September 2015
September 27, 2015
Groovy Dentist
"Groovy people should wear groovy clothes," said San Francisco dentist Rodney Pain in 1971. "That way we turn on the whole world."Pain embodied this ideal by doing away with the white tunic typically worn by dentists and always wearing groovy clothes instead.
Dr. Pain sounded familiar, and then I realized that I've posted about him before. He's the same guy who made the news in 1966 because he played bagpipes for his patients while waiting for their fillings to set.
Well, I assume it's the same guy. How many dentists named Rodney Pain could there be in San Francisco?
Note that in the 1966 photo, he isn't yet wearing groovy clothes.
Colorado Springs Gazette - Mar 5, 1971
Dr. Rodney Pain in 1966, playing bagpipes
Posted By: Alex - Sun Sep 27, 2015 -
Comments (5)
Category: Medicine, 1970s
African Pygmy Thrills
Posted By: Paul - Sun Sep 27, 2015 -
Comments (2)
Category: Ethnic Groupings, Stereotypes and Cliches, Travel, 1930s, Africa
September 26, 2015
Science Quiz
Try this science test and see how you score.
Posted By: Alex - Sat Sep 26, 2015 -
Comments (20)
Category: Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Quizzes, Science
Jayne Mansfield’s Hand
1958: Journalist tries to record in words the exact sensation of touching Jayne Mansfield's hand.I had never seen the phrase "gone sensation" and thought maybe it was a typo, but Merriam-Webster defines it as "a feeling of faintness or weakness."
Spokane Daily Chronicle - Apr 17, 1958
KINGSVILLE, Texas, April 17. — Jake Trussell of the Kingsville Record held hands with Jayne Mansfield while posing for a photograph during a news conference.
"I must report exactly how it felt to hold her hand," Trussell told his readers. "The sensation I got was of a long personalized sort of slightly over-heated peach fuzz expanse, or perhaps the snuggly softness of a glamorized baby duck's down. Anyway, it was a real gone sensation."
A picture of Miss Mansfield and Trussell showed that she was wearing gloves.
Posted By: Alex - Sat Sep 26, 2015 -
Comments (13)
Category: Celebrities, Sex Symbols, 1950s
The Violaeol
Original article here.
In 1935, one Alfred Grosjean (as named in a separate TIME magazine article) invented the "violaeol."
Some years later, luthier Josh Rieck recreated one for his own use.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Sep 26, 2015 -
Comments (2)
Category: Inventions, Music, 1930s
September 25, 2015
The Stout Scarab
The 1936 Stout Scarab is referred to by some as the first minivan. Its definitely one cool car!
Posted By: Alex - Fri Sep 25, 2015 -
Comments (4)
Category: Design and Designers, 1930s, Cars, Yesterday’s Tomorrows
Tarantula on a plane
The crew of a Delta Airlines flight from Baltimore to Atlanta decided that everyone had to switch to a new plane when they learned that a baboon tarantula was loose on board. The tarantula had somehow escaped from its cargo shipment container.The tarantula was later found. It had never made its way into the passenger compartment. But still, a good decision to switch planes. I can imagine passengers would have freaked out if they had been surprised by a baboon tarantula crawling down the aisle. [11alive.com]
Check out the video below to see a baboon tarantula in action.
Posted By: Alex - Fri Sep 25, 2015 -
Comments (7)
Category: Insects and Spiders, Air Travel and Airlines
Trompe l’oeil in the Villa Barbaro
Wikipedia entry here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Sep 25, 2015 -
Comments (2)
Category: Architecture, Art, Europe, Sixteenth Century
September 24, 2015
Fine Art on Billboards
1963: In response to polls indicating that a majority of the public disliked billboards along highways and were in favor of banning them, the O'Mealia Outdoor Advertising Corp. began displaying fine art masterpieces on a handful of its billboards throughout New Jersey. The idea was to show that billboards could be educational and instructive, and that they should be thought of as "the public's art gallery." Among the masterpieces displayed were Da Vinci's Mona Lisa and Gainsborough's Blue Boy.Cute idea, but it must have been difficult for motorists to fully appreciate a masterpiece as they sped by it at 60 mph. Perhaps those stuck in traffic jams could admire the art.
link: Popular Science - Oct 1965
Posted By: Alex - Thu Sep 24, 2015 -
Comments (4)
Category: Art, Museums, 1960s
Mystery Illustration 10
This Scout is signalling for what now?
Visit link, then scroll down.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Sep 24, 2015 -
Comments (10)
Category: Clubs, Fraternities and Other Self-selecting Organizations, Signage, 1980s
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction books such as Elephants on Acid. 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. Contact Us |
