Weird Universe Blog — August 23, 2024
Walter Easler, Human Pincushion
Nowadays, we are used to all kinds of piercings in daily life. But this fellow still merits a look.
This young man is literally "on pins and needles" but it doesn't seem to worry him in the least. He is Walter Easler, of Lorain, Ohio, and he is able to pierce his skin with impunity because of sensory anesthesia with which nature has endowed him. The pins and needles which penetrate his lips and cheeks do not cause him the slightest pain, and he recalls with amusement his father's perplexity when he was a lad as to how he could be punished since spankings could not be felt.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Aug 23, 2024 -
Comments (3)
Category: Body Modifications | Human Marvels | Twentieth Century | Pain, Self-inflicted and Otherwise
August 22, 2024
Man freed from vat of anchovies
Trapping himself in a vat of anchovies should be David Blaine's next stunt.
Lancaster New Era - Oct 11, 1969
Posted By: Alex - Thu Aug 22, 2024 -
Comments (0)
Category: Accidents | Fish | 1960s
Three Strange Florida Oranges Commercials
Sportswriter is composing his column in locker room, communicates directly with distant housewife.Advertising icon is implicitly happy with having her head sliced open and its juice extracted.
Were Western Union workers really given OJ breaks?
Posted By: Paul - Thu Aug 22, 2024 -
Comments (2)
Category: Anthropomorphism | Advertising | Soda, Pop, Soft Drinks and other Non-Alcoholic Beverages | 1950s | 1960s
August 21, 2024
Save the Baby does not actually save babies
Save the Baby is a cough and cold medicine first created back in 1874. Products continue to be sold under that brand name today.
But at a certain point in time (I'm not sure exactly when) the owners of the brand felt compelled to put the following disclaimer on the packaging:
An odd disclaimer because the name would definitely seem to imply that the product saves babies.
image source: lawhaha.com
Perhaps the disclaimer was a response to a 1929 suit against it by the FDA ("United States v. Certain Bottles of Lee's 'Save the Baby'") arguing that it was "misbranded."
Whatever the case may be, the disclaimer evidently allowed the name "Save the Baby" to continue to be used. And when the brand was sold to a new owner in 1983, the uniqueness of the name was a "major factor" in the deal. As the article below notes:
Newsday - Nov 17, 1983
Posted By: Alex - Wed Aug 21, 2024 -
Comments (2)
Category: Medicine | Odd Names
Miss Sopot, Communist Poland’s First Beauty Queen
Posted By: Paul - Wed Aug 21, 2024 -
Comments (1)
Category: Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests | Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues | 1950s | Europe
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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 forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Our banner was drawn by the legendary underground cartoonist Rick Altergott. Contact Us |