German Mousetrap Museum

"This Museum was established in 1990 by the Heimatverein Neroth in the old School House to celebrate the mouse trap making cottage industry that had flourished in Neroth and nearby villages for over one hundred years."

Their German-language homepage.


And as a bonus, here is an incredible collection of mousetrap history books in PDF form.

Posted By: Paul - Wed May 01, 2013 - Comments (2)
Category: Animals, Death, Museums, Technology, Rube Goldberg Devices, Europe

What a Life!

Always good to keep your sense of humor in hard economic times.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Apr 07, 2013 - Comments (2)
Category: Money, 1940s, Europe

The Dopey Joes

More random "culture" from the inexplicable French.

Posted By: Paul - Thu Apr 04, 2013 - Comments (3)
Category: Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Dance, Europe

Follies of the Madmen #203

Turkish Airlines - Wingo TVC - English from Robotika Films on Vimeo.

I don't know... That bird reminds me of too many other incompetent fictional birds. Especially the klutzy Launchpad McQuack. I'm not feeling in good hands--or wings--here.

Posted By: Paul - Mon Apr 01, 2013 - Comments (5)
Category: Anthropomorphism, Business, Advertising, Air Travel and Airlines, Europe

Fritz von Opel

Fritz von Opel was one of those early-20th-century rocket-besotted guys who pioneered this exotic means of propulsion. Just look at his rocket car go in the film clip above! (Narration in German, but not necessary to comprehension.)

But von Opel's innocent excitement had its darker side. I give you the 1929 newspaper article below. Specifically, the enlarged sentence.

Posted By: Paul - Fri Mar 29, 2013 - Comments (7)
Category: Inventions, War, Space Travel, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, Europe, Cars

100 MPH Zip Line

Posted By: Paul - Mon Mar 25, 2013 - Comments (4)
Category: Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Recreation, Technology, Europe

Charley Says

In this dangerous world, God help all kids who don't have a child-sized cat friend with feline Tourette's Syndrome.

So popular, they have been collected on DVD.



Not to be confused with this other "Charlie says!"

Posted By: Paul - Wed Feb 27, 2013 - Comments (10)
Category: Anthropomorphism, Death, Disasters, PSA’s, Advertising, Candy, Cats, Europe

Eurovision Winner:  1967

The annual Eurovision contest is chugging along, and we haven't made fun of a past winner in a while.

Here's the best Europe could offer in 1967, a year when everyone else was listening to revolutionary work by the Doors, the Stones, the Beatles, et al.

Sandie Shaw on Wikipedia.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Feb 24, 2013 - Comments (9)
Category: Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Music, 1960s, Europe

One of My Xmas Gifts

Vintage paperbacks are the best!

Posted By: Paul - Wed Dec 26, 2012 - Comments (4)
Category: Holidays, Books, 1950s, Europe

Tales of Dark:  Of Grandiose Fevers and Passion Arcane

If H. P. Lovecraft were alive today, sixteen years old and a Goth, this is the song he would have written. The only things missing are the word "eldritch" and some tentacles.

More on the band here.

Reach the ancient heart of the stygian obscurity
Wherein all the names of mine are written
In pits profound,where festered dreams sigh
And longings scorched seek reason to return.
Admire the flame flowered mansions arcane
The sulfurous secrets gowned in rapture profane
Fear not the fire of all-knowing wisdom
Furiously burning with such ravishing splendour.

On the wings of my most fervent passion
Which the fools dare name blasfemia
To thee I have returned from the heart-dead sunworms domain
A coffin-shaped lair they have woven around me
For I've pledged no allegiance
To their fabulous sacred theories
Those spurious servants of a crownless king
Who holds their cross in vain.

No Phoenix phenomenon shall their fall contain!
Leave their carcasses scattered and slain!

And now I'm visualised
To blind-faithed eyes
Lofty and proud, to be recognized.
As the mourning-scented bloodstorm winds
Of their final downfall blow
Like a nightclad werewolf upon the moonlit glade
I shall hunt them down in the snow.

...and the frostbitten ground
now consumes their wretched gore
My victorious hiss fulfills the oceans ethereal
And the stars gleam nameless above
As shadows call forth the seas of Cthulhu
Be wide awake my dearest
Of my fiery necromantic kiss!

Thine arms soothing around me enfold
To cease my yearning cursed
The sweetest witchcraft thy lips do hold
Can only quench my thirst.

'Neath the enchantingly blazing corona of night
drown thy desire into mine!
With all the senses cast to a feverous grandeur
In the sins of the flesh we entwine.

Eternally...We entwine...

Posted By: Paul - Sun Dec 23, 2012 - Comments (6)
Category: Armageddon and Apocalypses, Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Dreams and Nightmares, Evil, Goths, Music, Noises and Other Public Disturbances of the Peace, Europe, Cacophony, Dissonance, White Noise and Other Sonic Assaults