November 2021
November 20, 2021
The Other JFK
John Francis Kennedy served three terms as Treasurer of Massachusetts, from 1954 to 1960. He was legendary for putting almost no effort (or money) into campaigning. He made no speeches, nor did he advertise. He didn't even have any relevant experience for the job. Before becoming state treasurer he had been a stockroom supervisor at the Gillette Safety Razor Company.By all accounts, the only reason for his political success was the resemblance of his name to John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
John Francis Kennedy probably would have kept running for state treasurer if he could have. But term limits prevented him. He tried running for governor in 1960 (while JFK was campaigning for President), but his winning streak finally ended.
More info: Commonwealth magazine, Our Campaigns
John Francis Kennedy
Miami News - May 22, 1960
Posted By: Alex - Sat Nov 20, 2021 -
Comments (4)
Category: Odd Names, Politics, 1950s
The Climax Couch
Surely even in 1910 the name must have been suggestive.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Nov 20, 2021 -
Comments (2)
Category: Furniture, Innuendo, Double Entendres, Symbolism, Nudge-Nudge-Wink-Wink and Subliminal Messages, Advertising, 1910s
November 19, 2021
Miss Spirit World of 1960
In our ongoing exploration of strange beauty titles, this may be the strangest one yet. To be considered for this title, a contestant had to be dead.In 1960, the editors of Psychic Observer magazine asked their readers to send in "pictures of departed beauties taken by spirit photographers." A photo of the contestant while alive was also requested. The readers of the magazine would then vote to determine the winner.
Unfortunately, I haven't yet been able to track down any pictures of the Miss Spirit World contestants. Only a few issues of Psychic Observer are archived online. Nor are there back copies in a library near me.
Carlsbad Current-Argus - Feb 9, 1960
Posted By: Alex - Fri Nov 19, 2021 -
Comments (0)
Category: Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests, Death, 1960s
Continue Typing, No Matter What!
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Nov 19, 2021 -
Comments (6)
Category: Business, Death, 1930s, Courage, Bravery, Heroism and Valor
November 18, 2021
Skin whitening by intestine shortening
Back in the 1970s, some women in Japan reportedly tried to whiten their skin by having surgery to remove a section of their intestines:Up to 50 inches of the large intestine have to be removed according to Dr. Tadao Yagi, director of a private hospital that specializes in the operation.
I can't imagine why this would work. Perhaps the women grew paler because of malnutrition?
San Francisco Examiner - Mar 26, 1975
I believe these may be photos of the operation being performed, from an article by Tadao Yagi in the Japanese Journal of Medical Instrumentation.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Nov 18, 2021 -
Comments (3)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Patent Medicines, Nostrums and Snake Oil, Surgery, 1970s
Reta Ray, “The Sniffing Song”
Read about the artist here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Nov 18, 2021 -
Comments (3)
Category: Drugs, Humor, Music, Twentieth Century
November 17, 2021
Do you have auto legs?
Beauty advice from The Pittsburgh Press (Feb 20, 1938):
Posted By: Alex - Wed Nov 17, 2021 -
Comments (1)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, 1930s, Legs, Cars
C. W. Leadbeater, Theosophist
Anyone with even a passing interest in the weird has heard of that famous eccentric Madame Blavatsky and the Theosophical Society.But less attention is paid to her interesting comrade, C. W. Leadbeater.
Read his pretty short book THE LIFE AFTER DEATH here.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Nov 17, 2021 -
Comments (2)
Category: Death, Eccentrics, Supernatural, Occult, Paranormal, Books, Nineteenth Century, Twentieth Century
November 16, 2021
Double-Heeled Shoe
Patent No. 7,574,819, granted to Jin Rie of Los Angeles:
But why stop at two heels when you could have seven?
'Cleat Heels' from Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring 1993 collection
Posted By: Alex - Tue Nov 16, 2021 -
Comments (3)
Category: Patents, Shoes
The Valley of the Dawn
Read a recent article on the sect here.
The Wikipedia page.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Nov 16, 2021 -
Comments (1)
Category: Aliens, Eccentrics, Religion, Space Travel, South America
| Get WU Posts by Email | |
|---|---|
| Who We Are |
|---|
| 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 |
