Regionalism
USC’s Helen of Troy Contest
The University of Southern California used to elect a woman as "Helen of Troy."
Finalist for Helen of Troy (University of Southern California), 10 November 1960. Mary Elinor Memory; Lynne Helene Hunsucker; Marcia Anne Northrop; Barbara Louise Stephens; Linda Eleanor Scott.; Caption slip reads: "Photographer: Miller. Date: 1960-11-10. Assignment: Finalist for Helen of Troy. L to r: Mary Elinor Memory; Lynne Helene Hunsucker; Marcia Anne Northrop; Barbara Louise Stephens; Linda Eleanor Scott".
Posted By: Paul - Mon Nov 20, 2023 -
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Category: Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Regionalism, Historical Figure, Twentieth Century
Show Low, AZ
For our category of weird town names, such as Linoleumville.
The city's home page.
Their Wikipedia entry, from which we learn:
According to a legend, the city's unusual name[5] resulted from a marathon poker game between Corydon E. Cooley and Marion Clark. The two men were equal partners in a 100,000-acre (400 km2) ranch; however, the partners determined that there was not enough room for both of them in their settlement, and agreed to settle the issue over a game of "Seven Up" (with the winner taking the ranch and the loser leaving).[6] After the game seemed to have no winner in sight, Clark said, "If you can show low, you win." In response, Cooley turned up the deuce of clubs (the lowest possible card) and replied, "Show low it is."[7] As a tribute to the legend, Show Low's main street is named "Deuce of Clubs" in remembrance
Posted By: Paul - Tue Nov 07, 2023 -
Comments (1)
Category: Regionalism, Weird Names, Gambling, Casinos, Lotteries and Other Games of Chance, Nineteenth Century, Arizona
The Acme Barbecue College
Once upon a time, in Alhambra, CA, you could go to school just for BBQ. One presumes that this is where Wile E. Coyote learned how to cook a Road Runner--if one such could ever be caught!
Posted By: Paul - Wed Nov 01, 2023 -
Comments (8)
Category: Education, Food, Regionalism, 1950s
Robert Quillen’s Monument to Eve
Robert Quillen was once a well-known humorist, but is nigh-forgotten today. However, still standing is one of his pranks. A whimsical statue dedicated to "the first woman."Official South Carolina page on Quillen here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Oct 20, 2023 -
Comments (1)
Category: Humor, Newspapers, Regionalism, Religion, Statues and Monuments, Historical Figure
The Famous One-Log House
Still in existence. The home page.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Sep 08, 2023 -
Comments (2)
Category: Architecture, Domestic, Enlargements, Miniatures, and Other Matters of Scale, Regionalism, 1940s, Natural Wonders
The Live Forever Folk
Read an issue of their magazine here.
Read THE COSMIC SURVEY here.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Aug 06, 2023 -
Comments (2)
Category: New Age, Regionalism, Supernatural, Occult, Paranormal, 1920s
The Scatalogic Rites of All Nations
Read it here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Jul 10, 2023 -
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Category: Hygiene, Excrement, Regionalism, Anthropology, Nineteenth Century
Rodeo Sweetheart
The earliest reference I find to a "Rodeo Sweetheart" is 1929. And the tradition is still flourishing today.To get in the mood for appreciating this longtime contest, you can listen to the classic Byrds album.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Jul 03, 2023 -
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Category: Animals, Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Regionalism, Twentieth Century, Twenty-first Century, Circuses, Carnivals, and Other Traveling Shows
UPenn Gargoyles
Read about these weird architectural embellishments here, with more pix.And also here.
In the 1890s and the first couple decades of the twentieth century, Penn engaged Philadelphia architects Cope and Stewardson to design several University buildings. With their design for the Quadrangle, whose first section opened in 1896, Cope and Stewardson emulated several vintage eras of English architecture in a style that became known as Collegiate Gothic. In a delightful homage to Elizabethan architecture, they incorporated several dozen bosses into their design. They worked with sculptors Henry Plasschaert and John Joseph Borie (a Penn architecture alumnus) and stone carvers Edmund Wright, Edward Maene and assistants to turn these uncut stones into sculpted figures. Cope and Stewardson approved elevation views and clay models of each proposed boss, which was then carved over a period of three to four days from a fourteen-inch square piece of Indiana limestone that had been incorporated into the Quadrangle.
Mr. Plasschaert and his carvers kept the mood of these bosses whimsical. Parodic figures are abundant, such as a grotesque animal biting the corner of a block of stone, or an architect dressed in an elf costume carrying a basket of fruit. A variety of mythical creatures and bizarre monsters are on display, as is the occasional reference to academic activity, like the creatures brandishing tragedy and comedy masks atop the Mask and Wig clubhouse, or a monkey clutching a scroll labeled “diploma.”
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jun 07, 2023 -
Comments (4)
Category: Architecture, Regionalism, Nineteenth Century, Twentieth Century
Linoleumville
The Wikipedia page gives the history of the name:In 1873, the American Linoleum Company acquired 300 acres in the area to build the nation's first linoleum factory. The inventor of Linoleum, Frederick Walton, spent two years in Travis setting up the factory.[3] Many skilled English immigrants arrived to work in the factory in its early days, and the area being was named Linoleumville. By the early 20th century, 700 workers were employed, comprising half the local population. Many of these were Polish immigrants, and Linoleumville had become a Polish enclave.[4][5] The plant closed in 1931 and residents overwhelmingly chose to rename the community Travis.[1]
The name change vote prompted journalistic joshing at the time. But the second piece--by the later-famous historian Bruce Catton--stuck up for the name.
Posted By: Paul - Wed May 17, 2023 -
Comments (2)
Category: Odd Names, Regionalism, 1930s
| Who We Are |
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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 |