Category:
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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