Follies of the Madmen #232

Existential candybars, as only David Cronenberg could direct it.

For more weirdness, try his new novel.

Posted By: Paul - Tue Oct 21, 2014 - Comments (6)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Surrealism, Candy, 1990s

You got the right one, baby, uh-huh

In the early 1990s, Diet Pepsi ran a series of successful ads that featured Ray Charles and the slogan, "You got the right one, baby, uh-huh."


But not everyone liked the ads. Arthur Takeall claimed that Pepsi stole the slogan from him, saying he had used it in his ventriloquism act for years. He would choose an attractive woman in the audience and say, "You've Got The Right One" and his puppet would then say "Uh-huh."

Takeall sued Pepsi for $130 million, but his case was dismissed by the judge. However, in 1997 the Patent and Trademark Office ruled in his favor, deciding that he was entitled to the rights to the slogan, "You got the right one, baby, uh-huh." But as far as I know, it was a bit of a hollow victory since Pepsi never paid him any money.


More about Takeall in the Baltimore Afro-American - May 3, 1997.

Posted By: Alex - Fri Aug 15, 2014 - Comments (6)
Category: Lawsuits, 1990s

Pork Chop Shoes

From the strange legal cases file: Back in 1997, Ross Lucock of Australia won a meat tray during a pub raffle. Informed that he needed to be wearing shoes while in the pub, he proceeded to strap the meat (pork chops) to his feet and parade around the pub, leading to the inevitable accident in which another pub patron slipped on the trail of pork slime and broke his arm. The guy with the broken arm then sued the pub, arguing that it had breached its duty of care by its "failure to remove [Mr. Lucock]... in the knowledge that he was inebriated and was clad with pork chops strapped to his feet." He was awarded $750,000 in damages.

More info at ABA Journal.

Posted By: Alex - Thu Jun 26, 2014 - Comments (12)
Category: Shoes, 1990s

The Telephone Booth Shower

Back in 1996, two East German entrepreneurs came up with the idea of converting old telephone booths into shower stalls. They plumbed up two booths and sold them for 4000 marks each. However, their idea ran aground when Deutsche Telekom refused to sell them any more old booths, fearing that, in the words of their spokesman, "It would be problematic if someone wanted to make an emergency call and ran into the booth that was actually a shower."
[via top.net.nz]

Posted By: Alex - Sun Jun 08, 2014 - Comments (11)
Category: Bathrooms, Telephones, Baths, Showers and Other Cleansing Methods, 1990s

Enjoy the Experience

This 2-disc compilation of "homemade recordings" is pure caviar for all WU-vies. Listen to more at the link below, then buy your copy--which features many other "hits"--soon!

YouTube playlist here.

Posted By: Paul - Fri Feb 21, 2014 - Comments (2)
Category: Hobbies and DIY, Music, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, Cacophony, Dissonance, White Noise and Other Sonic Assaults

FLUKE

I wonder why the trailer neglects to tell us that the dog houses the reincarnated soul of the little kid's father, who croaked in a car accident. Read the synopsis of the rest of the film to learn of its heart-warming tale of death, malevolence, vivisection, and heartbreak. A feel-good pic!

Posted By: Paul - Tue Jan 28, 2014 - Comments (4)
Category: Disguises, Impersonations, Mimics and Forgeries, Movies, New Age, Religion, Superstition, Dogs, 1990s

The Day Today

A UK comedy show from 20 years ago, still offering laughs in this era of THE ONION and Borat. Once non-UK listeners get past a few very local allusions.

Full story here.

More episodes on YouTube.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Nov 24, 2013 - Comments (2)
Category: Humor, Television, 1990s, Europe

Duelling Organs

You don't often see musical duels on this instrument--especially between a sixty-two-year-old woman and a seventy-year-old man!

Shirley Scott, Jack McDuff and Duke Jethro. ("Jazz/blues organist/pianist Duke Jethro has played with artists such as Bobby Bland and Freddie King but he's most recognized for his time in B.B. King's band. He was organist for King's classic 'Live at the Regal,' recorded in 1964 in the famous Southside Theater in Chicago.")

Posted By: Paul - Mon Jul 29, 2013 - Comments (1)
Category: Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Music, 1990s

Jimmy Tayoun, Prison Consultant

Jimmy Tayoun was a Philadelphia City Councilman who got busted for accepting bribes and concealing income from the IRS. As a result, he spent some time in a federal prison, but he used the experience to good advantage by penning a 64-page guide of practical advice for those on their way to prison, which was published upon his release in 1995. He titled it, Going To Prison? It seems like a book that deserves a place in any library of the weird. [Allegheny Times]

He also set up a 1-900 number to answer questions from "fearful first-timers," charging them $2.50 a minute to select from a menu of seven topics. In this way, according to wikipedia, he pioneered the profession of "prison consultant" (apparently he was the first to use the term), that being someone who "provides newly convicted criminals with advice on how to cope and survive in the unfamiliar surroundings of prison."

Jimmy's tips included these words of wisdom:

• Bring a good amount of cash if you can.
• Ask the custodial officer for a couple more razors, some more soap, and later for toothpaste. After a while you will learn where it is stored, check the door until you find it open, and help yourself — though never take too much since your lockers do get checked
• See a dentist before serving time
• Be wary of probation officers
• Never snitch on another inmate or guard
• Bring two pairs of eyeglasses, though "nothing fancy schmantzy"
• Get a doctor's note to avoid being assigned a top bunk
• Arrange private transportation to prison to avoid being handcuffed on the trip

Posted By: Alex - Wed Apr 17, 2013 - Comments (5)
Category: Jobs and Occupations, Prisons, 1990s

Pre-internet Underground Book Distribution

Original ad here.

Gather around, children, and you shall learn of an ancient time, before the internet. A day of paper fanzines and weird information obtained only via books delivered by snailmail.

The main purveyor of such good stuff was the Loompanics catalog. Alas, they were driven out of business in 2006. The current website using their domain name is a shell and a scam by cybersquatters.

Over one hundred Loompanics books have been tagged as a Goodreads collection. You can get a small sense of what they were all about there.

Posted By: Paul - Fri Jan 11, 2013 - Comments (9)
Category: Drugs, Avant Garde, Books, Bohemians, Beatniks, Hippies and Slackers, Conspiracy Theories and Theorists, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s