Weird Universe Archive
April 2010
April 30, 2010
ELECTRON BOY
In this day and age a large number of people, strangers, pulling together to give the gift of joy to a dying child could, unfortunately, be called weird. But that's just what happened in Seattle Thursday. Police from three area departments, the Seattle Sounders, Puget Sound Electric and employees, the Space Needle and employees, a Seattle city councilwoman, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and many others, I'm sure, pulled together to make 13 year old Erik Martin's wish come true in a big way. Check the link for details and more pictures. ,
Posted By: Alex - Fri Apr 30, 2010 -
Comments (6)
Category:
Follies of the Mad Men #101
Why can't SpongeBob be as upfront about his nicotine addiction as Fred and Barney? (Note: I created this post prior to its release days ago--and then Boing-Boing scooped me! Oh, well, great minds and all that...)
Posted By: Paul - Fri Apr 30, 2010 -
Comments (4)
Category: Addictions, Tobacco and Smoking, Cartoons, 1960s
April 29, 2010
The Cobweb Hotel
If this cartoon were a movie with a human cast, it would be more gruesome than the whole Saw franchise.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 29, 2010 -
Comments (9)
Category: Insects and Spiders, Torture, Cartoons, 1930s
Knife Throwing Demonstration
Just in time for Mother's Day, I bring you this inexplicable video of a mother throwing knives at her little girls.
Posted By: Nethie - Thu Apr 29, 2010 -
Comments (6)
Category: Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Family, Recreation, Performance Art, 1950s
April 28, 2010
Second-Shoe Collector or Thief? You Decide.
If you have a collection of over 1700 second hand shoes, don't tell the police. With a rash of shoe thefts in South Korea, you might make the suspect list.Can't a man just collect shoes in private? Or trade up at a funeral?
Posted By: gdanea - Wed Apr 28, 2010 -
Comments (2)
Category: Stupid Criminals
GODZILLA vs MIGELIN
A rather creepy looking 21 foot tall baby, built by the special effects team that brought us 'Alien vs Predator', is on display at the Shanghai Expo 2010. Migelin, as the giant robot is called, is electronically animated so it moves and blinks making it even creepier. The first link is to the story, the second link is to the page with two video clips and two pictures of Miguelin. I am reminded of a Jeff Goldblum quote from 'Jurrasic Park, 'You were so obsessed whether you could do it that you didn't ask yourself if you should do it.'
Posted By: Alex - Wed Apr 28, 2010 -
Comments (2)
Category:
Error Tone Music
Apparently, using computer error tones to generate music constitutes a whole new genre. Here's one sample.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Apr 28, 2010 -
Comments (7)
Category: Music, Computers
April 27, 2010
Stealing Electricity
A German fellow took exception to having his power turned off for non-payment so he came up with a way to get free electricity. The man attached a cable to a meat hook which he threw on a power transmission line. He ran the cable to his home and...IT WORKED! Of course when an employee of the power company found the meat hook power line it was taken down and the company stressed how dangerous this was to do. Sure, they would say that, but it did work.
Disclaimer: kids don't try this at home!
(This means you, guys!)
picture from featurepics.com
Posted By: Alex - Tue Apr 27, 2010 -
Comments (2)
Category:
April 26, 2010
News of the Weird / Pro Edition (April 26, 2010)
News of the Weird/Pro Edition"You're Still Not Cynical Enough"
Exceptionally Inexplicable Dispatches from Last Week
April 26, 2010
(datelines April 17-April 24) (links correct as of April 26, 2010)
Urchins' Inherent Wisdom, Plus Boobquake, Rectal Beepers, and Assault by Nostril
Are there any people more fatuous than parents who "unschool" their kids (as opposed to home-schooling, in which parents genuinely believe they can "lesson-plan" better than teachers can)? ABC's Good Morning America brought in a Massachusetts couple who took turns condescendingly telling other parents that they should "trust [the] kids," that kids need no structure, no rules–that they'll surely learn on their own everything that's important to them. Just what society needs: even more kids growing up to think they're the center of the universe. ABC News
Fabulous Concierge Service: Britain's Rodney Morgan family, intending to drop major dollars for a stay at the 5-star Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Fla., wanted assurance that he and his party would not be served by "people of colour" or people with "foreign accents." (Bonus: According to this lawsuit, the Ritz said, Yes, of course! Will do!) The Times (London)
Democrat Gregg Kravitz, running for a Pennsylvania state legislative seat, was sexually "outed" by his primary opponent, who accused Kravitz of being straight, and in the 182nd district, being straight is a liability. Kravitz said he's "bi," which set off a cacaphony of gaydar detectors. (And the organization sponsoring the Gay Softball World Series disqualified a team called "D2," which finished second in 2008, because it violated the maximum-ringers rule. A team can have only two straights, not two straights and a bi. That team needs to go find a Bi Softball World Series.) Philadelphia Inquirer /// Seattle Times
Will today (Monday) pass without a major earthquake? The week before last, a senior Iranian cleric blamed the 'quakes in Haiti and Chile, among others, on the creeping Western fashion sense of Muslim women. Jennifer McCreight then launched a Facebook page, seeking commitments from women worldwide to don their best cleavageware outfits on Monday, April 26th, to empirically test the cleric's theory. News.com.au /// Agence France-Presse via Courier Mail (Brisbane)
Testifying for a Georgia bill to ban unconsensual microchip-implanting in humans was a very helpful citizen complaining about her own plight. "Just imagine, if you will, having a beeper in your rectum or genital area . . . and your beeper numbers displayed on billboards throughout the city." (By this time, the bill's supporters in the room are averting their eyes, staring at the crown molding, imagining the Georgia Bulldogs' 2010 prospects.) "This microchip was put in my vaginal-rectum area . . . by researchers with the . . . Department of Defense." Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The too-big-for-his-britches former state Republican Party chairman in Florida, Jim Greer, was outed by a fellow GOP official for ordering an assistant to walk into a Republican National Committee meeting every few minutes with urgent messages from Gov. Crist. Turns out the messages were just blank pieces of paper. (It's important to look important.). Orlando Sentinel
More in extended >>
Posted By: Chuck - Mon Apr 26, 2010 -
Comments (7)
Category:
April 25, 2010
I Want This Coke Machine
A shameless plug for Coca-cola from a Pepsi drinker. Watch for the 10 foot long submarine sandwich that emerges from the machine at about 1:47.Flowers, pizza, free Coke. Who could ask for more?
Posted By: gdanea - Sun Apr 25, 2010 -
Comments (3)
Category: Advertising
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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 books such as Elephants on Acid. 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. Chuck Shepherd Chuck is the purveyor of News of the Weird, the syndicated column which for decades has set the gold-standard for reporting on oddities and the bizarre. Our banner was drawn by the legendary underground cartoonist Rick Altergott. Contact Us |
