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Vroom Vroom
Preparing my CQ quiz, where you are to guess the car make, mode, year and the film or TV show it appeared in, I found plenty of Javelins -- which I have the serious hots for.   Thanks to these guys & gals who not only watch the films and shows for cars but take screen shots and identify and document them at the Internet Movie Cars Database, we can enjoy an entire page of AMC Javelins in movies and TV series. (If you love Javelins as I do, you may also wish to see pages/categories for AMC AMX Javelin in movies and TV series, AMC AMX in movies and TV series -- and all AMC vehicle listings.) Of course, you may prefer another maker/model... Here's the Internet Movie Cars Database list of all vehicle makes. Labels: 1960s, 1970s, retro, the automobile
If Bees In Your Crotch Make Your Ankles Swell...
Last Message, Toy Printing Press
Below is the final message found typeset on a toy printing press I bought recently: "PLANS FOR BOMBING MISSION WILL BE CARRIED OUT AT 1100.UFO SIGHTED RED ALERT IS WHAT WAS SAID IN AN AIRFORCE"...The message ends there, because the last half of what had been set up is no longer attached to the press, and has been lost to history. If only we knew more about the UFO sighting before the alien invasion, things may have turned out differently... Labels: printing press, superior, toys
Kitschy Kitschy Coo: We Blow Your Skirt Up
Hooray! Whee! For Chef Boy-ar-dee!
CRYING WON'T HELP YOU!
SO CUT IT OUT, OR I'LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO CRY ABOUT: The disembodied head of John J Anthony is letting you know that THOUSANDS of tearful bony women can put on ten to twenty-five pounds of " naturally attractive flesh." I hope that doesn't mean "put on flesh" in a Leatherface sort of way. The company advertised in this 1930s Radio Guide is Ironized Yeast Co., of Atlanta, GA, so it's no wonder that their claim is that people aren't getting enough iron and Vitamin B in their diets...and what better way to get it than devouring ironized yeast! They gave Charles Atlas a run for his money with the "you're too skinny, you freakin' loser" advertisements, but it seems these Ironized Yeast people eventually fell afoul of 'truth in advertising' laws and crossed paths with the FTC. Remember, crying doesn't help you, even if you're caught promising people more attractive flesh than your ferrous fungus can provide. Labels: self-improvement, weight, weird ads
High-Five Fridays: Giving Thanks
Want to give high-fives too? Sure you do! 1) We'd like to thank the fine folks at StumbleUpon for noticing the Kitschy Kitschy Coo. 2) Thanks to Woot for sending folks to play the map game. 3) And many thanks to Dinosaurs and Robots for the linkage as well. 4) Kudos to the Baltimore County Public Library for not only having a zine collection, but blogging about it too. 5) A big ol' howdy to the Cochran's, who stop in at CQ quite often. Labels: blogging, cool, high-five fridays
Dimple Dot Kleenex Box Cover Kit
I never knew they had an official name.  Seeing this ad reminds me of when I was young, someone gave this to my folks as a gift -- :eek: -- and our dog used to bark at like she was rabid (the dog, not the Dimple Doll). My folks would put it away, and then every now and then bring it out to see if the dog still hated it; she did. Eventually, the dog got a hold of it and destroyed it. Whenever I see them at sales, I want to buy them and set them all in a row on a shelf -- maybe even fill and entire book shelf with them, in all the colors and variations. I did get one once, but sent it to my sister; one part memory, one part freak factor (she hates dolls so opening a box with a doll head, well, that would be super freaky). But no affordable ones since. Feel free to send me some, if you don't want them. Labels: cool, Craft-Scan Fridays, crafting, creepy, dolls, kitsch, snot funny, vintage ads, vintage advertising
1910 End of World Souvenir
 Found at Ruby Lane, the Seller Says: This is a very rare French postcard marking the mania over the approaching of Halley's Comet. Published in Germany (FM Cologne noted on back), the text is all in French and the card is described on the back as "the official souvenir card of the end of the world, the 19th of May, 1910." Quite strange, but the sender Lily looks like she followed her name with the word "aeroplane" and a long curving line .... imitating the tail of Halley's Comet. In the Zeppellin, the words are written "On s'en f..... pas mal!!" That's a little risque for Edwadian times....the f.... word stands for fessess or buttocks. The moon with the outstretched arms is saying, best I can understand, "It will be good to come here." "Good by and thanks" a man hanging onto an umbrella says. "Expedition to the moon: grand speed, 200 francs per blow (from the canon)." Le dernier salut" is French for "the last goodbye or salute." Labels: antique, antiques, cool, ephemera, souvenir, space, weird
Teen-Age Know-How From 1946
From my collection of etiquette books, a few pages from Your Manners Are Showing, by Betty Betz (1946). First, how to be a proper street walker, for him and her.   Don't tell naughty jokes!  I'm not sure if this last one is to say that eating while walking in public is rude (who hasn't eaten an ice cream cone thus?) -- or is a warning to ladies to satisfy her man at home...  Charmed? I'm sure; but find your own copy on eBay. Labels: 1940s, books, dating, etiquette, illustration, vintage
Amanda Always Hated It When They Returned Her Hanky
Put That In Your Pipe & Smoke It
As If Sticking Pins Into The Baby Isn't Bad Enough...
Back When Paper Publishing Had Profits To Spare
You know there had to be BIG money in publishing magazines back in 1960 when The Saturday Evening Post gave sent you a bowling ball in the mail just for soliciting four subscriptions.  I know we're talking 1960's postage, but still -- it's a freakin' bowling ball. It would have been cheaper to mail folks a voucher along with the authorization, but I guess they made enough money from the advertisers -- the ones I mock here relentlessly. Labels: 1960s, bowling, vintage ads, vintage advertising, vintage magazines, weird, weird ads
The Mystery Of The White Squaw
It's April 30, 1960; Do You Know Where You Are?
From The Saturday Evening Post, comes the double-dog-dare, "Where Do You Think You Are?"  East or West, North or South, each of the distinctive areas above appears on the road map of a single state. There is, as the saying goes, "no place like it." Can you identify the states?
Harley P. Cook Think you know your 1960's maps? (Or perhaps it is more accurate to say 1950's maps...) Maybe you're just a smarty pants. Whatever. Post your (however well-educated) guesses. I'll post the answers later in the week. 7/16/08 Update -- With The Answers!(complete with 1960 state abbreviations, for that full-bodied retro taste) 1. Mass 2. Colo 3. Mo. 4. Wis. 5. Idaho 6. N.J. 7. Iowa 8. Ariz. 9. Va. 10. Me. 11. S.C. 12. Wash. Looks like Jason was right - congrats, map geek. Second Place Steve was just 5 minutes off; story of his life, ey. Labels: 1950s, 1960s, maps, quiz, vintage magazines
Before You Decide About A House...
Investigate improved Asbestocel. Removing it must be hell.  Via Flickr. Labels: 1920s, history, home improvement, vintage ads, vintage advertising
Remember When From 1959
Because I've been digging through & scanning old issues of The Saturday Evening Post, be prepared for a number of scans from them. Up now, Remember When? Pictures With A Past.  Text reads: Recognize the smiling lad at right? Frank Sinatra was just one of a New Jersey quartet, the Hoboken Four, when he got his start on the amateur hour of Major Bowes (center) in 1936. From radio Frank turned to singing for the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey bands, then to films. He proved he could act as well as sing. Now past his forty-first birthday, he's still going strong.
Calvert Gostle  Text reads: Here is a grim idea aborning: That planes could attack as well as scout. These Army officers fired a Lewis machine gun from the air in 1912. I made this photo before the take-off. The tests, at 500 rounds a minute, succeeded. The plance did not shake apart. Even so, early World War I air battles were fought with revolvers.
C. J. Mac Cartee  Text reads: This stirring scene points a moral, as did almost everything in 1921. It was: Women can master the motorcar. Left, how to caress a radiator cap and get shocked by the ignition. Right. a familiar scene of the day--how to inflate a pneumatic tiree and patch a punctured tube. This was habit-forming.
Ezra Quincy Labels: history, Modern Woman Mondays, planes, radio, the automobile, vintage magazines
Ham-Handed Harriet Had Trouble Hand-Tinting Photos
Who Invited The Chubby Girl? (Or, She Was Happier Because She Could Eat)
Art From The Stuff In The Bottom Of The Toy Box
Dance Lessons From Betty White
Climbing The Corporate Ladder Has Always Been Tough
Girls Are Doing Wonders With Saxaphones
They just put their lips there and blow, I guess.  Via Cheripop at Flickr, who says this comes from the April, 1928, Cosmopolitan. Labels: 1920s, vintage ads, vintage advertising
Salesmanship -- And Humor -- Mean A Lot
High-Five Fridays (Stuff We Dug This Week)
Want to give high-fives too? Sure you do! 1) If you don't know how to thrift (and frankly, that frightens us), check out welcome to Thriftland. 2) Everyone needs a paint by number farting unicorn -- or knows someone who does! ...Maybe that's just me? 3) Other things we make the kids do. (Don't call the authorities; they like it, I swear!) 4) Aliens & arson in 1935. (Strange Canadians!) 5) What do you do with a Mingering Mike? (Not sure I'd comply.)  Labels: collecting, cool, crafting, ephemera, high-five fridays, kitsch, movies, records
Miss MoPar Says
When I was 14 or 15, just prior to sneaking into bars at 16, me & my teenage gal-pals went down to our local "strip" to cruise for guys -- who were cruising their cars. Back then, all the cool boys were "MoPar men".  As I learned nothing about cars (but plenty about boys) during this time, I have nothing to say about the ad -- other than I would have loved to be Miss MoPar, at least the Miss MoPar of our town. Via Flickr. Labels: 1950s, the automobile, vintage ads, vintage advertising
Mrs. Alexander's Advice To Negro Youth
Making Them Face The Music
They Quickly Learned To Keep The Knives Away From Susan
 Via LJ's Vintage Ad Community (we're still crediting them, hoping they'll credit us with the stuff they score here). UPDATE: Hey, StumbleUpon folks -- there's a lot more at KKC, so start at the beginning and get so dizzy with the delights that folks will need to keep the knives away from you too. Labels: food, humor, retro, vintage ads, vintage advertising
Because I Like Storks, And You Like Camera Stuff
Drink That Takes You Into Orbit
Sotheby's (To) Auction Hoax
Sotheby's is to auction off this famous hoax photo on July 17th, in London: "Elsie was playing with the gnome and beckoning it to come on to her knee. The gnome leapt up just as Frances, who had the camera, snapped the shutter. He is described as wearing black tights, a reddish jersey and a pointed bright red cap. Elsie said there was no perceptible weight, though when on the bare hand the feeling is like a 'little breath'. The wings were more moth-like than the fairies and of a soft neutral tint. Elsie explained that what seem to be markings on his wings are simply his pipes, which he was swinging in his grotesque little left hand." (Edward Gardner, Fairies: The Cottingley Photographs and Their Sequel, 1945) This is one of five "Cottingley Fairy" photographs taken by Elsie Wright and her cousin Frances Griffiths which together comprise, the most famous hoax of its kind every perpetrated in the history of photography, and one which deceived a number of eminent public figures, most infamously, the writer and creator of Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
 From the catalog note: From July 1917 onwards, in the small village of Cottingley, near Bingley in Yorkshire, the fifteen-year old Elsie Wright and her ten-year-old cousin Frances Griffiths produced a series of photographs (some taken as late as August 1920) showing fairies and gnomes in rural settings, mostly in company with one or other of the girls themselbves. Originally conceived as a joke, the group came to be taken seriously through a series of accidents three years later. The theosophist Edward L. Gardner, who was interested in the paranormal, came to hear of them, as did Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who subsequently wrote extensively about them in Strand Magazine (December 1920 and March 1921) and in his full-length book The Coming of the Fairies (1922: see Sotheby's sale 15/16 July 1998, lot 448, for a copy inscribed by Doyle to Frances Griffiths). Despite attracting ridicule from sceptics in the huge publicity which ensued, Doyle, Gardner and others involved believed implicitly in the genuineness of the photographs, which they believed bore witness to protoplasmic thought forms emanating from the girls psychic auras. Doyle's credulity and reputation ensured that the story--which has been the subject of numerous articles, books, television programmes, and films, including Fairy Tale: A True Story (1997)--remained well known from 1920 onwards. The mystery was not properly solved, nor the hoax fully explained from a technical point of view, until an extensive investigation by Geoffrey Crawley was published between December 1982 and April 1983 in The British Journal of Photography. This finally prompted public confessions from the unrepentant perpetrators themselves, who explained how they had produced coloured cut-out drawings which were mounted with the help of hatpins, and then used super-imposition techniques. However, Frances Griffiths maintained until the end of her life in 1986 that one of the photographs was not produced by trickery, but showed genuine fairies.
Labels: antique, brownies elves imps whatever, gnomes, history, old photographs
You Know It's Deep Sea Fishin' With Big Fish To Catch
Fame Was In The Stars For J.K. Rowling; She Knew, Because She Put It There
Sotheby's is to auction off three personal horoscope charts prepared by author J.K. Rowling which contain "unpublished illustrations and writing dating from when j.k. rowling was writing harry potter and the philosopher's stone, and a wonderful insight into the creative mind behind harry potter." (Sotheby's, I think that's Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone; but hey, I'm too poor to bid, so what do I know.)  From the auction listing: The third horoscope is of their young son, born on the cusp of Aquarius and Pisces. He will enjoy school, perhaps be accident-prone, (like all Pisces) could be prone to alcoholism, and (perhaps like us all) may well fall in love with someone totally incompatible. The chart apparently suggests that the boy will have great literary talent ("...the planet of fantasy and imagination meets a sign frequently associated with bookishness...") Rowling wonders whether his "ability to weave a good yarn" could perhaps bring fame and fortune, before deciding that becoming a film director would better suit his talents. Apparently wishing for some small slice of fame for herself, J.K. Rowling wonders if the boy would perhaps at least mention her in his Oscar acceptance speech ("...This peculiar woman my mother knows predicted I would be standing before you today ... of course, my parents laughed at the time...") To be auctioned off at Sotheby's in London on July 17. Labels: astrology, books, collecting, creepy, illustration, zodiac
Sweet Tweet
Working on part two of the paint by number article, I discovered this amazing paint by number bird fabric.   Designed by Erin Michael for Moda Fabrics & released in 2007, this fabric is now sold out - in all of the colors. We can see why; but we're still pouting. Labels: cool, crafting, kitsch, paint by numbers, retro style
Who Are The People In Your Neighborhood?
Before Wonka, The Umpa Loompas Made Coats
  Naturally, they would have to change the spelling of their names from Umpa Lumpa to Oompa Loompa. Vintage ads for Umpa furs, via eBay ( 1 & 2). Labels: fashion, humor, vintage ads, vintage advertising
Birthday Wishes From Verce of Hexperience
Pal Silent Porn Star (*) sent me a charming belated birthday gift -- delivered by Hang Fire Books (also *). (Well, the US post delivered it, but Will sent it. ) It's a delightfully puzzling note on the back of a Sunshine Biscuits invoice sheet:  Dear Reader:
Once that thing has slowed down, this book - or any other, will never serve as a rejuvenator. Let the dead rest in peace.
Signed, Verce of Hexperience Let the guesses as to meaning commence. (Possible hints lay in where it was found...? At least I like to think so! *wink*) Labels: birthday, blogging, collecting, cool, ephemera, weird
D-12 Handbag
six-sided, quasi-cubic purses are so last week -- dodecahedral handbags are where it's at:  And, what you see above isn't your average, every-day dodecahedral bag; it's modeled after a 12-sided roleplaying dice. As a bag you can carry your dice around in. I worry that this is the project of some mad dice-based supervillain (like Clock King, but more...dicey), and Batman needs to be notified promptly. Labels: dice, fashion, handbag, roleplaying
Because All Men Still Look Up To See Planes
Get Your Rockin' Flock On
13 Funky Images & Kitschy Phrases From A Vintage Dry Cleaning Booklet
13 Funky Images & Kitschy Phrases From A Vintage Dry Cleaning Booklet (And It's Cooler Than You Think!)
All images & quotes are from the November 1953 issue of Silhouette, a promotional paper pushing (surprise!) dry cleaning. 1) 2) Two For Dreaming was a feature on holiday gowns. 3) It features a poetry-jam which romanticizes fashion as it eroticizes & enslaves women: It starts with Thanksgiving... the party nights that are strung like glittering jewels on a chain... ending only when the echoes of the New Year have faded to silvery whispers. You will spin across polished floors--the answer to someone's most intimate dreams--in the timeless femininity of a beautiful ball dress. You will choose white for its kinship to new-fallen snow... or pale blue for tis affinity to a wintry scene. And you will see that your lovely gown does things for you... like moulding your bodice with a tempter's touch... whirling your skirt for the grace of the dance... making you the most distinguished memory a man can know. Damn, that's hot. So hot that I don't really register all the "you will" commands as I am brainwashed into wanting a beautiful ball gown... and to polish those floors. Just to be the answer to someone's most intimate dreams! I will choose white. Or pale blue. I haven't quite decided yet. But then there are other choices. 4) Like what to do about fur... It's a VIP (very important pelt), and even if I go faux, there are many things to consider. Like which ones are kindest to my dry cleaner. Thank goodness I can read Fashion Moves Furward for some help. (And more puns!) 5) 6) In Hair Today... Glamour Tomorrow, by Eleanor Page Hamilton, I get more than the usual tips for setting curls and figuring out how to part my hair for my face shape -- I get this gem: Arthur "Bugs" Baer -- and I quote -- says, "Nothing drabbles a doll more than soggy bangs." He claims he knows a gal who has such a neurosis about this that she wears a rubber bathing cap whenever she makes cocktails. Okay, so maybe she is a character! I can't possibly add anything to that. Really. Just feel free to work all of that into conversation at your Fourth of July celebrations. 7) 8) From The Top Drawer includes this bit of knowledge: Department Of Nothing New: Feminine witchery in the form of knee-hugging breeches is just another steal from the masculine world. In case you care, men of distinction wore tight-laced knee pants, call culottes, in 1735. Son of a breech! Did this publication aimed at women just accuse the very same of witchery & pantsing men? Please return to the tempter's touch... 9) 10) On Your Feet continues the puns and enlightens us regarding shoes. The top shoe there, the 'golden sandals' (as if we can see that in black & white), were designed for "the glamorous Queen Elizabeth". You don't hear that phrase much anymore. 11) In Permanent Reminders we learn to employ pipe cleaners to catch the "short wisps at the nape of your neck" when giving yourself a home permanent. Huh. Dames and dolls were to use the professional services of a dry cleaner, but eschew those of the professional salon. 12) 13) King Cord. It's no joke. No wonder the touch of corduroy is like a gentle kiss on the fingertips -- it once was the rainment of royalty. It originated in the court of France and became known as cord du roi -- cord of kings. The idea of an entire royal court swoosh-swoosh-swooshing from corduroy is hysterical. Especially the French. Did they also invent the pearlized snap for shirts? That goes great with cords.  The End. Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others' comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! View More Thursday Thirteen ParticipantsLabels: 1950s, beauty, ephemera, fashion, romance, sexist, Thursday Thirteen, vintage, vintage magazines
Nickel Penny?
Did you know there was once a nickel "penny"? Properly, a 'penny' is always a copper coin, but during the run-up to the Civil War, the US turned to nickel due to shortage of precious metals, resulting in a one-cent nickel:  But that's not the kitschy part -- in 1871, a chinaman ran afoul of a debtor's attempt to substitute these for more valuable 'indian head' coins, according to the New York Times: "...Some way individual conceived the idea of a "new way to pay old debts," and, obtaining some of these coins, started for his Chinese washman, whom he owed just $3...[The washman] asked the broker, "how muchee." His countenance fell as the broker informed him that it was but one cent, and, after stating the circumstance, went to look for the deceiver."Labels: coin collecting, history, nickel, numismatism
Roller Coasters Of Love, Say What?
Feeling Sneezy? Put A Feather By Your Nose
Loosing Your Lunch - Box
"Kevin Rej's Lunchbox Collection" from Vintage Metal Lunchboxes by Kevin Rej -- go see the rest!  When I was little I had one of those vinyl lunch boxes of Sleeping Beauty. I loved it, no matter how much the vinyl stunk and made my pb&j smell like plastic. But one day on the way home from school I set the lunch box down on the stone wall next to the sidewalk when I stopped to tie my shoe -- and you guessed it, I forgot to pick the lunch box back up. :sigh: I went back for it, but it was gone. Too bad Kevin doesn't collect the vinyl lunch boxes; then maybe he & I could have made a deal. Labels: childhood, collecting, cool, lunch boxes, retro
Behold The Bejeweled Pink Poodle Paintings
70's Teen Beauty Diary Entry
In 1975 Teen Magazine advised us to "Go Curly", using our makeup pencils as curlers.  OK, I'll admit that we tried this, my friend Mary & I. We were too young & silly -- hopped up on soda pop, disco music and teenybopper posters from Tiger Beat -- not to know what would happen. Which, in case you didn't see it coming, was the following: - dots & streaks in shades of pink, red, blue & lavender on our faces, ears and necks from the pencils
- pencils so coated in styling gunk they had to be tossed out (no amount of shaving/sharpening could save them because they crusty stuff would transfer to our hands and flake on our faces during use)
- no curls to speak of because we had no clever way to hold the pencils in our hair (we were modern steam-curl girls)
It was an insane, unsanitary, hairy mess; the best thing of which is being able to share this bit from my teen beauty diary with you -- 33 years later. Labels: 1970s, beauty, childhood, retro, vintage magazines
Goodman Action Figures
Found this at Lost At E Minor, where Gerry Mak says, "The Big Lebowski is probably one of the most beloved films of our generation, so the soon to be released Dude action figure should be an insanely hot item."  I've never seen The Big Lebowski; so maybe I'm un-cool. But who doesn't want a John Goodman action figure? Personally, I've always wanted Roseanne action figures. I'd totally love to play with the Connor family. I double-dog-dare you to say you wouldn't either. Labels: action figures, cult classics, movies, toys, TV
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