Retro & Vintage – Page 108

Life On Jupiter In 1940

Life on Jupiter has changed dramatically since then.
Don’t ask me how I know.

[Found here.]

Clint Eastwood Talks To The Lucas

Clint Eastwood working on his 1958 Jag XK 120 in 1960 (colorized).

Interesting that every time I worked on my car my hands and forarms showed it and there was no camera around, but then I’m not Clint. The photo would be entirely believable if it were Chuck Norris because his cars piss oil and refill themselves automatically once he steps outside.

[Found here.]

Saturday Matinee – British Army Marching Band, The Wolfgangs & Devil On Wheels

Nice BAMB flashmob work in Cardiff, Wales, 5 October 2013, playing “Colonel Bogey,” a march written in 1914 and made famous in the movie “The Bridge On The River Kwai.”

Whenever I hear that popular tune, for some reason I think of psychobilly. Yeah. Let’s go there.

The Wolfgangs‘ “Cannibal Family” rocks it in this vid from 2011. Where do we go from here? How bout a hot rod / juvenile delinquent movie?

“Devil On Wheels” dates to 1947, features some vintage rods and sappy lessons.

In addition to being the first film about street racing youth, it is also notable for being one of the first films to feature actresses (Terry Moore & Noreen Nash) wearing bikini tops. [Wiki]

Have a great weekend, folks. We’ll do something different tomorrow.

Tension and Compression

A demonstration of the mathematical principles of the original Forth Bridge in Scotland performed at Imperial College in 1887. The central ‘weight’ is Kaichi Watanabe, one of the first Japanese engineers to study in the UK, while Sir John Fowler and Benjamin Baker provide the supports.

Long-span structural engineering illustrated. Note that weight is not the problem with this truss, but uplift is, hence the weights at the extreme ends of the truss. Tension is transferred from the exterior weights through the arms of the two men near the ends of the span, while compression struts keep this structure from collapsing under the dead weight of Mr. Watanabe. Note also that without the weight provided by Mr. Watanabe, this structure collapses (unless Messrs. Fowler and Baker scooch over and hold hands).

[Found here.]

Saturday Matinee – Patches The Horse, John/Lee/Pop Mashup & The Reverend Horton Heat

Meet Patches the Horse.

That’s just bizarre, but it kept my attention for more than 15 seconds, so I’m posting the clever mashup featuring Iggy Pop and Peggy Lee. Little Willie John’s “Fever” will never sound the same. So where do we go from here? I’m stumped. Oh wait, I got it. Let’s slow it down a tad with some retroness.

It suits me, so it suits you. The Reverend Horton Heat‘s “Galaxy 500” makes the nut.

Have a great weekend, folks. Be back here tomorrow for more of teh awesome.

Saturday Matinee – The Great McGonigal, Super Chikan & The Sensational Alex Harvey Band

The Great McGonigal, aka W.C. Fields, knew his cigar boxes.

Guy’s playing a Diddley Bow. Pure awesome, and here’s his website.

And since the sentient voters of Scotland wisely chose to postpone secession from Great Britain for now, here’s this: my favorite Scottish band ever:

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band was oddly under appreciated in the US (except for a cult following in Cleveland) but was popular in the proto-punk theater-rock scene in Great Britain. Vambo Rools.

Have a great weekend, folks, and be back here tomorrow for more inanity.

Heinrich Hoffman’s Contribution To The World

“The Dreadful Story about Harriet and the Matches”
from Der Struwwelpeter (1845) a popular German children’s book by Heinrich Hoffmann.

Hoffmann was the German precursor to Charles Addams, writing and illustrating short stories/poems for children that can only be described as violent and bizarre. Judging by his popularity, both children and adults loved them (and still do) and he was translated into many languages. Mark Twain’s English translation was published posthumously, and he took some liberties to make the stories rhyme.

Check out Hoffman’s “Die Geschichte vom Daumenlutscher” or “The Story of Little Suck-a-Thumb.”

Hoffman, besides being a writer of satire for both children and adults, despised authoritarianism (he even did a lampoon of Adolf Hitler), worked as a psychiatrist in an insane asylum treating paupers. His Wiki bio is interesting.

[Image and caption found here; Our non-comprehensive Archive of “Contributions To The World” here.]

Saturday Matinee – The Temptations & Edwin Starr, Eric Burdon & War, and Seasick Steve

Edwin Starr lip-synched the classic song “War” in 1969. Good God, y’all. Originally recorded by The Temptations, their version was squelched and re-recorded with Starr on vocals. It made No.1 on the charts in 1970, and was one of 161 songs on the Clear Channel no-play list after September 11, 2001 according to Wiki.

Nobody wants war except our enemies, and to ignore their stated intents and stated goals is fatal. Seems to me that if they want to kill all of us, all Jews, all of Western Civilization, we’re going to have a very long fight.