April 2016
April 22, 2016
Dental Hygiene Hoodlum
Another case of a serial thief with a strangely specific focus. Police in Columbus, Ohio are on the lookout for Sean Patrick Burk, who is suspected of multiple thefts of boxes of Crest White Strips. And only Crest White Strips. They're calling him the "Dental Hygiene Hoodlum."Says the City Attorney, "Serial thieves generally target certain items but it is unusual for us to see such brand loyalty where an offender only steals large quantities of a single product, over and over again."
More: NBC4i.com
Posted By: Alex - Fri Apr 22, 2016 -
Comments (8)
Category: Crime
Illinois Canal Scrip
With USA paper money in the news, let's look at a wild and woolly era in the history of the USA when just about anyone could issue their own cash.
Explanation here.
And more info here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Apr 22, 2016 -
Comments (4)
Category: Business, Crime, Frauds, Cons and Scams, Nineteenth Century
April 21, 2016
Three-Winged Chickens
1950: Scientists at UCLA breed three-winged chickens. More buffalo wings on one bird!
Herald and News (Klamath Falls, Oregon) - Nov 9, 1950
The Eugene Guard - Nov 15, 1950
Posted By: Alex - Thu Apr 21, 2016 -
Comments (9)
Category: Animals, Science, Experiments, 1950s
Aussie Cars: the Holden
I can't say I had ever heard of the Holden line of cars prior to my recent research.Some great 1960s motifs and attitudes in the second video: "Toranas are really groovy!"
Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 21, 2016 -
Comments (7)
Category: Business, Advertising, 1960s, Australia, Cars
April 20, 2016
Only man never to have seen a woman
October 1938: 82-year-old Mihailo Tolotos died. He had lived his entire life in Greece's Mt. Athos monastery, which women were (are) not allowed to enter, and he was therefore believed to have been the only man in the world never to have seen a woman — or rather, the only man never to have been in the presence of a woman (except his mother, who died giving birth to him), because as the folks over at The Straight Dope point out, anyone who is born blind will have never seen a woman.
The Edinburg Daily Courier - Oct 29, 1938
In 1949, the Nixon Furniture Company featured the story of Mihailo Tolotos in one of their ads. They were worried that just as Tolotos had never seen a woman, perhaps the readers of the Raleigh Register hadn't seen all of Nixon's new furniture.
The Raleigh Register - Jan 7, 1949
Posted By: Alex - Wed Apr 20, 2016 -
Comments (7)
Category: Gender, Men, Women, 1930s
Diet Yourself to Death
So this is kind of a "good news/bad news" story then?
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Apr 20, 2016 -
Comments (4)
Category: Death, Sports, 1990s, Bodybuilding, Dieting and Weight Loss
April 19, 2016
Sued over mean snake
December 1971: Rae Adler, 28, sued the Critterville pet store, accusing them of selling her a "mean snake," unsuitable as a pet. It bit her the day after she brought it home, causing a toxic reaction.Unfortunately I can't find how this suit turned out.
Lebanon Daily News - Dec 15, 1971
Posted By: Alex - Tue Apr 19, 2016 -
Comments (12)
Category: Animals, 1970s
Hawk Model Kits
Original ad here.
It might not be 1965 any longer, but thanks to a revival at Hawk Model Kits, you can get these wacky figurines new again.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Apr 19, 2016 -
Comments (6)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Hobbies and DIY, Bohemians, Beatniks, Hippies and Slackers, 1960s
April 18, 2016
I Love Cow
Chanel recently launched an advertising campaign featuring the handwritten phrase "I love Coco." Or does it say, "I love cow"? It can be read either way.One of those situations where you wonder if the ad company just didn't see it, or did see it and kept it that way purposefully to make the campaign more viral.
Posted By: Alex - Mon Apr 18, 2016 -
Comments (12)
Category: Animals, Business
Mystery Gadget 36
What was stored in this tank?
The answer is here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Apr 18, 2016 -
Comments (10)
Category: Technology, 1930s
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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 |
