Weird Universe Archive
July 2012
July 15, 2012
What’s Your Sign?
If you want to see a rundown on the signs, what their virtues and faults are purported to be, find it here. Then there is the following version found on Yahoo Images.
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jul 15, 2012 -
Comments (7)
Category:
July 14, 2012
The Sharp Memowriter
[From Playboy for December 1981. Click to enlarge.]
Hey, maybe we could attach a little printer to every iPhone?
Posted By: Paul - Sat Jul 14, 2012 -
Comments (6)
Category: Computers, 1980s
Sweden’s Sexiest Male Politicians
Warning: This post may make you sexually aroused, because here are Sweden's sexiest male politicians, as judged by the Swedish news website Nyheter24. Can you handle the heat?
Posted By: Alex - Sat Jul 14, 2012 -
Comments (8)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Sexuality, Men
July 13, 2012
Mechanical Pencil Collections
Andy P. Tucker was a disabled veteran who enjoyed collecting mechanical pencils. In 1951, he sent this letter (or versions of it) to newspapers throughout the United States:
I don't know what kind of response he got, but here's a picture of him in 1952 with his collection. The picture ran in various papers.
I can't find any information about what became of Tucker's collection. Was it thrown away when he died? Or is it sitting in a box in someone's basement? Who knows.
However, Tucker isn't the only person to have collected mechanical pencils. Jonathan A. Veley now maintains what he calls his Mechanical Pencil Museum, with an accompanying Leadhead's Pencil Blog. But a search of Veley's blog doesn't produce any references to Tucker, so I'm not sure if Veley is aware of his predecessor.
Veley's mechanical pencil collection
Posted By: Alex - Fri Jul 13, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Hobbies and DIY, Obsessions
No Noodles
No Noodles from Tyler Nicolson on Vimeo.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jul 13, 2012 -
Comments (3)
Category: Food, Surrealism, Fish, Stop-motion Animation
Procreation Conundrum
AIt seems that one can not, legally, artificially inseminate themselves even if/when they already own a turkey baster which, BTW, would have been a pretty good idea if the obvious method was really off the table. One needs, by law, to get the medical profession involved at the cost of about $2,000 a (no pun intended) shot.
Why Ms. Namewithheld chose this arduous route to motherhood is unknown to this reporter but you're more than welcome to read all about it by clicking here!
* Inhabitants of the Isle of Lesbos claim to be the only true Lesbians but that's another story. Read about that one here.
Posted By: Expat47 - Fri Jul 13, 2012 -
Comments (4)
Category: Lawsuits
July 12, 2012
Good For What Ails You
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Jul 12, 2012 -
Comments (8)
Category: Medicine, Self-help Schemes, Advertising, 1920s, Alcohol
The 10-year-old Powerlifter
Naomi Kutin can squat 215 pounds, and she's a ten-year-old girl who weighs 99 pounds. Impressive. I wonder what odds the bookmakers would give on her being a record-setting powerlifter when she's an adult?
Posted By: Alex - Thu Jul 12, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Exercise and Fitness, Sports, Children
July 11, 2012
Anti-fart Underwear
From what I can determine, these appear to be a real product. The ass-essments of WU readers are welcome.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jul 11, 2012 -
Comments (16)
Category: Flatulence, Underwear, Diseases
Long-Term Betting on Your Kids
According to the BBC, it's becoming increasingly popular for parents to place long-term bets with bookmakers on whether their kids will achieve fame and fortune during their lives. For instance, whether their kid will become a famous soccer player or a great golfer:A particular type of long-time achievement bet - parents having a bet on their children achieving something in their life - has increased tenfold in the past five years, according to Ladbrokes.
"Parents betting on their children's future successes is as popular as betting on the final of the X Factor," says Jessica Bridge, from the firm.
...it's not all about sporting prowess, he says. Many parents will place bets that their children will pass a particular exam. And then there was the grandmother who thought her granddaughter so beautiful that she wagered she would grace the front cover of a leading fashion magazine.
"People do it for a variety of reasons," says Sharpe. "They are demonstrating that they have real faith in someone - have every confidence in them. They may be using it as an incentive. Or it could just be a bit of fun. Something to talk about, or put on the wall.
"Parents betting on their children's future successes is as popular as betting on the final of the X Factor," says Jessica Bridge, from the firm.
...it's not all about sporting prowess, he says. Many parents will place bets that their children will pass a particular exam. And then there was the grandmother who thought her granddaughter so beautiful that she wagered she would grace the front cover of a leading fashion magazine.
"People do it for a variety of reasons," says Sharpe. "They are demonstrating that they have real faith in someone - have every confidence in them. They may be using it as an incentive. Or it could just be a bit of fun. Something to talk about, or put on the wall.
If only my parents had placed a bet when I was a child that I would grow up to be a blogger at Weird Universe, they'd be rich! Although the internet didn't exist back then, so it would have been a real longshot bet.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jul 11, 2012 -
Comments (4)
Category: Family, Children, Games, Gambling, Casinos, Lotteries and Other Games of Chance
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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 |
