In-room grooming at The Queen Mary

The 1936 ocean liner has been docked in Long Beach for decades and now serves as a hotel with original Art Deco staterooms. Restaurants, bars and event spaces fill its decks. The ship looks back at the downtown skyline across the harbor.

Weddings, galas and film shoots on the ship mean guests often need grooming close to their event time. A suite becomes a private barbershop for the length of the appointment, then simply a suite again, with nothing left behind but a sharper reflection.

Discretion is part of the cut.

Ben's background reads like a working biography of the craft: a teenage start, cosmetology school, four barbershops of his own, then television sets, music videos and world tours. He is licensed in barbering and cosmetology in multiple states and cuts every hair type. His specialty is the short cut done properly: skin fades, low and mid tapers, line-ups, 360 waves, beard sculpting and clean head shaves, on straight, wavy, curly and coily hair alike.

From 1126 Queens Hwy, guests are minutes from Hotel Maya, Aquarium of the Pacific and Shoreline Village. Ben covers all of Long Beach and the surrounding areas of Torrance, Downey and South Gate, at the hotel or wherever the day leads.

There is one way to book and it is fast: a call or a text to 608-201-7717. He is available 24/7, including holidays. Haircuts start at $150, the standard daytime rate is $300, and travel distance and time of day set the final number.