Month: March 2017

When It Absolutely, Positively Has To Be There Overnight

“A Living Lens”

I wish this book would have given me more information than “a man ties packages to an elephant as people watch.” That elicits a fourth grade, “Well, no duh” from me. If I have to guess a year, I’d say circa 1920s. We can’t even be certain whether the burdened beast was named Dumbo or Jumbo. I’d say Jumbo, as the Disney movie wasn’t released till 1941. P.T. Barnum’s original Jumbo was killed in a train accident in 1885, so this not that Jumbo.

http://www.awesomestories.com

That Jumbo stood 12 feet tall and weighed 7 tons–the largest elephant anyone had ever seen.  He liked “Scotch whiskey, which he was given regularly” during an Atlantic crossing after he left London. Though he died at only age 24, a life-size statue of his likeness was erected in 1985 in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada to commemorate the centennial of the elephant’s death.

Incidentally, the name Jumbo spawned the word we use today to mean large in size, not the other way around. So the next time you buy a jumbo-sized beverage or candy bar, think fondly of an elephant.

Tuppence A Bag

source: “A Living Lens”

On an upstate New York farm where she settled after fleeing the Commies in 1929, Countess Alexandra Tolstaya (youngest daughter of author Leo Tolstoy) proves that even countesses have to feed the chickens.

Tolstaya died at age 95.

On The Stump

LIFE May 5, 1958

In the reflection of the glass, State Commissioner of Agriculture A.W. Todd delivers a speech in Maplesville, Alabama. These three men don’t seem too excited about Todd’s prospect as governor. As it turned out, he never did make it to governor, but he holds the distinction of being both the youngest and the oldest commissioner to ever serve in the history of Alabama as well as being the only three-term commissioner. He was 79 when he left office in 1995, leaving Arvel Woodfin Todd with a long political career. 

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Tuesday Trivia Tidbit: Dangerfield Tats

This morning, I watched a clip of Rodney Dangerfield on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. I miss how late night shows showcased comedians almost on a nightly basis. Nowadays, most shows end with a musical act of which I’ve usually never heard–and which often leave me confused and with little faith for the future of the music industry. But back in the day, comedians were in demand (you couldn’t throw a stick at a screen without catching a stand-up routine and a brick background), and Rodney’s style was a machine gun delivery. You barely had time to process one joke before he hit with another.

All this led me to the Tuesday trivia tidbit that (as reported in 2007) Dangerfield tattoos are among the most popular celebrity tattoos in the United States. That struck me as odd, since he passed in 2004, and he peaked in the 80s. But check him out on what appears to be a young calf.

pinterest

Maybe Dangerfield was a leg man, as he appears on many of them.

http://www.thestar.com

Here’s another variation of the same image, with the handkerchief applied to the face (like he’s sweating mid-panic attack).

http://www.tattoonow.com

He also made an appearance on a shoulder blade in the montage with fellow funnymen Sam Kinison, Benny Hill, and W.C. Fields.

http://humor.gunaxin.com

It just seems an odd choice in a world full of Marilyn Monroe and James Dean tats, to ink your body with the face of a middle-aged Jewish man, aka Jacob Cohen. Then again, no one would recognize a tattoo of this young man.

http://andsociety.com

 

New Monsoon Filter Adds Depth To Images

Natl Geo 7/67
Natl Geo 7/67

Yes, we have wet bananas. A pensive barefoot child in Betong, Thailand uses a toothpick to get that last piece of red curry chicken out of his tooth, waiting out the rains during monsoon season. No big deal. It’s all old hat at this point.

natlgeojuly67-betongmonsoon010

Shut The Front Door

1950 UT Powder Bowl
1950 UT Powder Bowl

At least that’s what it looks like she’s saying. The one that’s not holding the plunger, wearing a satin evening gown, smiling at the casually-dressed lady opening the car door. ‘Cause that makes sense.

Meeting The Ex-Girlfriend

1946
1946

Here we see Cary Grantish introducing his new girlfriend in red (who may have either scoliosis or some sort of pelvic trauma causing that posture) to his former flame, Lana Turnerish, in purple. Lana asks, “Oh, is that where you met? How interesting.”

Cary, in his oblivion, doesn’t think there’s cause for cattiness, since that relationship ended over a decade ago, but that doesn’t stop Green Striped Hat from sizing up his current squeeze.

e62

But the real flirtation is with these two. They’re obviously not married; no wife would beam at her man like that (unless she’s Nancy Reagan). No, this gal is setting a snare. lifeaug19-49024

All aboard a Pullman!