Like Hover Cars For Kitchens

In 1945, foot pedals were the fantasy future of kitchens.

FOOT PEDALS will operate many of the labor-saving devices which will be ours in the kitchen of tomorrow. Here the housewife prepares vegetables in the future kitchen, while her little daughter has opened a bin which tilts to throw the vegetables forward. By operating the foot pedals for water in the sink, the housewife has her hands free. The splash board back of the sink is self illuminating when raised, and lowers flush with the working bench at right to form a buffet bar.

From What's Cooking For Tomorrow's Kitchens, by Joseph Lawren, in Modern Woman, Vol 14, No 5, 1945' photograph from Libby-Owens-Ford's "Kitchen of Tomorrow".

Modern Woman Monday: What's In Your Fridge?

Just one of the many quirky, unique items available at the Kindness Of Strangers shop, a group in which I am just one of the quirky, unique artists -- but I didn't make this one; Slip of a Girl did. (People always think she's so sweet. She is, but she's also got her twisty side.)

If you don't see the works with art nudes, create an account at Zazzle, go to 'account settings', and set 'the maturity level' to R.

The Unknown Comic - Artist

From The Saturday Evening Post, June 14, 1941, a full-page ad for Hotpoint electric refrigerators and ranges. The top portion features a comic, Just Around The Corner: Ed And Alice Open Up The Summer Cottage, which extols the virtues of having appliances in your summer cottage "just like in town." So much for getting away from it all & roughing it.

And no one ever shows up to help me move.


Having a title seems to signify a series -- be it a regular comic series or an ad campaign -- but it's unsigned. The style is so familiar... Capp? Marge? I honestly don't know; neither does Google. If you do, please share.

Here's the bottom portion of the ad, in case that helps.

For The Man Who Has Everything - And Wants To Get Rid Of It

Sunbeam gifts equal divorce.

How Much Is That Bunny In The Refrigerator?

Yes, Virginia, that's really a bunny-rabbit in a refrigerator. No, it's not a curb-side fridge.

"Why is he in there?!" you ask? Why are you asking me -- do you think I put him in there? Well, if you must know (and who the hell doesn't?) the article reads:

Contented Bunny Demonstrates How Air-Conditioning Works In Modern Ice Refrigerator

A black and white bunny with big gentle eyes and a contented expression attracted more attention at the recent Chicago furniture show than did all the modern sofas and transparent plastic tables shown for the first time.

Sheesh, what bunny wouldn't be more interesting than sofas and plastic tables? Oh, but you see, this is 1943. Apparently plastic tables, transparent or no, are all the rage. But they still can't out-do a bunny in a fridge, you say?

Hey, wait... It's 1943, there's a war on... Is that bunny for eating?

The bunny, prominently featured as "the Contented Rabbit," inhabited the food compartment of a new Coolerator ICE Refrigerator and looked out at the passing throng from a window in its door.

Why shut an innocent live rabbit in in a refrigerator? Because the Contented Rabbit demonstrated to the public in this dramatic manner that there is a constantly-changing flow of pure, fresh, properly-conditioned air within the food compartment of an Ice Refrigerator. If this were not so, the rabbit could not live in the tightly closed food compartment. He would suffocate for lack of air.

Click the scan to read the rest.


From Modern Woman Magazine, "a magazine published by the ice industry", George M. Wessells, Publisher, Volume 12, Number 2, copyright, 1943.