Inductive Nasal Device

Norman Lake's cure for the common cold. Otherwise known as the "IND".


More info: Chicago Tribune - Nov 20, 1985

Chambersburg Public Opinion - Apr 23, 1982

Arizona Republic - May 8, 1982

Posted By: Alex - Mon Sep 10, 2018 - Comments (1)
Category: Health, Inventions, 1980s

Hero Dog of the Year

In 1954, Ken-L Ration Dog Food began awarding a prize to the "Hero Dog of the Year." Sponsorship switched to Kibbles 'n' Bits at some point.

Here is a list of some winners.

The latest year I can find when the award was given was 2004.

The American Humane Society seems to have taken over, or rebooted the award.


In any case, the award gives us a chance here at WU to carry forward one of our earliest missions: proving that cows are the most evil and deadly creature on the planet.







Article behind NYT paywall, alas.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Aug 30, 2018 - Comments (1)
Category: Animals, Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Dogs, 1950s, 1980s

Microwaveable Ice Cream Sundaes

Johnston's Hot Scoop Microwave Sundae is one of those products where you have to wonder what was going through the minds of the executives who dreamed it up. Introduced in the mid-1980s, the concept was that it was an entire, frozen ice cream sundae that you could heat in the microwave, and (in theory) only the topping would melt.

In practice, the ice cream also inevitably melted, leaving consumers with a soggy mix of ice cream and topping. And yet the company went to all the effort to make this thing because they figured it would be too difficult for people to just heat the topping on its own.



A review of the product:

Minneapolis Star Tribune - July 16, 1986

Posted By: Alex - Mon Jul 30, 2018 - Comments (4)
Category: Food, Products, 1980s

Frozen Foods

Technically, their business did involve the handling and preparation of meat.

Pensacola News Journal - Nov 10, 1980

And it seems that the Elliot-Hamil Funeral Home is still around. Their website.

Posted By: Alex - Sat Jul 28, 2018 - Comments (1)
Category: Death, Food, 1980s

Does seltzer water help plants grow?

In 1980, Canfield's natural seltzer launched a campaign to promote its product as being great for watering house plants. It printed on its labels: "We recommend our natural seltzer for house plants."

Could there have been any truth to this claim? Is seltzer water actually good for plants? Well, the only vaguely scientific study I can find addressing this claim (after, admittedly, only a brief search) was a student project conducted at the University of Colorado Boulder in 2002. The student researchers concluded, "Plants given carbonated water not only grew faster but also developed a healthier shade of green in comparison to plants given tap water."

So, maybe Canfield's was onto something. However, if you're thinking of treating your plants to some seltzer water, I imagine you'd want to use water at room temperature, not refrigerated. Cold water might shock their systems.

Marysville Journal-Tribune - June 9, 1980

Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer - May 19, 1980

Posted By: Alex - Thu Jul 19, 2018 - Comments (12)
Category: Nature, Science, Environmentalism and Ecology, Experiments, 1980s

The CGI of 1985

1985 Clio Award winning Television commercial done for Canned Foods Information Council by San Francisco ad agency of Ketchum Communications. [This] spot, "Brilliance," won in Computer Animation category and featured a voice-over by motion picture star, Kathleen Turner.

Posted By: Paul - Fri Jul 06, 2018 - Comments (2)
Category: Anthropomorphism, Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Business, Advertising, Food, Robots, Computers, Special Effects, 1980s

Cremation by solar power

Patent #US4781174A:


Seems like something a James Bond villain would create, if he were in the funeral business.

Posted By: Alex - Mon Jul 02, 2018 - Comments (7)
Category: Death, Inventions, 1980s

Presto Wine

It was powdered wine. You just added some water and sugar, let it sit for a month, and you had wine. For dirt cheap. The stuff was briefly available in the mid-1980s, but then it seems to have fallen afoul of lawmakers who were worried about kids being able to buy this stuff in stores (where it was sold as a food product, no age requirement for purchase).

Wilmington Morning News - May 24, 1984

Popular Mechanics - Feb 1984

Wilmington News Journal - Apr 21, 1984

Posted By: Alex - Sun Jun 10, 2018 - Comments (4)
Category: 1980s, Alcohol

The Statue of Liberty Urine Stain Controversy

During restoration of the Statue of Liberty in 1986, the restorers noticed an area low on the statue where the patina was worn away and speculated that the damage might have been caused by construction workers urinating from the top of the statue instead of coming down to use a toilet.

Officials vehemently disagreed, insisting that the damage was actually caused by "a vinegar-like solution workers recently used in the process of stripping layers of paint inside the statue."

Perhaps the officials were right, but I prefer the urine stain explanation.

New York Daily News - May 8, 1986

Asbury Park Press - May 9, 1986

Posted By: Alex - Sat May 26, 2018 - Comments (1)
Category: Statues and Monuments, Body Fluids, 1980s

Rock ‘n’ Roll Underwear

From Omni magazine (Aug 1981): "The latest discotechnological breakthrough is an item called Rock and Roll Hot Pants. By wiring your shorts or panties to a stereo speaker with a 15-foot cord, which relays the music to a two inch disc on your waistband,”you get an incredible tingle all over your body,” claims inventor David Lloyd."

Santa Rosa Press Democrat - Jan 27, 1981

Omni magazine - August 1981

Posted By: Alex - Sat May 12, 2018 - Comments (6)
Category: Inventions, Music, Underwear, 1980s