Dumb Blonde

"What's the big idea? Am I dumb or something? "

— Lina Lamont in Singin' in the Rain

Basic Information

She's not the sharpest tool in the shed. She's not brightest bulb in the marquee. She moves her lips when she reads the cereal box. She's a Dumb Blonde.

She's not always a ditz. She may just be less smart than the Brainy One. Or maybe she's never had to be book smart because she gets by on her looks. Or she may be shrewd and calculating in her own way and using her looks to her own advantage

Sources

Bibliography

1. TV Tropes Wiki entry

Game and Story Use

• The Dumb Blonde is an over-used cliché, but it makes an easy visual shorthand to describe a foolish character.
• Or you can play with the sterotype by having a clever blonde character who pretends to be dumb in order to play to people's expectations.
• Or a girl who is not necessarily stupid, but has been under-educated and brought up to be purely decorative (consider Princess Jehnna from Conan The Destroyer - although her purpose was not so much decoration…).
• Doesn't necessarily need to be female - your dumb muscle could be blonde as well. Plays especially well into the preening bodybuilder stereotype.
• Come to think of it, Elan the bard from Order of the Stick is an alarmingly dumb blonde.