1930s
Howling Dog Phone Ringer
October 1932: A Seattle woman complained that her phone never rang, but she could tell when someone was trying to call her because her dog would start howling in the yard. The telephone repair guy investigated. Realized the dog wasn't psychic. Instead, there was a short in the line and the dog was chained to the ground wire.
Indianapolis Star - Oct 23, 1932
Posted By: Alex - Wed Mar 09, 2016 -
Comments (3)
Category: Technology, Telephones, 1930s
The Spoon Lady of Norfolk
They say that every weird and disturbing thing can be found somewhere on the Internet, but I googled toenail and fingernail spoons and got no relevant results. (Of course, anyone who googles those keywords will now find this post.)The info in the clipping below about the old woman and her toenail spoons was credited to Time magazine. So I checked Time, and it did run a brief blurb about the Spoon Lady of Norfolk in its Dec 12, 1932 issue. But offered no more info, and didn't reveal its source. But there must be more details out there somewhere about this woman and her freaky cutlery.
La Plata Home Press - Jan 12, 1933
—Time (Dec 12, 1932)
Posted By: Alex - Thu Mar 03, 2016 -
Comments (10)
Category: 1930s
Mystery Illustration 17
Is this 1930 image from:
1) A Surrealist art show?
2) A Paris fashion show?
3) An Artists' Ball?
4) A movie?
Answer after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Sun Feb 28, 2016 -
Comments (8)
Category: Avant Garde, 1930s
Wife choked by snoremeter
January 1936: In Rome, Italy, Goffredo Galluzzi, a "self-styled electrical engineer," created a "snoremeter" in an attempt to stop his wife from snoring. The device, which fit over her mouth like a muzzle, included a thin brass blade that would be lifted by the heavy breathing of snoring, causing an alarm to go off, thereby waking his wife and stopping the snoring. However, the blade came loose, went down her throat, and almost choked her to death.When I did a keyword search on this story to see how many papers it had run in, I came across something odd. The story was reported as news both in January 1936 and April 1946, but with one difference. In 1936 Galluzzi was reported as living in Rome. In 1946, he had become a resident of Syracuse, Sicily.
So a case of recycled news. It's also quite possible the story was complete baloney, both in 1936 and 1946.
The Evening Times (Sayre, Pennsylvania) - Jan 29, 1936
Posted By: Alex - Sat Feb 27, 2016 -
Comments (2)
Category: Inventions, Sleep and Dreams, 1930s
We Drivers
Are you a Reckless Rudy or a Sensible Sam? And don't forget Man-Mountain Momentum.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jan 13, 2016 -
Comments (7)
Category: Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Destruction, PSA’s, 1930s, Cars
Desk Riders
I sure would like to know more about this system/device/technology, but I can't google up anything else. Maybe WU-vies can help!
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Jan 07, 2016 -
Comments (10)
Category: Business, Technology, 1930s
Antigravity Guy
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Dec 31, 2015 -
Comments (2)
Category: Human Marvels, 1930s
Ordered Back To School
Family values in Lancaster, Pennsylvania — 1930s. She got herself a husband, so why does she need any of that fancy edumacation?
The Wilkes-Barre Record - Nov 21, 1935
Posted By: Alex - Sun Dec 06, 2015 -
Comments (7)
Category: Education, Marriage, 1930s
Safety Glass Tester, 1939
High-test safety glass was developed jointly by five American companies during the 1930s. It had an inner layer of polyvinyl acetal resin. This meant that you could smash a man's face into a pane of the glass, and it would crack but not shatter. As demonstrated by the safety-glass tester below.
Image source: Newsweek - Apr 10, 1939
Posted By: Alex - Tue Nov 24, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Jobs and Occupations, 1930s
Alibi Goat
I've heard about people sucking on pennies or mints to hide the alcohol fumes on their breath. But keeping a goat in the back of the car is new to me. Though I guess it could be an effective strategy.
The Bakersfield Californian - Sep 14, 1937
"Why not?" asked Judge J.M. Braude.
"He had a goat in the back of the car," said Lambert, "and I couldn't smell anything but the goat."
Radkewicz was placed on probation.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Nov 18, 2015 -
Comments (6)
Category: Animals, Inebriation and Intoxicants, 1930s
| Who We Are |
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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, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. 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. Contact Us |