Weird Universe Blog — November 22, 2019
The (upside down?) art of Prince Andrew
Prince Andrew has been in the news lately, but this post isn't about the various scandals besetting him. Instead, it's about the prince's brief foray into the world of art, when he was a teenager.At the age of 17, he completed an oil painting which he titled "Canadian Landscape." It was displayed at the Windsor Festival, which was an exhibition that gathered together works related to the Royal Family from Tudor times to the present.
I'm sure his painting must have been in color, but the AP image archive has a photo of it in black-and-white. As seen below.
As I was looking at the picture, I kept thinking that it didn't visually make much sense. Of course, perhaps it was intended to be an abstract work, but out of curiosity I flipped it around, at which point it immediately made a lot more sense. At least, I think so. See below for comparison. So, I'm pretty sure that the AP archive has his picture upside-down — and it's had it that way for years.
What I wonder is if this is just a screw-up by the AP archive, or was his painting actually displayed that way? Does Prince Andrew's painting deserve a place in the WU Gallery of Art Hung Upside-Down?
Posted By: Alex - Fri Nov 22, 2019 -
Comments (2)
Category: Art | Royalty
Telephones
The term "supercut" did not exist in 1995 when Christian Marclay created this video.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Nov 22, 2019 -
Comments (3)
Category: Movies | Avant Garde | Telephones | 1990s
November 21, 2019
South Dakota on Meth
South Dakota reportedly paid an advertising firm $449,000 to develop its new anti-meth campaign. The firm came up with the slogan, “Meth. We’re on it.”The public reaction, so far, hasn't been kind.
More info: Philly Voice
Posted By: Alex - Thu Nov 21, 2019 -
Comments (3)
Category: Drugs | Advertising
Juvenile Offender
Throw the book at her!Source.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Nov 21, 2019 -
Comments (3)
Category: Art | Crime | Toys | Children | 1930s | Postal Services
November 20, 2019
Anti-Eating Face Mask
Patent No. 4,344,424, granted to Lucy L. Barmby of Sacramento, California in 1982. From the patent description:
a primary object of this invention is to provide a new and novel device for preventing the consumption of food by an individual.
It goes into more detail about who the invention might benefit:
The temptation to eat which leads one to eat excessively is ever present and the ready availability of attractively prepared, taste-tempting foods makes the temptation to eat and therefore to over eat virtually irresistible. Frequently, this temptation is so great that compulsive eating is not uncommon and many persons are virtually without the strength of will to resist overeating. The average person, therefore, does have a problem as to the over consumption of food but, even worse, when certain individuals are exposed to food constantly such as chefs, cooks, restaurant personnel or the like, it is a foregone conclusion that these individuals will consume far more food than is proper particularly when such food is usually readily available at no cost. Typical of such groups of individuals is the housewife who must frequently cook meals during the day which generally includes the preparation of such fattening foods such as pies, pastries, and the like. During the preparation of such meals not only is there the temptation to nibble on the food being prepared but it is generally necessary that the food be tasted during preparation thereby constantly stimulating the appetite and promoting the consumption of large quantities of food.
I'm imagining a husband preparing to go to work and strapping the anti-eating face mask on his wife before he leaves.
But couldn't the wearer just lift the mask off? Nope. It's locked on, though "under emergency conditions, the strap may be cut and the face mask of the invention removed."
Edmonton Journal - Oct 8, 2006
The invention reminds me of the Scold's Bridle, aka 'muzzle for ladies,' that some women were forced to wear back in olden times.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Nov 20, 2019 -
Comments (5)
Category: Inventions | Dieting and Weight Loss
Mystery Illustration 89
What occasion brings all these young lads together?
The answer is here.
Or after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Wed Nov 20, 2019 -
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Category: Ceremonies | 1950s
November 19, 2019
The Pedestrian Horn
We've posted before about Los Angeles auto dealer Hilton Tupman who, back in 1948, invented a "pedestrian horn" that he used to honk at motorists.
Great ideas like that tend to get recycled. So, recently artist Yosef Lerner unveiled a pedestrian horn for the 21st century. His intent was satirical. He wanted to make the point that honking at people can be obnoxious, whether you're on foot or in a car. But for a while he was actually offering his pedestrian horn for sale on his website, at $699 each. He decided to stop selling them because (as he told Gizmodo) he didn't want "to contribute to any more noise in this city!”
For the record, Tupman didn't invent the idea of a pedestrian horn. Actress Eleanor Whitney had rigged one up in 1932.
Chambersburg Public Opinion - Apr 9, 1932
And as early as 1927, there's a report in the NY Times about an unnamed man from Southampton, England who had attached a "miniature but noisy motorhorn" to his walking stick and then "sounded warning blasts to the more fortunate ones in automobiles when he was about to cross."
New York Times - Oct 7, 1927
Posted By: Alex - Tue Nov 19, 2019 -
Comments (1)
Category: Motor Vehicles | Cars | Cacophony, Dissonance, White Noise and Other Sonic Assaults
The Philco Safari
More info.
More pics.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Nov 19, 2019 -
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Category: Technology | Television | 1950s
November 18, 2019
Weirdo the Cat-Killing Superchicken
Weirdo was a giant among chickens. He weighed a colossal twenty-three pounds — about four times the size of an average rooster. Throughout much of the 1970s and 80s, he was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the heaviest chicken in the world. He was said to have the strength and stamina of an ostrich.
"Grant Sullens holds his prize 23-lb. White Sully rooster. Note the gloves he is wearing for protection. Note also that the photographer stayed on the safe side of the fence." Source: Farm Journal - Nov 1971.
However, Weirdo had a temper and ferocity that matched his size. His violent exploits were legendary. He killed two cats and pecked out the eye of a dog. He routinely tore bits of metal off his feed bucket, demolishing feeders at a rate of one per month. When an ungloved visitor made the mistake of trying to touch him, he removed their fingertip. He shattered the lens of a camera. And, in his crowning achievement, he managed to rip through a wire fence and attacked and killed one of his own sons, an eighteen-pound rooster.
Just as unusual as Weirdo himself was the story of how he came to exist. He was the result of a seven-year chicken-breeding program conducted by a teenage boy, Grant Sullens, of West Point, California. Sullens had decided that he wanted to create a breed of "superchickens," and he actually achieved his goal, succeeding where highly paid poultry researchers had failed.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Alex - Mon Nov 18, 2019 -
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Category: Animals | Farming | 1970s
Follies of the Madmen #453
The wealthy always employ midgets to help them dress. Seriously, what size is that person standing on the chair? Maybe the gal in undergarments is a giant?
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Nov 18, 2019 -
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Category: Ambiguity, Uncertainty and Deliberate Obscurity | Business | Advertising | Confusion, Misunderstanding, and Incomprehension | Excess, Overkill, Hyperbole and Too Much Is Not Enough | Surrealism | Underwear | 1940s
