Culture – Page 79 – I Don't Get It

It’s a pretty common occurrence to find pictures like this of Sadie Hawkins Dances in my 1940s-1950s yearbooks. Tattered clothing, corn cob pipes, and overalls with only one arm on the shoulder were de rigueur. Guests often posed on haystacks such as those above.

The Sadie Hawkins dance is named after the Li’l Abner homely comic strip character Sadie Hawkins, created by cartoonist Al Capp. In the strip, the unmarried women of Dogpatch, a hillbilly mountain village, got to chase the bachelors and “marry up” with the ones they caught. The event was introduced in the daily strip, which ran on November 15, 1937.

Consequently, Sadie Hawkins dances are traditionally held in November, with the first official one being held on November 9, 1938. Within a year, hundreds of schools followed suit. By 1952, the event was reportedly celebrated at 40,000 known venues. If nothing else, it empowered women to do the asking–and perhaps face rejection.

In the comic, the voluptuous Daisy Mae has the hots for the dense and simple-minded 6’3″ Abner, hardly “l’il” at all.

ayearofholidays.wordpress.com/2013/11/02/november-2-sadie-hawkins-day/

Participants at the dances often wore tattered clothing or plaid shirts.

In the next photo, you can see that not much had changed as far as attire in the 25 years since its original inception and this 1964 Sadie Hawkins Dance.

What about you? Did you ever attend a Sadie Hawkins Dance? Did people dress up like the L’il Abner characters, or was it purely a girls-ask-boys affair?

Car-Baby Convertible

What could possibly go wrong in this topless trunk, balancing on the back seat?

This next one looks like little more than cardboard and a strap.

If baby just wants to chill, baby can recline with an extra pillow and a lap belt.

You’d think the idea of “just turn it around” would create all kinds of neck injuries upon impact. I’ve never seen a car like this, so I guess the idea never took off.

Nope. Here’s the headline from a July 2015 article: Volvo Takes Kids’ Safety To New Heights, Showcases Customised XC90 SUV Featuring Innovative Baby Seat.

http://en.yibada.com/ — http://en.yibada.com (an awful site due to its onslaught of ads)

What do you think? Does this look safe for baby? What if Jumpsuit Barbie flings all 105 lbs of her waxed body into him at a hard stop? Would that be a good idea? And won’t Barbie be silently resenting her position, relegated to the back seat, second priority in Ken’s life? That’s got to mess with her psyche. I don’t see it happening, Volvo.

Topless Ladies With Dice On Their Heads

I came across this gaming guide from a relative’s 1954 visit to Vegas. It had everything one would expect of a Saharan theme. Arab sheikh? Check. Sand and camels? Check. Hedy Lamarr in transparent veils? Check. But then it gets weird. Topless men and women carrying dice, cards, and roulette wheels? Is that what people in the Sahara desert look like?

Nope. The Tuareg are the principal inhabitants of the Saharan interior of North Africa, a nomadic, pastoral, Muslim people. They don’t look like that rendering at all. Their hair is much more fantastic.

Now are there women in Africa who go topless? Absolutely. Do they carry things on their heads? Sure. Do they have naked babies, carrying spears? Doubtful. I was reminded of the Louis CK SNL episode, wherein he discusses mild racism in his opening monologue. NBC has already shown it twice this year, which makes sense, as SNL evidently does five new shows per season and then shows reruns.

This Sahara ad, though, is more than mild. And redunkulous. I mean, how long can a woman hold a clock like that without her arms hurting? And that necklace would chafe.

And what about these fellows below, holding spears and shields? I just don’t see what this has to do with the Sahara. Veils I get. This I don’t. I imagine it’s offensive to many. But it also just looks odd.

Who knows? Maybe people of the Sahara would find our dancing girls’ outfits absurd. These gals were part of the “nocturnal diversion.”

That very Congo Room hosted entertainers for 59 years, until the Sahara closed in 2011. Big names like Mae West and Ray Bolger.

And if you were lucky enough to be in Vegas back in the day, you might have even caught a glimpse of this guy out front.

Trump’s Chances Of Winning

Pre-Pandora Record Store

Lemcke's in Webster Groves, Missouri — Lemcke’s in Webster Groves, Missouri (Time-Life Books)

More Ads From The Now Dead 1939 Progressive Farmer

I was able to salvage a few ads from The Progressive Farmer before I chunked it yesterday. These were too cute to pass up.

Those are some nice curves, if I do say so myself. I can almost hear her saying, “Toodles!”

And check out his curves as he arches into fresh running water.

It IS important to have plenty of water in your barnyard and outbuildings.

It’s also important to have the “same refrigeration that a million city folks now enjoy,” according to this ad for a kerosene fridge. What the what? Have you ever heard of such a thing?

Ray On The Hi-Fi

Three More Days

School starts Monday around these parts. The schedules have been mailed, the teachers assigned. And when the bank teller this morning asked my son if he was excited about school, he glared, then dropped his head, a wavy lock of hair falling forward in defeat. It was enough to make him forget the crisp Grant in his hand. Excited? No, ma’am.

But what if he gets the top locker? That’s something to get excited about, right?