In the phrase " tall, dark and handsome" what does dark refer to: skin, eyes, hair, all three, or is it a description of personality? I’ve asked several people, and none of them know. I even looked it up in a couple of phrase dictionaries, and there are no entries for it. Anyone have a conclusive answer?
You would never hear of a blond man being called this. Or a short man. However, I am relatively fair skinned, and have blue eyes, yet I am tall and have dark brown hair, and have been called this by people (I am not trying to be an arrogant bastard, but just trying to prove a point).
I think the person needs to be tall, have dark hair, and then, of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Eye color and skin color are not quite as important.
I always thought of the “dark” as “mysterious,” not actually denoting that the guy’s a baddie.
The women I’ve polled all say that “dark” refers to color, not personality. There is a film retrospective on Cary Grant in L.A. this weekend. It’s called “Cary Grant, Tall, Dark, and Handsome”
Judging by his onscreen personality, Cary Grant did not have a “dark” personality. However, he did have dark hair and usually sported a tan.