From the 1930s to the 1970s Lar "America First" Daly ran for just about every elective office, including Senator, President, Governor, and Mayor. He never won. This may have had something to do with his campaign slogan: "America First -- or Death."
He campaigned wearing an Uncle Sam suit. He would promote his candidacy by driving around Chicago in a sound truck. (Is this where the Blues Brothers got the idea?) When not campaigning, he earned a living by operating a chair and stool company out of the garage behind his house.
Some of the issues he supported:
• Any witness who invokes the 5th amendment to the constitution should be sent to prison.
• Known dope peddlers should be shot on sight (after first receiving a seven day warning to get out of town).
He described himself as "known throughout America as Sen. Douglas MacArthur's greatest supporter." He filed MacArthur's name for President in every election from 1936 onwards.
In the 1950s he boasted that he was the only candidate "100 per cent behind" Sen. McCarthy's investigations into domestic Communist activities.
He told President Truman that he wanted to accompany the crew of the first American plane to fly over Moscow so that he could release the atomic bomb over the Kremlin.
But his real claim to fame came from his constant demands to be given equal time whenever a mainstream candidate appeared on air, citing Section 315 of the Communications Act, the so-called "equal time" provision. Because of him, Congress amended the law so that broadcasters didn't always have to give equal time.
Once he was effectively barred from free air time, he began buying ads in newspapers. An example of one is reproduced below. He died in 1978.
and the Afternoon Edition of Chuck's News of the Weird Daily for Wednesday
Least competent garbage taker-outer: age 74; trash gets stuck in chute; he reaches way down, waaaaaaay down, to dislodge it. The Columbian via Seattle Times
This Australian woman finally, after years of bewilderment, got a medical explanation for why, even after scrubdowns, she still smelled like rotten fish. Australian Associated Press via News.com.au
Once again: Why is it so damn easy for drivers to accidentally turn onto railroad tracks (and then so damn hard to get off once they're on)? (This guy drove on for a mile before getting stuck.) Metrowest Daily News (Framingham, Mass.)
German photographer Bernd Hagemann gets good ink 'n' pixels about his specialty: capturing the varieties of sleepers in China taking naps, in all places, on all surfaces (more than 600 so far). Daily Telegraph (London)
It's a commune on Haight Street in San Francisco so we know what must be going on there! (Wrong. They are the super-religious, passing the days in continuous prayer for divine intervention to pass Proposition 8, the state's man-woman marriage constitutional amendment.) Los Angeles Times
A Danish art collective has made a walking house (like, for protection against floods, where the house can just run for higher ground). Looks kinda like that thingy in Wild Wild West (1999). Has a toilet, kitchen, wood stove, more. The Sun (London)
Professor Music's Weird Link
Well, not a weird link today but a nice collection of those Jay Leno-type "headlines." You can waste some serious quality time here. criggo.wordpress.com
Today's Newsrangers: Scott Langill, Karl Olson, Candy Clouston, Jeff Leiboff Comments on the Afternoon Edition of Chuck's News of the Weird Daily for Wednesday? Comments 'cycle_081022'
These ridiculous shoes come in many different styles at the J. Rubio website. I saw a guy wearing a pair when I was passing through an airport recently, and he looked like the dorkiest dork that ever dorked.
The verdict is still out, however, on whether wearing them will turn you into the mythic monster known as Spring-heeled Jack.
and the Morning Edition of Chuck's News of the Weird Daily for Wednesday
Next Fashion Frontier for Women: Designer Foot Surgery
London't Daily Mail says it has learned of "a number of" women (only two gave interviews) who are reporting for cosmetic surgery to cure awful, awful problems such as fat toes and shapeless ankles, which inhibit wearing those luscious "peep-toe" shoes. Recovery time from foot surgery is typically six months, but, hey, small price to pay. And business is expected to pick up for surgeons now that eight-inch stilettos are debuting. Daily Mail Comments 'designer_feet'
Latest Negative-Cash-Flow Robbery
He decided to go for the cash register contents at the Grizzly Gas station, but only after putting $2 on the counter for a Snickers bar. However, the clerk slammed the drawer shut and backed away, and the robber fled, with neither the booty nor the candy nor his two bucks. Colorado Daily (Boulder) via KMGH-TV (Denver) Comments 'negative_cashflow'
Your Daily Loser
Jose Diaz, 35, Lorain, Ohio, making a run for it after swiping a camera at a Wal-Mart, suffered two quick smackdowns. first, from the front door (it's glass; it looks "open"), then from a concrete post in the parking lot. Morning Journal (Lorain) [with mugshot, after cuts were sorta-cleaned-up] Comments 'jose_diaz'
Your Daily Jury Duty [no fair examining the evidence; verdict must be based on mugshot only]
Could it possibly be true that Joseph Young, 30, Bradenton, Fla., is the man who was caught in a supermarket with not one, but several, bags of frozen shrimp stuffed down his pants? Associated Press via WTSP-TV (St. Petersburg) Comments 'joseph_young'
More Things to Worry About on Wednesday
New Zealand care-givers complain that their company was trying to make them perform stress-relief handjobs on disabled patients. Nelson Mail
Recession hits Wisconsin bank robber: couldn't afford a mask?Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee)
Various federal agencies gave at least $5B in contracts targeted to "small businesses" that long ago outgrew smallness, and it's been a chronic problem, apparently. (Bonus: The real scandal, though, is that even when the gov't properly applies its criteria, "small business" ain't Joe The Plumber. They're huge small businesses.) Washington Post
Iran's getting nervous again about what they assume is omniscient U.S. spy technology. Just as last year, they're complaining about "spy pigeons," i.e., actual birds that turn up in the neighborhood of their nuclear complex, wired with "invisible string" and metal rings. Agence France-Presse via Yahoo
News to drive the proprietors of WeirdUniverse.net nuts: Thanks to sensors and computer algorithms, there's a houseplant on a store counter in Japan that is creating a daily blog, and you know damn well it gets way-more hits than we get. Daily Telegraph (London)
Update: By the way, The Smoking Gun posted the mug shot and police report of our car-wash vacuum guy from yesterday. The Smoking Gun
Comments on More Things to Worry About on Wednesday? Comments 'worry_081022'
Henry Krajewski, New Jersey pig farmer, was the self-proclaimed candidate of the Poor Man's Party. He ran three times for president, in 1952, 1956 and 1960. Plus, he ran for Governor and Senator. His most successful campaign was his 1954 run for Senator, in which he got 23,000 votes. He didn't win, but he was credited with being a spoiler, his votes enabling Republican candidate Clifford Case to win a close election over Democrat Charles Howell.
Krajewski campaigned with a pig under his arm. The pig, he said, "squeals like the people for a fair deal." His slogan was "No piggy deals in Washington." He also promised "more beer parties for the poor man" as well as "free milk for all school children with the cost paid by the Government."
He chose the pig as his symbol because he felt it symbolized peace and prosperity. The reasoning behind this was a) it was a gentle animal; and b) there was no waste on it (all the parts are eaten).
He raised funds for his campaign through the sale of a polka record: "Hey, Krajewski!"
He favored a two-president system because "if you had a Democrat and a Republican in the White House at the same time, they'd be so busy watching each other that there would be no danger of a dictatorship." He was also a supporter of Joseph McCarthy and his campaign to root out suspected communists.
and the Morning Edition of Chuck's News of the Weird Daily for Tuesday
The woman in the bubble clashes with zoning law
Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes supposedly has that-there environmental illness, where the cause of feeling like crap is, um, everything, you name it. She doesn't go around in a Travolta Bubble [The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, 1976] but rather splits time between her sorta-tinfoil-lined house and a special shed in the yard (that violates several zoning laws and drives neighbors crazy). A judge said she's got til the end of the month to take down the shed. The disorder of "multiple chemical sensitivity" is a label for most of what this woman has, but the jury is still out on whether people like her are troubled more by their minds than by the environment. Associated Press via USA Today Comments 'bubble_woman'
People Whose Sex Lives Are Worse Than Yours
Readers' Choice: A 29-yr-old man was arrested at a car wash in Thomas Township, Mich., when a cop spotted him, well, "receiving sexual favors from a vacuum" is how he put it. No other details, fortunately. Saginaw News [UPDATE: The Smoking Gun is on the case.] Comments 'carwash_vacuum'
Your Daily Jury Duty [no fair examining the evidence; verdict must be based on mugshot only]
Did Thomas Garling, 57, take kindly to being dumped by a girlfriend, or does he look like he'd be stalking her long afterward? Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, Ill.) Comments 'thomas_garling'
More Things to Worry About on Tuesday
You'd think the Canada Revenue Agency (these 7 offices, anyway) would lock their doors up securely at night, what with all that personal tax data they have. Canadian Press via Edmonton Sun
Out or not, one of these guys seriously needs to consider a name change. Gainesville Sun
ABC News discovers that the F State is weird. (And they say serious journalism is on the wane!) ABC News
Comments on More Things to Worry About on Tuesday? Comments 'worry_081021'
Editor's Note
Do not adjust your set. The problem is not with your equipment; it's just that the news juice is weak this morning. Not my fault. It's so bad, even, that I won't even insult you with an afternoon post today. Please come back tomorrow. Today's Newsrangers: Perry Levin, Candy Clouston, Keith Yearman, Cindy Hildebrand (and thanks also to a whole bunch of people who sent me that vacuum story)
Paul Di Filippo
Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1.
Chuck Shepherd
Chuck is the purveyor of News of the Weird, the syndicated column which for decades has set the gold-standard for reporting on oddities and the bizarre.
Our banner was drawn by the legendary underground cartoonist Rick Altergott.
From the 1930s to the 1970s Lar "America First" Daly ran for just about every elective office, including Senator, President, Governor, and Mayor. He never won. This may have had something to do with his campaign slogan: "America First -- or Death."
Henry Krajewski, New Jersey pig farmer, was the self-proclaimed candidate of the Poor Man's Party. He ran three times for president, in 1952, 1956 and 1960. Plus, he ran for Governor and Senator. His most successful campaign was his 1954 run for Senator, in which he got 23,000 votes. He didn't win, but he was credited with being a spoiler, his votes enabling Republican candidate Clifford Case to win a close election over Democrat Charles Howell.
Category: Strange Candidates