August 2018
August 22, 2018
Via Galactica
One of Broadway's biggest flops.
NYT article here.
Wikipedia page here.
Posted By: Paul - Wed Aug 22, 2018 -
Comments (1)
Category: Ineptness, Crudity, Talentlessness, Kitsch, and Bad Art, Theater and Stage, Science Fiction, 1970s
August 21, 2018
Miniature horses allowed
Southwest Airlines has announced it's adopting new rules, beginning September 18, about the animals it will allow on-board its aircraft. From their website:They also have a list of the animals they won't allow on-board:
Personally I wouldn't care if someone brought their horse on-board. But I can't imagine where it would sit or stand during the flight.
Posted By: Alex - Tue Aug 21, 2018 -
Comments (10)
Category: Animals, Air Travel and Airlines
Mystery Illustration 75
What does this 1939 statue symbolize?
The answer is here.
And after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Tue Aug 21, 2018 -
Comments (5)
Category: Statues and Monuments, 1930s
August 20, 2018
Flush Polling
Also known as Cess Polling. It's a form of non-traditional presidential polling that was started in Emmetsburg, Iowa in 1980. Voters were asked to indicate which candidate they preferred by flushing their toilet at the appropriate time. The local water plant then measured how far the water level dropped in the city water tower to calculate how many toilets had been flushed.The tradition of flush polling continued throughout the 1990s, though I can't find any sign that it was used in recent elections.
Des Moines Register - Nov 4, 1980
Posted By: Alex - Mon Aug 20, 2018 -
Comments (5)
Category: Politics
President Truman and the Albino Kangaroo
Source.
The animal was spoken of at a press conference.
Source.
But according to LIFE, it came with a name.
Source.
BTW: what was meant by Truman being good at naming dinosaurs? I think this is the answer:
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Aug 20, 2018 -
Comments (0)
Category: Animals, Government, Diplomacy and Foreign Relations, 1950s, Australia, North America
August 19, 2018
Making a silk purse from a sow’s ear
Back in 1921, the chemist Arthur D. Little took it upon himself to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Or rather, he figured out a way to produce a silk-like thread out of sows' ears and wove a purse from this.Actually, he made two purses. The Smithsonian has one of them. MIT now has the other. (Little was an MIT grad).
The picture of the purse (below) looks nothing like the illustration of it. I wonder what happened. Did the dye fade, or something?
More info: MIT Museum, MIT Library
Pittsburgh Press - Dec 28, 1975
Posted By: Alex - Sun Aug 19, 2018 -
Comments (1)
Category: Animals, Science, 1920s
“Ubu” by Geoff Dunbar
Home page of creator.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Aug 19, 2018 -
Comments (2)
Category: War, Surrealism, Cartoons, 1970s
August 18, 2018
Diamond dermal piercings
Latest trend in engagement rings. Instead of a ring, a diamond dermal piercing. From The Independent:
Posted By: Alex - Sat Aug 18, 2018 -
Comments (7)
Category: Fashion, Jewelry
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
August 17, 2018
Buster, the Roller-Skating Rooster
He ice-skated also!
Davenport Daily Times - Aug 20, 1952
Baltimore Sun - Oct 12, 1952
Newark Advocate - Aug 21, 1952
Posted By: Alex - Fri Aug 17, 2018 -
Comments (2)
Category: Animals, Sports, 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 books such as Elephants on Acid. 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. Chuck Shepherd Chuck is the purveyor of News of the Weird, the syndicated column which for decades has set the gold-standard for reporting on oddities and the bizarre. Our banner was drawn by the legendary underground cartoonist Rick Altergott. Contact Us |
