Category:
Eccentrics
Eccentrics
The Jazz Harpsichord of Stan Freeman
If Pugsley Addams had grown up to be a hepcat, this is the music he would have made.
More on the keyboard player here.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Jun 21, 2012 -
Comments (2)
Category: Eccentrics, Music, 1950s
Are you eccentric?
The wikipedia page on eccentricity includes a test, of a kind, to help you determine if you're eccentric. I wonder how many WUvies would qualify as such?According to studies, there are eighteen distinctive characteristics that differentiate a healthy eccentric person from a regular person or someone who has a mental illness (although some may not always apply). The first five are in most people regarded as eccentric:
• Nonconforming attitude
• Idealistic
• Intense curiosity
• Happy obsession with a hobby or hobbies
• Knew very early in his or her childhood they were different from others
• Highly intelligent
• Opinionated and outspoken
• Unusual living or eating habits
• Not interested in the opinions or company of others
• Mischievous sense of humor
• Nonconforming attitude
• Idealistic
• Intense curiosity
• Happy obsession with a hobby or hobbies
• Knew very early in his or her childhood they were different from others
• Highly intelligent
• Opinionated and outspoken
• Unusual living or eating habits
• Not interested in the opinions or company of others
• Mischievous sense of humor
Posted By: Alex - Tue Jun 19, 2012 -
Comments (14)
Category: Eccentrics
Moondog
Moondog (1916-1999) was one of the great eccentrics of the 20th Century. He spent much of his life living homeless on the streets of New York, dressed in a Viking outfit. But he also composed and recorded music that continues to be popular and very influential. (Many of his records are on iTunes.) If you haven't heard of him before, the wikipedia page about him is as good a place to start as any. Or listen to his music. Lots of clips on youtube.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Jun 14, 2012 -
Comments (1)
Category: Eccentrics, Music
Constipation Blues
Posted By: Paul - Tue May 29, 2012 -
Comments (3)
Category: Eccentrics, Jabberwocky, Scat Singing, Nonsense Verse and Glossolalia, Music, Excrement, 1960s, Screams, Grunts and Other Exclamations
The Prayer Duel
LAYDEEZ 'N' GENNELMEN! On yer left, John Alexander Dowie, weighing in at 162 pounds with robes!
On yer right, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, a trim 158 with turban wrapped tight!
Watch them in a prayer duel to the death! Mixed Martial Arts ain't got nuthin' on them!
As Dowie was an enemy of all religions but his own, it is not surprising he had no use for Islam — although the extent of his animus remains a point of controversy among various Muslim sects even today.
In the summer of 1903, this brought a well-publicized challenge to an Islamic prayer duel to the death, or Mubahila, from the Indian subcontinent: "Whether the God of Muhammadans or the God of Dowie is the true God, may be settled...he should choose me as his opponent and pray to God that of us two, whoever is the liar may perish first.... I am an old man of 66 years and Dr. Dowie is eleven years younger; therefore on grounds of age he need not have any apprehension.... If the self-made deity of Dr. Dowie has any power, he shall certainly allow him to appear against me and procure my destruction in his lifetime." Dowie's Punjabi challenger, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, was a remarkably well-matched opponent: he too had founded his own sect, Ahmadiyya, and believed himself a reincarnated prophet — in his case, Hazrat Eisa Ibne Maryam (a.k.a. Jesus Christ).
Whether the Almighty took any interest in their contest, its rules leave no doubt about the winner: in short order Dowie was deposed (amid rumors of sexual and financial malfeasance); suffered a stroke; and, in 1907, died — a year before Ahmad.
Posted By: Paul - Thu May 24, 2012 -
Comments (11)
Category: Death, Eccentrics, Frauds, Cons and Scams, Religion, 1900s
Furburger
It's certainly been too long since we've had a musical number on WU, so without fur(ther) ado.....
Posted By: Paul - Wed May 16, 2012 -
Comments (5)
Category: Eccentrics, Feminism, Hygiene, Music, Sexuality, Women, Genitals
The Candidate With a 430 IQ
South Korea has an interesting candidate running for president — Huh Kyung-young. It's his third time running. Last time, in 2007, he got 10,000 votes, but he's convinced there was a miscount and that this time around he'll win. A few facts from his bio:
- He says he has an IQ of 430.
- He wants to move the U.N. headquarters to the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.
- He claims Michael Jackson's soul visited him three days before the singer died. Inspired by the visit, Huh later produced a record titled, "Call Me."
- He wants to give $100,000 to all couples who get married, and $30,000 to anyone who has a baby. How to pay for this? "Where there is a will, there is a way. I have all the solutions in my head. Remember, my IQ is 430."
- At the age of 57, he acquired supernatural powers.
Posted By: Alex - Tue May 15, 2012 -
Comments (8)
Category: Eccentrics, Politics, Strange Candidates
The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Deaths
Once upon a time, there was a kindly old lady who specialized in creating gruesome murder dioramas. Her name was Frances Glessner Lee, and her little scenes went on to educate criminologists for decades.
Follow the link for a whole book about her.
Posted By: Paul - Tue May 08, 2012 -
Comments (8)
Category: Crime, Death, Eccentrics, Education, Toys, 1940s, 1950s
John Graham
[Click either to enlarge]
Apparently, the painter John Graham was highly eccentric, both in his personal life and in his art. One fascination he had was with crossed eyes, as seen above.
His self-portrait below shows a certain, ah, uniqueness.
Read more about him in this LIFE magazine article and at this site.
Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 05, 2012 -
Comments (2)
Category: Art, Surrealism, Eccentrics, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, Russia
Hendrik Coetzee
Kadoma_teaser from Ben Stookesberry on Vimeo.
Do African explorers still get eaten by crocodiles in the 21st century? It seems a highly Victorian fate.
But it happened to Hendrik Coetzee just a little over a year ago. And now there's a documentary about him, the trailer for which is above.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Apr 04, 2012 -
Comments (4)
Category: Animals, Death, Eccentrics, Documentaries, Africa
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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 |