Dancing on Wine Bottles
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to dance on wine bottles while wearing a cat costume? Most likely not, as this is a very specific and unique thing to see occur. However, 17-year-old Bianca Passarge is captured doing just that in Hamburg, Germany in 1958. Although there isn't much context as to why she was doing this and what kind of act she was a part of, it seems interesting to say the least.
This must take a pretty large amount of talent, although it is a very specific set of skills. What a thing to include on your resume, "I can dance on wine bottles".
A Luxury Lawn Mower
Mowing the lawn can be an unpleasant task, especially in the summertime, when it is hot and sticky and the last thing you want to do is push around a heavy lawn mower. The real question here is why they stopped producing this luxury lawn mower that allows you to sit in an airconditioned space while you mow the lawn. It seems like the perfect solution and even like it could make this an enjoyable activity.
This family from the 1950s really seems to be enjoying this invention, as would just about anyone lucky enough to have it. Why does it feel like mankind is regressing sometimes instead of progressing?
The Tiniest Car
Compact cars are all the rage, but have you ever seen a compact car from the 1950s? This car tops any car that is made today. Just look at how small it is! It is shocking to think that both of these people are going to be able to fit into the small vehicle and that it can drive properly. But, somehow they seem to be about to do it!
The biggest perk of this car is that you can probably find parking for it just about anywhere. Anytime someone takes up too much space, this car will be able to fit right in.
An Honest and True Reaction
No one told the test audience that they would soon be exposed to one of the most horribly iconic scenes in movie history. It was both graphic and incredibly disturbing....and these are their raw responses. The horror and disturbance can be seen in their faces as they watch the Chest Burster Scene from the Alien (1979). Everyone seems incredibly disturbed, with the exception of the two men. One has a completely straight face and the other appears to be smiling.
Who can watch such a horrifying scene and sit there smiling? That is perhaps the scariest part of this picture....the man in the back right corner.
The Perfect Chamber Pot
What better way was there in the 1800s to show how much you hated your country's enemy than to put a figurine of their ruler in your chamber pot? This is a comical way that the British people tried to humiliate Napolean Bonaparte. Although he probably never knew what they were doing, it was definitely very satisfying to wake up in the middle of the night and remind yourself that you could defile the enemy in such a simple way.
It looks like petty and offensive things towards country rulers are something that will never go out of style..people are doing very similar things nowadays as well!
Jennifer Connelly and Ludo
Labyrinth, which came out in 1986, is known as one of the greatest classics of all time for a reason. Here you can see a picture of the leading actress, Jennifer Connelly, along with Ludo her co-star. They pose so perfectly together despite appearing more like a Beauty and the Beast type of duo. You can see the chemistry that they had on and off the set from just this picture.
Even though you can't really see much of a facial expression from Ludo, it does seem that he is smiling a bit in the photo as he wraps his arms around Jennifer.
Men's Business Attire in the Summer
When you really think about it, the world of men's business attire has not changed much in the past 200 years. Regardless of the weather, their uniforms are esetnially the same. Long pants, a dress shirt, an overcoat, and a tie...socks and shoes as well. This Canadian magazine wanted to give men's summer business attire a bit of a facelift, to help make life more comfortable in the heat of the summer.
It was a sincere and honest attempt that turned out to look more silly than anything. It seems that this trend did not ever take off, and maybe was just a fad for a time.
King Tutankhamun's Untouched Tomb
King Tutankhamun's tomb seal remained unbroken for 3,245 years. That is a very impressive amount of time...to say the least. All of that changed, however, in 1922 when it was excavated. Can you imagine being the one that broke this ancient tomb's seal? It would seem like something horrible would happen to whoever dared to do such a thing! And yet the excavators went on to do it without any shame.
This is quite a remarkable picture showing the history of this tomb! It's pretty crazy to think about how old this is.
Two Crazy Sisters
1916 was a crazy time. Women were just starting to realize that they are entitled to more rights than they were accustomed to and they wanted to exercise those rights. These two sisters, Adeline and Augusta Van Buren decided to become the first two women to travel across the USA on two solo motorcycles. To make matters even crazier, they were almost arrested multiple times for wearing pants instead of skirts or dresses!
This looks like a pretty amazing and fun trip, the only crazy part is that someone would try to arrest them for wearing a pair of trousers! What a crazy world.
Lithium in Soda
There is a reason that soda became such a popular drink and it's not only because of the delicious, sugary flavors. Up until 1948, did you know that 7Up was putting lithium in their soda? In case you don't know, lithium is actually a mood stabilizer. Imagine that everyone who was drinking the lemon soda was drugged on lithium constantly. It's no surprise that it was so popular!
They didn't even try to hide the fact that they put lithium in it. They even labeled the bottled "lithiated lemon soda" as if it is the same as "carbonated lemon soda".
Introducing the Schlörwagen
Have you ever heard of a Schlörwagen? Most likely not...and even if you gaze upon the picture of this interesting-looking blob, you probably still won't have much of a guess of what it is. This vehicle was built by German engineer Hans Schlör Von Westhofen Dirmstein (what a name). It was based on an airplane wing and it was actually more aerodynamically efficient than most 21st-century cars...even if it doesn't look too comfortable.
This car looks like a little bug of some sort (bug as in an insect..not the vehicle). It's actually quite cute and it's a shame that it was never turned into something popularly used around the world.
Courtroom Disguise
Have you ever wondered what it was like to testify in a courtroom before the days of voice changers and masks that could hide your identity? Well, this photo shows you exactly what it was like. This witness was testifying in a drug case in Washington on April 30, 1952. For his safety, he needed to keep his identity hidden. How did they do that? By using a cloth with eye holes cut out of it.
It doesn't seem like the most secure method to hide your identity. If this person was really at risk, all it takes to remove the disguise is one yank of the corner of the cloth.
Salvador Dali's Cutlery
You couldn't expect much less from Salvador Dali at the end of the day now, could you? It would be a shame to see just ordinary cutlery with his name on it. This is, not surprisingly, a work of art. Look at the interesting colors and designs of these pieces. They look partially like flowers and partially like pieces of jewelry. The colors as well are perfectly combined and stunning.
The only downside is that they do appear to be quite painful and difficult to use (if they were ever meant to be used as actual cutlery at all).
A New Type of Steering Wheel
Did you know that at one point in history there was an alternative design for a steering wheel? In the 1960s Ford attempted to reinvent the steering wheel by switching it out for two twisty dials. They tried to market it to people who struggled with parallel parking. They were quite arrogant and sexist with their advertising as well as they figured it would mostly be needed by "helpless" women drivers.
Not surprisingly, this invention never took off and was never really in use. It looks much more complicated than a normal steering wheel, despite their claims of the opposite.
The Makeup Gun
Is it a makeup container or a gun? From the outside, this definitely appears to be a gun, but when you take a closer look you can see that it actually opens up to a functional makeup case. It includes space for powder, rouge, and lipstick. It is a clever design idea, but it seems like a strange choice for makeup. Who wants to carry their makeup around in a gun?
At least this unique item was from the 1920s, before there were such strict guidelines and security on air travel and travel in general. No one could get through any security with that now.
The Drive in Restuarant
You've all heard of a drive-in movie theater, but have you ever heard of a drive-in restaurant? Now, don't be confused about a drive-through restaurant as this place was meant to be used as a fully functioning sit-in restaurant, only with everyone sitting in their cars. The food trays were sent out via rail tracks and there was no wait staff involved at all. It is the height of laziness, but a clever idea.
If you didn't know any better you might be led to think that this is actually a picture from 2020, during the pandemic. This would have been a wonderful social distancing opportunity.
One of the First Computers
It's hard to imagine the days when a computer was not the size of something that you could easily hold in your hand. However, as this picture proves, in the 1950s the opposite was the case. This engineer was working on the wiring of one of the first IBM computers and, as you can see, it is quite a large and confusing contraption. Just look at all the different cords hanging loose!
And people think that they have it complicated nowadays when they have to figure out where to plug in the one or two chords that are on the current computers!
The Melting Wax Museum
This is a pretty startling image at first glance. If you didn't know any better, you would most likely think that these are real people that have been deformed in some way. However, they are actually just very realistic wax mannequins that were melting during a heatwave in the 1920s. That must not have been the best thing to bring business into this store...no one wants to see a melting body.
The one on the left seems to be particularly problematic and melting at a very fast past. The woman on the right is not too far behind, however! Maybe it is time to remove them from the window.
Welcome to Luna Park
In case you have never heard of Luna Park in Melbourne, Australia, it is about time for you to learn about this incredible place. As can be seen, by this picture alone, it has some very unique architecture and a very memorable entrance. The craziest part is that this park is still pretty awesome even years after this photo was taken. Kudos to the person who came up with this clever doorway idea.
This is one of the places that make for a much cooler picture from far than it does from up close. If you are standing underneath it probably just looks like teeth, but from far you see the whole picture.
Helping Her Cross the Street
What are you staring at? Haven't you ever seen a man help an old lady across the street? In case you are very confused about what is going on in this picture, here you can see Im Henson in 1982 helping Aughra cross the street. Who is Aughra, you might ask? She is a character from the 1982 film called Dark Crystal and the Deuteragonist of the Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Prequel Series.
The name of the series is very fitting for the looks of the character. Who can look at her and not think that she deserves to be apart of a long-named series?
The Walking Truck
Have you ever seen a truck walk? Although this might sound like the beginning of a joke, it is actually not so far from reality. In the late 1960s General Electrics actually created a walking truck. It looks like a combination of a truck and a forklift...and some other contraptions as well. The most interesting part is that it actually was pretty functional and could move loads and walk quite successfully.
If you didn't know better and just saw this contraption walking down the street you would probably be quite alarmed. It looks like a monster and robot combined.
Constructing the World's Largest Vehicle
You might think that this is some sort of optical illusion at first glance. Nothing seems to be in proportion. However, this is an accurate photo from the 1930s of the Giant Studebaker. This was the largest vehicle in the world as it was under construction. It was located in Chicago and you can get an idea of how large it was by looking at the amount of people climbed on top of it.
Where were they planning to drive this vehicle? Why did they even make a car so large? It is the size of a boat except it is a car and meant to drive on regular roads?
Fashion Trends Come and Go
There is nothing funnier than looking at different fashion trends throughout history. Some of the strangest and silliest things appear. Usually, the stranger of the trends belongs to women's fashion as there is not much variety when it comes to men's fashion. However, in the 1920s, the fashion designers of the time went wild and created these balloon-like pants for men. They couldn't have been comfortable or served any purpose other than to appear in fashion.
The best part of photos like these is that at the time, these men were considered very fashionable and chic. In retrospect, they just look downright silly and almost ridiculous.
The Berlin Gold Hat
This is almost undoubtedly the most interesting and strange hat that you will ever see. This is a late Bronze Age artifact that is made entirely of thin gold leaf. Most historians think that the hats were used as the insignia of deities or priests of the sun cult that was popular at the time. They also think that the hats had some sort of astronomical and calendrical functions as well.
It seems like it would have been quite the challenge to keep one of these hats on your head, impressive skills on the side of the priests!
A Machine to Remove Freckles
It's truly sad to think that there was a time when freckles were not considered beautiful and women around the world would go to great lengths to try to remove them. As can be seen in this horrifying-looking contraption, this woman from the 1930s is attempting to remove her freckles. The eyes and nostrils were covered and blocked and there was a special tube for breathing as the rest of the face was being treated with chemicals.
The worst part about this is that it probably didn't even work! They would go to these extreme lengths, risk their skin, and not even have been successful. What is the lesson? Embrace your natural beauty!
Seeing Double
Sometimes you think that your eyes are playing tricks on you and you are seeing double. But worry not, you are not going crazy, but then again these people are not twins. In this picture, you can see Frank Zappa (in the background) and the actor who was playing Frank Zappa in the foreground. There is no doubt that they found the perfect person to play his character, they look exactly alike!
This picture is from when they were shooting the movie "200 Motels" in 1971. It was written by Frank Zappa and Tony Palmer and it looks like they stuck around for inspiration as well.
Mountaineers in the Year 1900
Being a mountaineer had a very different meaning in the year 1900 than it did today. Imagine heading out into the mountains without a phone or a GPS or anything and climbing the Alps. And then, to make matters even crazier, there was a woman in the crowd who was wearing a full and complete dress (accurate to the era), including a corset! There is no way that could have been comfortable.
It appears that she also has a bustle on in the back. Is she wearing heels as well? This is both unsafe and concerning on so many different levels.
The Natural Face Rock Museum
There are all sorts of museums around the world. There are art museums and history museums and archaeological museums. But have you ever heard of a rock museum? Don't be confused and think that this is a geological museum because that is not quite the case. This is a museum in Japan that showcases naturally formed rocks that have faces on them. The rock face museum is certainly one of a kind.
Although this seems like a funny and silly concept at first, there is also something intriguing about it. How are there so many rocks with perfectly formed faces on them?
Thank You Mr. Crow
It is a well-known fact that crows are the most intelligent bird and they actually have the intelligence of a 7-year-old child. That is why, at first glance, this image may be quite shocking, as you see a bird lighting a cigarette. The real question here is if he lit the match himself or if it was put in his beak already aflame. Hopefully, one of them knows how to put it out before it burns his beak!
This picture was taken on the set of the film The Birds and the actress with the cigarette is Tippi Hedren. It's crazy to think that they were able to train a crow to do this!
An Interesting Type of Art
Art takes so many different forms and the artist who created this masterpiece is known as Martin Claus. He was alive from 1982-1975 and created many interesting pictures like this one. Anyone who has ever read a scary book or watched a scary movie knows that this is perhaps the most accurate portrayal of your feelings when you do so. You see people in every shape and ghosts behind every corner.
Everything about this picture is just perfect. It does make you question though why people choose to read scary books or watch scary movies at all.
Creative Chalk Packaging
There is nothing better than seeing someone doing their job properly. Whoever designed this chalk package really knew what they were doing and deserve a raise. Just look at the creativity involved in this package! They used the pieces of chalk as the teeth of the clown. The only question is what happens when the chalk pieces wear down and then you put them back in the package? The clown will lose some teeth.
They really knew what they were doing in 1938 when they came up with marketing ideas and packaging ideas. This idea really cannot be beat.
Funny Faces in a Picture
It is fairly uncommon to see old pictures of people with anything except a stern face. It seems that everyone who took photos in the early age of photography refused to smile, ever. However, that is clearly not the case. Here you can see photographs of women who were making silly poses in front of the camera. It's funny to see as most people at the time probably didn't want to waste film on an imperfect picture.
It brings some life to a time period that usually only contains very stiff and rigid imagery. It's hard to imagine them being just like people now when you look at the common, stern photos.
Razzle Dazzle War Ships
What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of a warship? It is most likely not the words "razzle dazzle". However, during World War 1, this was a completely legitimate and common style of camouflage paint that was used to confuse the enemy. As can be seen, by the photos, it could very easily be successful in confusing the enemy as it is impossible to decipher anything.
This is the same concept that they say about the stripes of zebras in the wild...the stripes confuse their predators enabling them to stay safe.
The Coffee Maker Extra in the Car
Now, this seems like something that many people would love to have in their cars nowadays. In 1959, Volkswagen cars came with the optional extra of a built-in coffee maker. Imagine getting into your car and being able to make your coffee on the go. It would save so much time in the morning preparations, especially for people who have long commutes in the morning. What a clever idea!
For whatever reason, this idea did not stick and unfortunately, it will be pretty difficult to find a coffee maker that is built into any car today. You'll just have to be content with the coffee drive-through.