Al Longmire began cutting hair in Tucson nearly 60 years ago. Three decades ago, Longmire opened his own shop at 861 E. Grant Road.
On Saturday, Alβs Barbershop closed its doors for the final time.
βIt went fast,β Longmire told the Star shortly before closing his shop. βI met great people and itβs just been a wonderful experience.β
Longmire called the shop his second home.
The shopβs patrons hailed from all walks of life. Longmire cut the hair of former baseball and football phenom Bo Jackson. Longmire was once visited by famed rapper Big Daddy Kane, and golfed with NFL Hall of Fame Jerome Bettis. Former NFL tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, an ex-Wildcat, stopped for a haircut when he visited Tucson last October.
Longmire also remembered cutting the hair for one of his personal favorites, White Sox slugger Frank Thomas. βThe Big Hurtβ and his Chicago teammates held spring training at Kino Stadium.
NBA veteran Jason Terry, who played on the University of Arizonaβs national championship team in 1997, tweeted Saturday that heβll miss his old barbershop.
βHairline ainβt been the same but the memories last forever never had to wait in line at Alβs shop,β Terry wrote on Twitter.
Damon Stoudamire, a former UA player and coach and NBA star who is now the head coach at University of the Pacific, tweeted: βAl thanks for the memories. You made the barbershop home to lots of young men throughout the years,β he said. βYou inspired a lot of people. Thanks! Now go enjoy the golf course. You deserve it!β
The 78-year-old Longmire got his start in 1959 at JTβs Barbershop on South Meyer Street, according to Star archives.
βWhen I started, each haircut was a new adventure,β Longmire told the Star in 2008. βNow a lot of them are old adventures, repeated.β
Those experiences couldβve been different for Longmire, who originally thought heβd serve in the Navy. He changed his mind after a visit to Tucson got him to rethink his path. He would soon start work as a young barber, following in his fatherβs footsteps.
It was Longmireβs dedication to his work that gained him clients when first starting. All those actions led him to owning his own shop in the strip mall on Grant Road for nearly three decades.
Longmire wonβt be hanging up his clippers for good, but hopes for more time to golf. Heβs planning on helping out Tommie Clardy II, a barber he helped mentor who is opening his own shop on Speedway .
