Penciled mustaches was Justin Bieber's tribute to John Waters

Teen heartthrob drew on his own pencil-thin mustache after meeting filmmaker

Baltimore's bawdy John Waters and teenage heartthrob Justin Bieber have a little something in common.

Facial hair.

Justin's, of course, hangs over his eyes — those famously floppy bangs. Waters' creeps across his upper lip.

And now, young Justin, one of the hottest stars on the planet, has let the world know he covets the filmmaker's trademark, pencil-thin mustache.

The two shared the sofa last week as guests on Britain's "The Graham Norton Show." Bieber was there being a heartthrob, while Waters promoted his book "Role Models."

Not long after the shrieking died down from Bieber's introduction, the 16-year-old asked if he could say something. He leaned across to Waters' end of the couch and pronounced as only a teen could: "Your 'stache is the jam."

"Thank you. Thank you very much," Waters replied, a big smile on his face. He then pulled an eyebrow pencil from his pocket and handed it down to Bieber, saying, "If you want to try it…. Can I draw it on you?"

Bieber took the pen but declined Waters' offer of artistry. "I'm good," he demurred. "Maybe later."

Sure enough, as soon as the show ended, while backstage Bieber drew on a version of the mustache, which Waters has said was inspired by Little Richard.

Waters said Monday morning that Bieber's tribute of sorts flattered him and cracked him up.

"It really made me laugh when I saw it," Waters said. "It was the last thing I expected."

Paparazzi snapped seemingly millions of shots of Bieber with the mustache, with no idea it had anything to do with John Waters. In fact, a story in London's Daily Mail sort of scolded Bieber for the drawn-on facial hair, calling it a sign of his immaturity, after reporters spotting the rock star leaving an upscale Indian restaurant with it — apparently he kept it on for dinner.

Waters said he's a Bieber fan, who already owns his first album and plans to purchase the second. His favorite hit? "Baby."

"I'm a fan of the whole phenomenon — being 16 and so famous you can't leave your house," Waters said. "I think he's the only person that can cause an international incident by trimming his bangs. I hope that his hair is cut hourly."

While together on the show, Waters managed to get Bieber to sign a bottle of Proactiv, the acne treatment that the teen star endorses. Waters said he not only admires Bieber's bangs, but his ability to keep his forehead blemish free beneath them."

"I am the only person in the entire world that owns an autographed, Justin Bieber-approved pimple medicine," Waters said, laughing. "I'm going to keep it. Are you kidding? I'm going to display it — and if I ever get a pimple, maybe I'll use it."

THE BALTIMORE SUN

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