Category:
Death
Death
The funeral of Miriam Burbank
In the picture you see Miriam Burbank, sitting at a table, holding a menthol cigarette in her hand. She's dead, and this was the scene at her recent funeral. More info at wgno.com.
Of course, we've seen this kind of stuff before here at WU. Back in 2008, there was a post about Ángel Pantoja Medina "standing tall at his funeral." And also from 2008, a post about the Kuku Kuku of Papua New Guinea who pose their dead sitting up. So perhaps posed corpses at funerals is a phenomenon that is "no longer weird."
Posted By: Alex - Fri Jun 13, 2014 -
Comments (5)
Category: Death
Operation Ranger and Operation Buster-Jangle
What a crazy old world that was. "Mutually Assured Destruction." But we just thought it was normal at the time.
Posted By: Paul - Thu May 22, 2014 -
Comments (3)
Category: Death, Destruction, Dreams and Nightmares, Science, Technology, War, Armed Forces, Weapons, Documentaries, 1950s
Pearl Bryan and Bobby Mackey’s Music World
A haunted country-music club? Just visit Bobby Mackey's Music World in Wilder, Kentucky.
Fittingly, the most famous ghost, Pearl Bryan, has her own ballad.
Posted By: Paul - Sun May 04, 2014 -
Comments (2)
Category: Death, Horror, Music, Regionalism, Superstition, Nineteenth Century
Video Enhanced Gravemarker
The Video Enhanced Gravemarker will have a tremendous impact on our society and the funerary industry. Some of the impact it might have may be along the following lines:
The invention will change a major aspect of civilization. Cemeteries will come alive with stories told through video-tombstones.
It will change the way we look at life and death and it will even change the way history is told.
When people start recording their own obituaries for playback in video-tombstones, it will force them to examine their lives in ways they may not have even considered before.
It will also create two new industries:
1) Manufacturing video-tombstones
2) Producing videos for use in video-tombstones
The invention will change a major aspect of civilization. Cemeteries will come alive with stories told through video-tombstones.
It will change the way we look at life and death and it will even change the way history is told.
When people start recording their own obituaries for playback in video-tombstones, it will force them to examine their lives in ways they may not have even considered before.
It will also create two new industries:
1) Manufacturing video-tombstones
2) Producing videos for use in video-tombstones
Posted By: Alex - Sun Apr 27, 2014 -
Comments (8)
Category: Death
The Origin of Crash Test Dummies
Not the musical group.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Apr 05, 2014 -
Comments (3)
Category: Death, Motor Vehicles, PSA’s, Puppets and Automatons, 1960s
The Certainty of a Future Life In Mars
Did you know that when you die, your soul goes to a new life on Mars?You can read all about it right here.
Here's what happens when the new soul first arrives.
Here's a little scholarly perspective.
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Mar 24, 2014 -
Comments (7)
Category: Death, Religion, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Space Travel, 1900s
Frozen Guru
Authorities recently declared that Indian guru Ashutosh Maharaj died of a heart attack. But his followers refuse to believe he's dead. Instead, they insist that he's merely in a state of "samadhi", which is the "highest plane of meditation."So they've decided to freeze him, to help preserve him until he decides to wake up. They considered embalming him, but Swami Vishalanand (a spokesman for the group) said, "somebody told us that his chances of revival were less if we did it."
Actually, I'm guessing his chances of revival are about the same whatever they do. [BBC News]
Posted By: Alex - Fri Mar 14, 2014 -
Comments (11)
Category: Death
Monkey Hangers
"Monkey hanger" is a term by which Hartlepudlians are often known. According to local folklore, the term originates from an incident in which a monkey was hanged in Hartlepool, England. During the Napoleonic Wars, a French ship of the type chasse marée was wrecked off the coast of Hartlepool. The only survivor was a monkey, allegedly wearing a French uniform to provide amusement for the crew. On finding the monkey, some locals decided to hold an impromptu trial on the beach; since the monkey was unable to answer their questions, and many locals were unaware of what a Frenchman might look like,[citation needed] they concluded that the monkey was in fact a French sailor. Being found guilty, the animal was duly sentenced to death and hanged on the beach. The vertical part of the ship's mast he was hanged from is still visible on the beach between the Pilot pier and the Heugh.
More here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Mar 10, 2014 -
Comments (2)
Category: Animals, Death, Eighteenth Century
The Ore Knob Mine Murders & The Nashville Flame
That's the Nashville Flame his own damn self up there.
More photos here.
Original article here.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Feb 15, 2014 -
Comments (5)
Category: Crime, Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Death, Drugs, 1980s
A better rattrap
The July 14, 1952 issue of Life had a photo feature about a contest sponsored by the city of Hammond, Ind., in which schoolchildren were asked to design a better rattrap. The challenge apparently released the inner sadist in some of the kids.Arnold Knopf's trap: a weight falls, releasing a crossbow which shoots an arrow into the rat's back.
Jim Olsen's contribution: after the rat trips a trigger, a weight falls, jerking a noose tight around the rat's neck.
Steve Miller and Ed Cox designed a rat guillotine that included a basket to catch the rat's head.
Posted By: Alex - Tue Feb 11, 2014 -
Comments (6)
Category: Death, Inventions, Pests, Plagues and Infestations, 1950s
| 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, 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 |