Gentlemen, read the fascinating details in the privacy of your home. Then decide if you’d like to start the interesting practice exercises.
October 31, 2019
Italian Classic Beauty: 50 Fabulous Photos of Raffaella Carrà in the 1960s
Born 1943 in Bologna, Italian singer, dancer, television presenter, and actress Raffaella Carrà debuted in cinema at age nine, in Tormento del passato (1952). She did five other movies until 1960 when she graduated from the national film school of Italy. The same year she appeared in Long Night in 1943, and went on to appear in many Italian peplum films.
In 1965, Carrà moved to the United States signing with 20th Century Fox, and starred in the motion picture Von Ryan's Express (1965). In 1966, she guest starred in an episode of the American television series I Spy (Sophia, as the title character). Feeling homesick, she decided to return to Italy where she starred in several Italian and French films as well as a few television shows. However, subsequently her acting career has been scarce with no more than five works mainly for television.
As a singer, Carrà had a hit song with the sensual "Tuca Tuca" (1971), written for her singing and dancing television presentations by her long-time collaborator and former boyfriend, Gianni Boncompagni. Similarly, in 1971 Carrà achieved another hit with "Chissà se va".
Her greatest international hit single was "Tanti Auguri" ("Best Wishes"), which has become a popular song with gay audiences.
Take a look at these vintage photos to see the glamorous beauty of young Raffaella Carrà in the 1960s.
In 1965, Carrà moved to the United States signing with 20th Century Fox, and starred in the motion picture Von Ryan's Express (1965). In 1966, she guest starred in an episode of the American television series I Spy (Sophia, as the title character). Feeling homesick, she decided to return to Italy where she starred in several Italian and French films as well as a few television shows. However, subsequently her acting career has been scarce with no more than five works mainly for television.
As a singer, Carrà had a hit song with the sensual "Tuca Tuca" (1971), written for her singing and dancing television presentations by her long-time collaborator and former boyfriend, Gianni Boncompagni. Similarly, in 1971 Carrà achieved another hit with "Chissà se va".
Her greatest international hit single was "Tanti Auguri" ("Best Wishes"), which has become a popular song with gay audiences.
Take a look at these vintage photos to see the glamorous beauty of young Raffaella Carrà in the 1960s.
Fascinating Snaps Show the New York Flatbush Avenue in the Early 1980s
Flatbush Avenue is a major avenue in the New York City Borough of Brooklyn. It runs from the Manhattan Bridge south-southeastward to Jamaica Bay, where it joins the Marine Parkway–Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, which connects Brooklyn to the Rockaway Peninsula in Queens. The north end was extended from Fulton Street to the Manhattan Bridge as "Flatbush Avenue Extension".
Flatbush Avenue, including the extension, is 9.8 miles (15.8 km) long. The avenue is a four-lane street throughout the majority of its run. North of Atlantic Avenue and south of Utica Avenue, it is a six-lane-wide median-divided street.
Here below is a fascinating photo collection from All that you ever touched that shows the Flatbush Avenue from 1980 to 1982.
Flatbush Avenue, including the extension, is 9.8 miles (15.8 km) long. The avenue is a four-lane street throughout the majority of its run. North of Atlantic Avenue and south of Utica Avenue, it is a six-lane-wide median-divided street.
Here below is a fascinating photo collection from All that you ever touched that shows the Flatbush Avenue from 1980 to 1982.
When Women Used Lysol as Birth Control: 20 Shocking Ads for the Popular, Dangerous, and Ineffective Antiseptic Douche
Every once in a while the internet is abuzz being horrified by vintage ads for Lysol brand douche. The ads seem to suggest that women are repulsing their husbands with odorous vaginas caused by neglected feminine hygiene. In fact, it only looks like this to us today because we don’t know the secret code.
In the 1920s, ads for Lysol as a feminine hygiene product started appearing in women’s magazines, encouraging housewives to wash their genitals with disinfectant liquid.
“A man marries a woman because he loves her. So instead of blaming him if married love begins to cool, she should question herself,” read one ad. “Is she truly trying to keep her husband and herself eager, happy married lovers? One most effective way to safeguard her dainty feminine allure is by practicing complete feminine hygiene as provided by vaginal douches with a scientifically correct preparation like ‘Lysol.’”
Clearly, Lysol’s ads spread a seriously antiquated and problematic viewpoint that a husband’s infidelity or dissatisfaction with a marriage could only be due to his wife’s failings ― like her odors or fertility.
As another ad reads, “Sue was furious at Tom for the way he’d been treating her. But she was really to blame! She should have known better, for she was no stranger to feminine hygiene. It was just that she had been neglectful!”
These ads aren’t frightening women into thinking their genitals smell badly. According to historian Andrea Tone, “feminine hygiene” was a euphemism. Birth control was illegal in the U.S. until 1965 (for married couples) and 1972 (for single people). These Lysol ads are actually for contraception. The campaign made Lysol the best-selling method of contraception during the Great Depression.
Of course, we’re not wrong to be horrified today. Lysol was incredibly corrosive to the vagina; in fact, it’s recipe was significantly more dangerous than the one used today. Hundreds of people died from exposure to Lysol, including women who were using it to kill sperm. It was also, to add insult to injury, wholly ineffective as a contraceptive.
Here’s to safe, legal, effective contraception for all.
In the 1920s, ads for Lysol as a feminine hygiene product started appearing in women’s magazines, encouraging housewives to wash their genitals with disinfectant liquid.
“A man marries a woman because he loves her. So instead of blaming him if married love begins to cool, she should question herself,” read one ad. “Is she truly trying to keep her husband and herself eager, happy married lovers? One most effective way to safeguard her dainty feminine allure is by practicing complete feminine hygiene as provided by vaginal douches with a scientifically correct preparation like ‘Lysol.’”
Clearly, Lysol’s ads spread a seriously antiquated and problematic viewpoint that a husband’s infidelity or dissatisfaction with a marriage could only be due to his wife’s failings ― like her odors or fertility.
As another ad reads, “Sue was furious at Tom for the way he’d been treating her. But she was really to blame! She should have known better, for she was no stranger to feminine hygiene. It was just that she had been neglectful!”
These ads aren’t frightening women into thinking their genitals smell badly. According to historian Andrea Tone, “feminine hygiene” was a euphemism. Birth control was illegal in the U.S. until 1965 (for married couples) and 1972 (for single people). These Lysol ads are actually for contraception. The campaign made Lysol the best-selling method of contraception during the Great Depression.
Of course, we’re not wrong to be horrified today. Lysol was incredibly corrosive to the vagina; in fact, it’s recipe was significantly more dangerous than the one used today. Hundreds of people died from exposure to Lysol, including women who were using it to kill sperm. It was also, to add insult to injury, wholly ineffective as a contraceptive.
Here’s to safe, legal, effective contraception for all.
October 30, 2019
Stunning Black and White Photos of a Very Young Brigitte Bardot Dancing in a Rehearsal Studio
What was it about French film stars that made them such perfect models for ballerina-inspired fashion? In the 1950s and ’60s the vogue manifested itself in Brigitte Bardot, whose inimitable French style never failed to deliver elegance and carefree chic. Bardot was the first foreign-language-speaking star to attain major international success and her films were pivotal in establishing a global market for foreign cinema.
When Bardot moves through film space, her classical ballet training is evident in her regal carriage and dance style. She studied at the Conservatoire de Paris and the classic dancer’s wardrobe of leotards, Alice bands, ballerina skirts, and ballet flats often appeared throughout her films and daily ensembles. What began as an anti-establishment look early in her career progressed into a glamorous, tailored flair that remains influential today. The pale make-up and bouffant hairstyle was the perfect counterpart to her mixture of passion and drifting insouciance.
Bardot provided the first celebrity endorsement of the luxury shoe brand Repetto when she asked Rose Repetto to make her a dance slipper she could wear on the unpredictable streets of everyday life. The ravishing results can be seen in the photo of her draped over a Simca at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. That same festival was the backdrop to the iconic image of her creating a spectacle as she swirled her ballerina skirt for photographers. For a woman who reportedly once said, “I absolutely loathe luxury. It is the one thing I cannot stand,” she had some pretty high-end taste in ballet flats, and the delicious ‘BB’ style was named in her honour.
Bardot’s films often featured dance sequences that utilised her training as a ballerina. In Naughty Girl, a very young, impish Bardot performs in numerous highly charged ballet routines. The wanton mambo dance scene in And God Created Woman shows off her grace and rhythm and maddeningly seductive caprice. In A Very Private Affair, Bardot does a jazzy number that perfectly encapsulates the liberated spirit that was later treated with tragic intensity in Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt (Le Mépris).
Bardot was first and foremost a sex symbol, an over-ripe beauty whose acting abilities were surpassed by her enthralling screen presence, controversial personal life and the lasting legacy she left on style. As a purveyor of ballet-fashion, she remains unrivalled.
When Bardot moves through film space, her classical ballet training is evident in her regal carriage and dance style. She studied at the Conservatoire de Paris and the classic dancer’s wardrobe of leotards, Alice bands, ballerina skirts, and ballet flats often appeared throughout her films and daily ensembles. What began as an anti-establishment look early in her career progressed into a glamorous, tailored flair that remains influential today. The pale make-up and bouffant hairstyle was the perfect counterpart to her mixture of passion and drifting insouciance.
Bardot provided the first celebrity endorsement of the luxury shoe brand Repetto when she asked Rose Repetto to make her a dance slipper she could wear on the unpredictable streets of everyday life. The ravishing results can be seen in the photo of her draped over a Simca at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. That same festival was the backdrop to the iconic image of her creating a spectacle as she swirled her ballerina skirt for photographers. For a woman who reportedly once said, “I absolutely loathe luxury. It is the one thing I cannot stand,” she had some pretty high-end taste in ballet flats, and the delicious ‘BB’ style was named in her honour.
Bardot’s films often featured dance sequences that utilised her training as a ballerina. In Naughty Girl, a very young, impish Bardot performs in numerous highly charged ballet routines. The wanton mambo dance scene in And God Created Woman shows off her grace and rhythm and maddeningly seductive caprice. In A Very Private Affair, Bardot does a jazzy number that perfectly encapsulates the liberated spirit that was later treated with tragic intensity in Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt (Le Mépris).
Bardot was first and foremost a sex symbol, an over-ripe beauty whose acting abilities were surpassed by her enthralling screen presence, controversial personal life and the lasting legacy she left on style. As a purveyor of ballet-fashion, she remains unrivalled.
25 Fabulous Photos of Maria Alba Taken by Eugene Robert Richee in 1930
Born 1905 as María del Pilar Margarita Casajuana Martínez in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spanish-American film actress Maria Alba was signed by the Fox Film Corporation after winning Fox Film contest in Spain and came to the United States in 1927.
Originally billed as Maria Casajuana, she appeared in 25 feature films, starting with Road House in 1928 and ending with La morena de mi copla in 1946.
Her most notable appearances (as Maria Alba) were probably as "Saturday" in the 1932 Douglas Fairbanks film Mr. Robinson Crusoe, and as the exotic "Princess Nadji" in the Bela Lugosi serial The Return of Chandu. Other Latin actresses working in films, like Lupe Velez or Dolores Del Rio, became fluent in English, but Maria Alba spoke English with a thick accent, which limited her casting opportunities.
Alba died in 1999 in San Diego, California at the age of 93.
These fabulous photos of Maria Alba were taken by photographer Eugene Robert Richee in 1930.
Originally billed as Maria Casajuana, she appeared in 25 feature films, starting with Road House in 1928 and ending with La morena de mi copla in 1946.
Her most notable appearances (as Maria Alba) were probably as "Saturday" in the 1932 Douglas Fairbanks film Mr. Robinson Crusoe, and as the exotic "Princess Nadji" in the Bela Lugosi serial The Return of Chandu. Other Latin actresses working in films, like Lupe Velez or Dolores Del Rio, became fluent in English, but Maria Alba spoke English with a thick accent, which limited her casting opportunities.
Alba died in 1999 in San Diego, California at the age of 93.
These fabulous photos of Maria Alba were taken by photographer Eugene Robert Richee in 1930.
Beautiful Pics of Debbie Reynolds With Her Husband Eddie Fisher and Their Baby Daughter Carrie Fisher in 1956-57
Carrie Frances Fisher was born on October 21, 1956, in Burbank, California, to actress Debbie Reynolds and singer Eddie Fisher.
Fisher was two years old when her parents divorced in 1959. Her father's third marriage, to actress Connie Stevens, resulted in the births of Fisher's two half-sisters, Joely Fisher and Tricia Leigh Fisher. In 1960, her mother married Harry Karl, owner of a chain of shoe stores. Reynolds and Karl divorced in 1973, when Fisher was 17 years old.
On the morning of December 27, 2016, after being in intensive care for four days, Fisher died at the age of 60 at the UCLA Medical Center. The day after Fisher's death, her mother Debbie Reynolds suffered a stroke at the home of son Todd, where the family was planning Fisher's burial arrangements. She was taken to a hospital, where she died later that afternoon. According to Todd Fisher, Reynolds had said, "I want to be with Carrie" immediately prior to suffering the stroke.
Take a look at these beautiful photos to see lovely moments of baby Carrie Fisher with her parents Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher in 1956 and 1957.
Fisher was two years old when her parents divorced in 1959. Her father's third marriage, to actress Connie Stevens, resulted in the births of Fisher's two half-sisters, Joely Fisher and Tricia Leigh Fisher. In 1960, her mother married Harry Karl, owner of a chain of shoe stores. Reynolds and Karl divorced in 1973, when Fisher was 17 years old.
On the morning of December 27, 2016, after being in intensive care for four days, Fisher died at the age of 60 at the UCLA Medical Center. The day after Fisher's death, her mother Debbie Reynolds suffered a stroke at the home of son Todd, where the family was planning Fisher's burial arrangements. She was taken to a hospital, where she died later that afternoon. According to Todd Fisher, Reynolds had said, "I want to be with Carrie" immediately prior to suffering the stroke.
Take a look at these beautiful photos to see lovely moments of baby Carrie Fisher with her parents Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher in 1956 and 1957.
October 29, 2019
Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun’s 3,300 Year Old Sandals
Statues and statuettes of Tutankhamun from the tomb show him wearing golden sandals. These sandals are made of wood and overlaid with a marquetry veneer of bark, green leather, and gold foil on a stucco base. The outer soles are covered with white stucco. The straps over the insteps are of bark ornamented with a diaper pattern in gold foil. On the inner sole are figures of Negro and Asiatic captives bound with stems of lotus and papyrus. Above and below are groups of four bows which together with the captives, represent the nine traditional enemies of Egypt whom the king symbolically trod underfoot when wearing the sandals. The device had a long history dating back more than a thousand years.
During the ancient Egyptian period, people mostly traveled barefoot. It is believed that since the temperature in Egypt was very high throughout the year, people gave less importance to wearing footwear.
There is hardly any record to suggest that the Egyptians wore shoes or any other form of footwear. The ancient Egyptians began wearing sandals during the early years of the New Kingdom rule.
The sandals used by these people were very simple and were made either by using straw, reeds or leather. The wealthy people wore leather sandals and these lasted for a longer time than the sandals which were made using straw or reeds. The sandals were worn by all people belonging to all the classes except those who were extremely poor.
The sandals were decorated by using beads, jewels; some also had buckles on the straps made from precious metals. For the most part, the ancient Egyptians walked without wearing sandals or shoes.
Sandals were worn by people on special events. The gold and wood sandals are known to have been made in the ancient Egyptian period.
During the ancient Egyptian period, people mostly traveled barefoot. It is believed that since the temperature in Egypt was very high throughout the year, people gave less importance to wearing footwear.
There is hardly any record to suggest that the Egyptians wore shoes or any other form of footwear. The ancient Egyptians began wearing sandals during the early years of the New Kingdom rule.
The sandals used by these people were very simple and were made either by using straw, reeds or leather. The wealthy people wore leather sandals and these lasted for a longer time than the sandals which were made using straw or reeds. The sandals were worn by all people belonging to all the classes except those who were extremely poor.
The sandals were decorated by using beads, jewels; some also had buckles on the straps made from precious metals. For the most part, the ancient Egyptians walked without wearing sandals or shoes.
Sandals were worn by people on special events. The gold and wood sandals are known to have been made in the ancient Egyptian period.
Sleep-in Amsterdam: Black and White Photos Show Portraits of the Dutch Youth in the 1970s
"In 1975 and 1976 I worked at the Amsterdam sleep-in, then on the Rozengracht, just around the corner of my house. The sleep-in was an initiative of the city after it forbade young tourists to sleep in the Vondelpark open air. For a few guilders they could now get a place with a bunk bed, some simple foodstuffs and light alcoholic beverages. Their marihuana or hash (Amsterdam's main attraction, both then and now for these kids) they had to get elsewhere but nobody bothered them if they wanted to smoke it in the sleep-in.
In 1977, I didn't work there anymore but regularly visited friends who did still work there. One day I shot some rolls of B&W film, portraying this tourist generation: too late for the hippy generation of the sixties, too early for the punk generation of the future."
After having these shots developed, Ard Hesselink never printed these pictures. "So when I rediscovered them in my negatives collection recently they were totally new to me. Needless to say, I was surprised at what I found."
In 1977, I didn't work there anymore but regularly visited friends who did still work there. One day I shot some rolls of B&W film, portraying this tourist generation: too late for the hippy generation of the sixties, too early for the punk generation of the future."
After having these shots developed, Ard Hesselink never printed these pictures. "So when I rediscovered them in my negatives collection recently they were totally new to me. Needless to say, I was surprised at what I found."
25 Stunning Color Photos Defined Fashion Style of Lauren Bacall in the 1940s
Hollywood icon Lauren Bacall (1924–2014) was known for her distinctive voice and sultry looks. She was named the 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the American Film Institute and received an Academy Honorary Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2009 “in recognition of her central place in the Golden Age of motion pictures.”
Not only a talented actress, Bacall was also a fashion icon. Her style was simply, effortlessly glamorous—silk blouses, blazers, pencil skirts, sharply creased trousers—and continues to inspire today.
Take a look at these stunning color photos to see her fashion style in the 1940s.
Not only a talented actress, Bacall was also a fashion icon. Her style was simply, effortlessly glamorous—silk blouses, blazers, pencil skirts, sharply creased trousers—and continues to inspire today.
Take a look at these stunning color photos to see her fashion style in the 1940s.
October 28, 2019
The Ghosts of Halloween Past
It’s no surprise that ghosts have become a major Halloween symbol.
Historically, Sahmain was thought to be the time where the dead and living worlds were the least separated, so you could run into a ghoulish spirit. But they weren’t necessarily the friendly, Casper-esque ghosts we see today.
Though the presence of spirits was supposed to make the future easier to predict, pagans considered these departed spirits no laughing matter.
Historically, Sahmain was thought to be the time where the dead and living worlds were the least separated, so you could run into a ghoulish spirit. But they weren’t necessarily the friendly, Casper-esque ghosts we see today.
Though the presence of spirits was supposed to make the future easier to predict, pagans considered these departed spirits no laughing matter.
