Weird Universe Archive

January 2024

January 16, 2024

People-Passing

More accurately, coed-passing. By the mid-1970s it was considered "sort of traditional" at many college football games.

What it involved: "a group of fellows sitting behind a coed suddenly picks her up and begins bouncing her — like a sack of potatoes — over their heads to the next row. And up she goes, maybe 75 rows."

So it was like crowd surfing, but entirely involuntary on the part of the coed being flung overhead. And more dangerous, I would think.

According to Wikipedia, "Iggy Pop may have invented crowd surfing at 1970's Cincinnati Summer Pop Festival." I wonder if the idea of crowd surfing spread from music festivals to football games, or if it was the other way around.

Centre Daily Times (Pennsylvania) - Sep 30, 1976

Posted By: Alex - Tue Jan 16, 2024 - Comments (0)
Category: Fads, Sports, 1970s, Women

Are Manners Important?

Posted By: Paul - Tue Jan 16, 2024 - Comments (0)
Category: Etiquette and Formal Behavior, PSA’s, 1950s

January 15, 2024

Koko the smoking poodle

"Taking a break from soliciting support for the Arthritis and Rheumatism Foundation, 'Koko' the poodle pauses for a cigarette."
New York Journal American - Jan 18, 1952



Rapid City Journal - Feb 18, 1950



New York Daily News - Nov 8, 1953

Posted By: Alex - Mon Jan 15, 2024 - Comments (0)
Category: Smoking and Tobacco, Dogs, 1950s

Vintage Advertising Cars

Yes, we will always have the Wienermobile.

And a few other similar vehicles.

But on the whole, we are sadly lacking nowadays in novelty vehicles to brighten our lives.









Posted By: Paul - Mon Jan 15, 2024 - Comments (0)
Category: Motor Vehicles, Advertising, Twentieth Century

January 14, 2024

The Recording Rosary

Damon Doherty invented the "Recording Rosary" so that people could pray the Rosary while driving. As a traveling jewelry salesman he found that "Rosary beads sometimes became tangled in the gear shift as he prayed his way from city to city." So he invented a solution (Design Patent 167,827).

I'm not Catholic, and know very little about praying the Rosary, but I've got a few questions about his invention.

First, is it considered okay to multitask while praying the Rosary? So it's okay to pray the Rosary while driving a car?

Second, the second article below notes that his Recording Rosary was "an actual Rosary of legitimate material." What are the 'legitimate' materials that Rosary beads can be made out of?



Boston Globe - Feb 22, 1953



Omaha Our Sunday Visitor - Mar 15, 1953

Posted By: Alex - Sun Jan 14, 2024 - Comments (2)
Category: Religion, Patents, 1950s, Cars

De Dik Voormekaar Show



The Wikipedia page.

TV version of the popular radio program with André van Duin and Ferry de Groot in which the various characters were portrayed on screen by hand puppets in the first season (1977-1978) and full body costumes in the second (1978-1979).







Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 14, 2024 - Comments (1)
Category: Puppets and Automatons, Television, 1970s, Europe

January 13, 2024

Queen Kong

Queen Kong, the movie, was released in 1976 but was never shown in the UK or US due to the threat of legal action from the producer of King Kong (the 1976 remake). It had a limited release in Italy and Germany.

The plot as summarized by wikipedia:

The main character Ray Fay plays the damsel in distress, which tends to usually be played by women. He is kidnapped by film director Luce Habit to star in her new African jungle movie. He then finds himself the attraction of an amorous giant female gorilla that pursues him across London.

Wikipedia also says that Queen Kong acquired a cult following in Japan.

Posted By: Alex - Sat Jan 13, 2024 - Comments (4)
Category: Movies, 1970s, Parody

January 12, 2024

Squash Your Wife

Similar ads from the 60s and 70s: "Electrify your wife," "Recipe for boiled wife," and "Beat your wife tonight... at bowling."

Clearly this was a theme that appealed to ad execs of that time.

New York Magazine - Mar 7, 1977

Posted By: Alex - Fri Jan 12, 2024 - Comments (1)
Category: Advertising, Wives, 1970s

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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.

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