1950s
May and Very Very Late December Marriage
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jan 27, 2016 -
Comments (11)
Category: Elderly and Seniors, Wives, 1950s
Cobra Skins for Sale
Original ad here.
How much are you willing to bet that these snake skins were a) not cobras and b) were not imported from "British India"...?
And by the way:
Posted By: Paul - Wed Jan 20, 2016 -
Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Taxidermy, Scams, Cons, Rip-offs, and General Larceny, 1950s
What Was the Name of Ted Williams’s Car?
Original ad here.
So what was the winning name? It's a mystery for the ages. As this blogger says, "This car was widely shown and generated considerable publicity. Surprisingly, no one at S.C. Johnson & Son seems to remember the winning name to this day. 'I attempted to find out on numerous occasions during my career with Nash and American Motors -- writing the Johnson company and perusing newspapers and trade journals of the period,' says John A. Conde. 'Unfortunately, nothing turned up.'"
Posted By: Paul - Mon Jan 18, 2016 -
Comments (10)
Category: Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Sports, 1950s, Cars
Follies of the Madmen #272
Please spend half a minute to contemplate the subtext of this imagery. A pagan housewife (prefiguring BEWITCHED?) performs black magic to seduce and beguile a priest, with hubby nowhere in sight. Happens in 1950s suburbia every Sunday.
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 17, 2016 -
Comments (10)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Domestic, Food, Mass Transit, Religion, 1950s
Bus Driver’s Revenge
Today of course he would face federal charges for kidnapping, and many, many lawsuits.Original article here.
See clean transcription below.
“They’re going to fire bus driver William F. Jackson today but he doesn’t care—he already quit in spectacular fashion.
"Passengers—phooey,” was his battle cry yesterday when he revolted against traffic jams, abusive drivers, supervisors and noisy children and took what someday may be known as “Jacksons’s ride.”
The Chicago Transit Authority driver was inching his bus through Loop traffic, swollen to three times its usual density by the Christmas rush, when he suddenly decided he was sick of it.
He slammed the doors shut and from then on nobody could get off.
“Passengers—phooey,” he muttered darkly.
He rolled out of the busy Loop on his regular route. But when waiting citizens pounded to get into his bus Jackson was aloof. When his angry passengers demanded to be let off he would not relent.
When a company supervisor tried to board the bus at an intersection Jackson ignored him too.
Finally he wheeled the big vehicle into one of the CTA barns, turned off the ignition, and hopped off the bus.
He headed straight for his boss, stared him straight in the eye and announced:
“I quit.”
Wounded CTA officials said, “He can’t quit just like that, but tomorrow we’ll fire him.”
Posted By: Paul - Tue Jan 12, 2016 -
Comments (8)
Category: Annoying Things, Jobs and Occupations, 1950s, Bus, Nausea, Revulsion and Disgust
The Battle of the Pulpits
Jan 1956: It was Reverend vs. Reverend. On the left, in the main pulpit, the Rev. Mr. Thomas ordered hymns and told the organist to start playing. On the right, in the raised altar, the Rev. Mr. Melish led prayers.Church leaders had been trying to remove Rev. Melish from his position as rector of the Holy Trinity Church in Brooklyn, believing he was a communist sympathizer. Melish refused to go. This led to the situation where the church-appointed rector and Melish attempted to lead Sunday services simultaneously, battling to drown each other out.
Bishop James DeWolfe eventually brought an end to the feud by closing the church entirely, and it remained shuttered for 12 years.
You can read Melish's account of the feud here. And it's also described in his NY Times obit.
Posted By: Alex - Mon Jan 11, 2016 -
Comments (6)
Category: Religion, 1950s
Follies of the Madmen #271
Female sexuality illustrated.
Original ad here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Jan 11, 2016 -
Comments (5)
Category: Body, Fashion, Sexuality, Advertising, 1950s, Women
Carnival in Trinidad: Then and Now
I don't mean to sound like an Old Fart, but the 1957 Carnival just seems to me so much more charming and weird and ingenious--look at those bipedal seahorses with the mermaid--than the current version, which seems to be about nothing more than bare flesh. Maybe the 2015 videographer simply did not film the weird costumes--but then again, every other video of the 2015 carnival on YouTube features the exact same stuff. Now, I like bare flesh as much as the next voyeur, but I would really prefer to see a papier-mache Godzilla any day.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 10, 2016 -
Comments (2)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Costumes and Masks, Music, Parades and Festivals, Sexuality, Outsider Art, Foreign Customs, Dinosaurs and Other Extinct Creatures, 1950s, 2010s, Caribbean, Body Painting
The Tick Tock Man
Sankey Flynn (1918-2001) had an unusual condition. His ears made a ticking sound, about twice every second, which earned him the nickname "Tick Tock." The noise was so loud that other people could easily hear it. It was caused by a "spasmodic contraction of muscles in the roof of his mouth." He never tried to find a cure for his condition because he said he was used to it.I wonder how the TSA would have reacted to him.
The Waynesville Mountaineer - June 1, 1950
Somerset Daily American - Feb 26, 1951
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jan 10, 2016 -
Comments (0)
Category: Body, Human Marvels, 1950s
Fire Alibi
This has to be one of the worst excuses ever.
The Pantagraph (Bloomington, Illinois) — Mar 2, 1955
Posted By: Alex - Sun Jan 03, 2016 -
Comments (8)
Category: Accidents, 1950s
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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 |