Shop Together?]( We shop with partners to avoid risk, get attention, and bond. [Read More]( Ad from our sponsor [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Manage your [email preferences]( or [unsubscribe]( to stop receiving emails from Racked. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2016. All rights reserved.