1900s
Follies of the Madmen #529
Synesthesia in advertising.
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 07, 2022 -
Comments (1)
Category: Business, Advertising, Fey, Twee, Whimsical, Naive and Sadsack, Children, Cereal, 1900s
The Farmer’s Anti-Automobile Society of Arkansaw
I'm going to assume that there never was a "Farmer's Anti-Automobile Society of Arkansaw" (or any other state) and that the list of road rules they supposedly adopted was early twentieth-century humor meant to poke fun at car-hating farmers.Although some blogs, such as here, seem to think that this list of crazy road rules might have been real.
The Carmen Headlight - Sep 10, 1909
Posted By: Alex - Mon Mar 07, 2022 -
Comments (3)
Category: Clubs, Fraternities and Other Self-selecting Organizations, 1900s, Parody, Cars
The Princess Rajah Dance
Man, that gal's got some strong jaws--as you will see!
Posted By: Paul - Sun Mar 06, 2022 -
Comments (0)
Category: Furniture, Human Marvels, 1900s, Dance
Patented by an insane person
Many patents might seem like they've been invented by an insane person. But as far as I know U.S. Patent No. 711,566 is the only patent that actually describes the inventor (Clark D. Hazard) as "an insane person".The invention itself is unremarkable. It's for a "heating furnace". Evidently Mr. Hazard must have been institutionalized, or otherwise incapable of filing for the patent without assistance. So given this, it's impressive he was able to invent the furnace. But his description still stands out as a curiosity of the patent office.
Posted By: Alex - Fri Feb 25, 2022 -
Comments (3)
Category: Patents, 1900s
Buster’s Joke on Papa
Posted By: Paul - Mon Feb 21, 2022 -
Comments (0)
Category: Animals, Movies, Oceans and Maritime Pursuits, Comics, 1900s, Pranks
Pneumonia Blouse
In the early twentieth century, women began wearing low-necked, gauzy blouses. Conservative critics branded them "pneumonia blouses" — warning that they would cause the women wearing them to catch pneumonia.More info: Jonathan Walford's blog
Example of a pneumonia blouse
Source: Holly Vogue Vintage
I often see young women out and about, dressed completely inappropriately for the cold weather, suffering for the sake of fashion. So the spirit of the pneumonia blouse seems to be alive and well, if not the specific style.
Victorian to Vamp: Women's Clothing 1900-1929, by Paula Jean Darnell
University Daily Kansan - Mar 18, 1920
Posted By: Alex - Sat Feb 05, 2022 -
Comments (3)
Category: Fashion, Health, 1900s
First Pig To Fly
In 1909, a pig (subsequently named Icarus) became the first pig to fly in an airplane.However, as far as I know a pig has never gone beyond the atmosphere into space. I know this because I once briefly had the idea of writing a book titled Pigs in Space about the history of animals in space. But I abandoned the idea when I couldn't find any record of pigs in space. The closest I found was when, in 2005, the Chinese sent some pig sperm into space. I didn't think Pig Sperm in Space would work as a title.
More info about the flying pig: londonist.com
image source: waymarking.com
Saskatoon Star-Phoenix - Nov 25, 1909
Posted By: Alex - Sat Jan 29, 2022 -
Comments (5)
Category: Animals, Air Travel and Airlines, 1900s
The Ordinances of Lancaster, South Carolina, 1903
We've all seen those features that dig up "Crazy Laws Still on the Books." But how did such ordinances ever first get established? By big and small towns trying to regulate every human behavior they could think of.Here are a few choice samples from a randomly chosen place!
Source: The Lancaster News (Lancaster, South Carolina) 16 May 1903
No public marble playing
No annoying churchgoers
No hookers
No tramps, cardsharps or fortune tellers
No dirks or slingshots
No outward-opening gates
Must ring bicycle bell
No piles of public poop
No bad oysters
To their credit, the officials imposed lots of rules on the cops as well. These are just a few.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jan 19, 2022 -
Comments (2)
Category: Government, Police and Other Law Enforcement, Regionalism, 1900s
Sex on an Animal Hide Rug
The subtext in the ad is obvious. Fur rugs, fake or real, are for making love on. It's the staple of a thousand PLAYBOY cartoons.But where did the trope originate? Most likely with writer Elinor Glyn. Her novel THREE WEEKS (read it here) featured such a scene that became so notorious, it inspired some doggerel.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 02, 2022 -
Comments (0)
Category: Animals, Domestic, Books, 1900s, 1970s, Sex
A Tough Dance
Posted By: Paul - Sat Oct 16, 2021 -
Comments (3)
Category: Movies, 1900s, Dance
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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, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. 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. Contact Us |