Bishop, Hazel

Hazel Bishop, in full Hazel Gladys Bishop, (born Aug. 17, 1906, Hoboken, N.J., U.S.—died Dec. 5, 1998, Rye, N.Y.), American chemist and businesswoman who is best remembered as the inventor of the cosmetics line that bore her name.

Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929 and attended graduate night courses at Columbia University. From 1935 to 1942 she was an assistant in a dermatologic laboratory, after which she took a job as an organic chemist with the Standard Oil Development Company (1942–45); she then worked in a similar capacity for the Socony Vacuum Oil Company (1945–50).

In 1949, after a long series of home experiments, Bishop perfected a lipstick that stayed on the lips longer than any other product then available. The following year she formed Hazel Bishop, Inc., to manufacture her “Lasting Lipstick.” The “kiss-proof” lipstick was a great success in the market, and rival manufacturers soon introduced similar products. Bishop was president of the firm until November 1951, when she resigned in a dispute with the majority stockholder. Her lawsuit over the corporation’s mismanagement was settled in 1954, by which time Hazel Bishop, Inc., had annual sales in excess of $10 million.

Bishop then organized Hazel Bishop Laboratories to conduct research into consumer-oriented chemical products. A leather cleaner was developed in 1955 and other personal care and cosmetic products followed, and various companies were formed to manufacture the products. In November 1962 Bishop became a registered agent for the brokerage firm of Bache and Company. She was successful on Wall Street and some years later became a financial analyst for Evans and Company. In 1978 she became associated with Manhattan’s Fashion Institute of Technology, specializing in cosmetics marketing.