1940s
Orto the Aquarium Man
Orto's gimmick is that he would eat and drink things while submerged in a tank of water. According to Newsweek (June 30, 1947), "Here his barker tries to convince skeptics he is smoking a cigarette while submerged."Sounds like quality entertainment!
—The Daily News (Huntingdon, Pennsylvania) - Jun 23, 1947
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jun 04, 2014 -
Comments (3)
Category: Entertainment, 1940s
Peter Penny and his Magic Dollar
Back in the 1940s, it became popular for business groups to put out "publicity comics" whose purpose was to instill in youth business-friendly feelings. One example was "Peter Penny and his Magic Dollar" put out by the American Bankers Association. The plot of the comic was that Bob, a schoolboy, wants to know about banks, so his mentor, Peter Penny, takes him around on a magic dollar to teach him about all the wonderful things that banks and bankers do.I can't find a complete copy of this comic online, but a few pages of it can be read over at lostsoti.org.
Posted By: Alex - Mon Jun 02, 2014 -
Comments (15)
Category: Business, Advertising, Comics, 1940s
Alouette
Alouette by René Jodoin & by Norman McLaren, National Film Board of Canada
Once upon a time, before karaoke, our ancient ancestors entertained themselves thus.
Posted By: Paul - Tue May 27, 2014 -
Comments (7)
Category: Animals, Hobbies and DIY, Music, 1940s
His Marshmallows Wouldn’t Behave
Completely insane man spends his days trying to discipline marshmallows.
Source: Newsweek - Feb 28, 1949
Posted By: Alex - Mon May 26, 2014 -
Comments (8)
Category: Advertising, 1940s
Unfortunate Resemblance
M. Piskorski was arrested in Warsaw by "alert policemen" in June 1947. He hadn't actually done anything wrong. However, the policemen thought he was Adolf Hitler.
It was a case of an unfortunate resemblance. Once his true identity was established, he was released.
Source: Newsweek - June 23, 1947.
Posted By: Alex - Sun May 25, 2014 -
Comments (7)
Category: 1940s
Follies of the Madmen #219
The connection? I can only assume that once upon a time, tennis rackets were restrung with sheep guts. But the image is certainly bizarre.
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Tue May 06, 2014 -
Comments (4)
Category: Animals, Anthropomorphism, Sports, 1940s
Ham Banana Rolls
Recipe from the Dec 1947 issue of Woman's Day, via Retro-Rama Mama.
The Retro Recipe Attempts blog decided to make the thing, and their verdict was that "it actually wasn’t as bad as you’d expect from ham stuffed with a mustardy banana. If you got a bite with a good distribution of banana, ham, mustard, and cheese, the flavors almost worked. ALMOST. (If you got a bite with just banana and American cheese, well, barf.)"
Posted By: Alex - Wed Apr 30, 2014 -
Comments (10)
Category: Food, 1940s, Bananas
THE HOUSE I LIVE IN
Ol' Blue Eyes fights prejudice with a smile and a song. Where's Frankie and his good-natured common sense when we need him today?
Posted By: Paul - Sun Apr 27, 2014 -
Comments (3)
Category: Ethnic Groupings, Music, PSA’s, Racism, 1940s
Follies of the Madmen #218
That's either a carnivorous plant, or some bigtime genetic engineering!
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Apr 18, 2014 -
Comments (5)
Category: Body Modifications, Business, Advertising, Products, Surrealism, 1940s
Nazi Musicals
The Ginger Rogers of Nazi Germany.
More on Marika Rokk here and here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 10, 2014 -
Comments (6)
Category: Dictators, Tyrants and Other Harsh Rulers, Movies, War, 1930s, 1940s, Dance, Europe
| 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 |