'A man's haircut in a man's shop'

I used to get my haircut there when I was like 5

Generations still trust their hair to barber
Bill KnightEl Paso Times
It is a place where pride still matters.

Barbershops are a diminishing breed, gradually -- one by one -- vanishing into the swirling swarm of the more modern, more fashionable, more chic salons. But set foot into the old building and you know you are stepping back a bit, walking into a piece of history ... into a real barbershop.Trophies and sports memorabilia decorate the walls. Music from B.B. King or from the Big Band era serenades. A shoeshine setup is over in the corner. And Ruben Barragan, just turned 72, holds court as he operates on his latest patient in the chair by the door.The Fox Plaza Barber Shop, 5545 Alameda, has been a special haven for many a customer since the doors opened during the Eisenhower year of 1958. But it really dates back far longer. His father, Mauricio, and four of his five brothers have been trimming El Pasoans' hair since 1915, a 90-year journey of carefully cutting locks, of meticulously practicing an under-appreciated art.And, please, even in today's fast-food society, do not expect this to be a rush job."I don't want anything less than 20 minutes for a haircut," Barragan said. "I have fired barbers for doing it in less than that. If they are more interested in trying to make money than giving a good haircut, then they can go somewhere else. I can see a bad haircut over there," he said, nodding to the last chair in his shop.Laughing, he added, "And I can see one coming in the door, too."What Barragan sees coming in the door most, though, are his own haircuts. He has so many customers who got the first haircut of their lives in his chair."My first haircut was here ... ," Javier Olmos Sr. said. "I've never stopped coming here, even though I hate it when he tells me I'm losing it (hair). But he knew me when I had all of it. I was just a baby when I first came here. There were four of us, and he did all the boys of my family. Flattops -- everybody got flattops. My son got his first haircut here, too. We've even got pictures. He's 15 now and he goes to a stylist."Laughing, Barragan broke in, saying, "Give him a couple of years and he will be back. That's the way it always works. Really."Olmos smiled and said, "I come about once a month. Sometimes, though, I have to walk away and come back. I came here once and seven guys were waiting. Three barbers were sitting down, and all seven were waiting for this guy (Barragan)."Art Tovar, 41, said, "My dad used to bring me here when I was a boy. I got my first haircut here. I was maybe 3 years old at the time ... long time ago. When I got married, I moved to the East Side and I tried other barbershops for about a year. I ended up coming back. This is just the best place to come. They always cut my hair just right, just the way I want it. And I can get my shoes shined at the same time."Barragan smiled, then said loudly, "Ah, listen to that. There's some music. B.B. King. I've got 200 CDs back there, music from the '50s and '40s. The machine holds 50 at a time, so you can be listening all day long."Of course, listening -- and talking -- is part of the job.Barragan deftly works the cut of a young boy, talking a mile a minute all the while ... making anyone marvel ... making one wish people could drive and talk on cell phones as easily. Cuts were $1.75 when the shop opened -- which, really, was before Fox Plaza even opened. They are a modest $8 today, in these times of inflation. The man said he gives about 15 haircuts a day, 25 on a busy day."I'm slowing down a little now," he said. "Fifty years is a long time to be doing this."But it is still more than a job to the man."Oh, I still enjoy it," he said. "I opened this place in 1958, and that was probably the last time I took a vacation. I've been out sick, had some time in the hospital and I usually take my two days off. But I'm still here."With a little creative math and a dash of imagination, one can guess that Barragan must have given somewhere in the vicinity of 90,000 haircuts -- all with attention to detail, each one with professionalism and pride and, of course, not one rushed.His father, Mauricio, died at the young age of 50. He began the family tradition with The Luxury Barber Shop at 508 1/2S. El Paso. The young boys learned at an early age ("We practiced on every kid in the neighborhood," Barragan said.)At one point, in 1957, all four brothers owned the Flamingo Barber Shop at Geronimo and Montana. Hector Barragan now owns El Pipo's on Montana. Two of the brothers, Oscar and Chito, have died; four of Chito's daughters own and operate Barragan's Salon & Spa on South Mesa Hills."Some of my brothers had to go to work right away after my father died," Ruben Barragan said. "But I found a way out of it. I wanted to play football."Barragan was an outstanding 142-pound linebacker at El Paso High, one of the city's very best. He went into the Air Force for the Korean War -- then began cutting hair. His shop became an integral part of the community, sponsoring eight consecutive Golden Glove boxing team championships during 1966-73 and sponsoring a talented softball team for more than 30 years.A walk through the shop is a mini-trek through some of city's sports history.But there are fewer and fewer places like this. The business card tells the tale: "Get a man's haircut in a man's shop." It is a place to come and talk and laugh and remember ... and get a good haircut."There were probably 125 barbershops in the city a few years ago," he said. "Now, I don't think there are 25 left. I'm talking 100 percent barbershops."Barragan and the Fox Plaza Barber Shop remains, basically unchanged -- 100 percent barbershop. But for how long?Smiling, the big man said, "I expect to go out feet first. I've had some health problems. I have a leaky heart valve, so I need an operation. My doctor told me I have to drop 100 pounds. I'm just over halfway there. I swim at the Y most mornings at 5 a.m. I used to jog, but I can't anymore because I'm too heavy. But I'm down to around 290 now. I was up to nearly 350 ... me, the 142-pound linebacker in high school. At one time, I even got up to around 385."But Ruben Barragan, as he puts it, is still there. He is still giving the quality haircuts, offering a smile, a laugh, a word of advice when needed and a special place for so many men ... men who watched their fathers get their hair cut by him, who got their first haircut right there.It is an old-time barbershop that offers any kind of cut; a real barbershop.And a place where pride still lives.