Twentieth Century
Bathtubs Over Broadway
A new documentary about "industrial musicals" is just hitting selected theaters.The film's homepage.
The book that served as the source.
Posted By: Paul - Tue Nov 27, 2018 -
Comments (0)
Category: Ineptness, Crudity, Talentlessness, Kitsch, and Bad Art, Theater and Stage, Industry, Factories and Manufacturing, Outsider Art, Surrealism, Twentieth Century
Thérèse Humbert, Con Woman
Story with pix here.
In 1902, a political and financial scandal rocked the French nation when it was discovered that Madame Thérèse Humbert (née Aurignac), daughter-in-law of the deceased Minister of Justice, had swindled nearly 100 million francs from the French government and its citizens over twenty years. How did this woman, who was not particularly beautiful, educated, or well born, manage to defraud scores of people, ranging from the brightest and sophisticated of French society to the simplest?
Contemporary article on their capture.
Read a review of the book here, which contains a good synopsis of the case.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Nov 23, 2018 -
Comments (1)
Category: Crime, Frauds, Cons and Scams, Europe, Twentieth Century
How to Take Apart a Volkswagen Beetle
Posted By: Paul - Tue Nov 06, 2018 -
Comments (2)
Category: Business, Advertising, Twentieth Century, Cars
Strange Beauty Queens
This blog has a fine post with many fotos on our theme of oddball beauty contests.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Nov 03, 2018 -
Comments (3)
Category: Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Twentieth Century
The Mystery of Ambrose Small
Master Weirdist Charles Fort once made a jest involving two mysterious vanishings: "Was somebody collecting Ambroses?"One of the Ambroses involved was the famous Ambrose Bierce.
The other was much less-known: Ambrose Small.
One would think that after so many years, all had been said about Small's disappearance. But I can't find any reference to this further extension of the case as seen below.
Original article here.
More on the Small case.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Oct 22, 2018 -
Comments (3)
Category: Crime, Cult Figures and Artifacts, Death, Twentieth Century
The Girl Gershwin
A forgotten figure today, Dana Suesse was once dubbed (by the New Yorker magazine no less) as "the Girl Gershwin," a label that probably did her more harm than good. In her era, her talents, in a woman, were certainly and unfairly considered "weird" on some levels.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Oct 07, 2018 -
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Category: Music, Stereotypes and Cliches, Women, Twentieth Century
Behind the Burly Q
Trailer is Safe For Work. Link to book or DVD below.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Aug 27, 2018 -
Comments (1)
Category: Costumes and Masks, Entertainment, Public Indecency, Sex Symbols, Books, Documentaries, Twentieth Century
Alice in Dairyland
I can see having a beauty queen to represent the dairy region. But what's the Lewis Carroll connection? The website is not forthcoming. Does she have surreal adventures or not?
Source.
Home page.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Aug 18, 2018 -
Comments (5)
Category: Agriculture, Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues, Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Food, Regionalism, Twentieth Century
The Wiere Brothers
Their Wikipedia page.
And in 1962, reduced to playing the state fair circuit.
Newspaper source.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Aug 15, 2018 -
Comments (6)
Category: Comedians, Twentieth Century
Virginia Slims Clothing
Dress in the tribal garments of your tobacco goddess.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jul 20, 2018 -
Comments (2)
Category: Fashion, Tobacco and Smoking, Advertising, Corporate Mascots, Icons and Spokesbeings, Women, Twentieth Century
| 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 |