Television Will Tear Us Apart – 1968 Sony Personal Television Ad

The Sony Personal Television advertisement from the June 1968 issue of LIFE magazine points to the isolating characteristics of television, while using its post-fifties release date to bring this byproduct of TV to its natural extension.

The advertisement flirts between depicting a scene of a humorous, or uncanny nature, which is invoked by its pairing of the picture and accompanying tagline. The ad reappropriates an image of classic domesticity of a couple reading in bed by substituting their books for personal televisions, thus further normalizing of television’s presence in domestic life. The ad also portrays itself as a compromise since its depicted couple can humorously watch their respective shows without quarrel.

Yet, this advertisement cannot entirely defuse the concern that the personalized TV allows for its isolating nature to be accelerated. Sony attempts to mask this fact with humor to disarm this societal anxiety that began in the 1950s era.

Behind the Scenes Photos of The Beatles on Bicycles During the Filming of ‘Help!’ in the Bahamas, 1965

Though the Caribbean scenes come at the end of the film, they were the first to be shot. They arrived on February 23rd. The bike-riding scene was shot on the first full day of the 14-day Caribbean shoot. It was filmed on on the Interfield Road, near to Nassau International Airport on New Providence Island. Much of the film’s beach scenes were shot on Cabbage Beach, on the northern side of Paradise Island.

“The problem was that we went to the Bahamas to film all the hot scenes, and it was freezing. We had to ride around and run around in shirts and trousers, and it was absolutely bloody cold.” – Ringo.

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40 Fascinating and Candid Photographs Reveal How Halloween Was Celebrated in 1970s America

The photographs were all taken at yearly parties in Kennett, Missouri, and the outfits range from the surprisingly innocent to costumes most would consider highly inappropriate.

But the owner of the collection, Steve Mays, who attended all the parties and collated the pictures online, told Mail Online that they were worn more out of stupidity and a love of horror movies than a desire to express racial hatred.

He said: “We were young and stupid and pretty self-absorbed. More concerned with having a winner costume than racial sensitivity. Our little town was in southern Missouri and literally segregated until the mid-60s and culturally segregated for long after.

“Many of us remember these as the best parties we ever attended or hosted. We took a lot of photos, but the cameras were often cheap and the photographers were almost always drunk. So many parties, so many pictures, so many beers.”

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How Many?? 20 Vintage Album Covers Prove That Gospel Groups Unable to Count Their Members

There must be something we don’t know about the way these gospel groups count their members.

The term Gospel quartet refers to several different traditions of harmony singing. Its origins are varied, including 4-part hymn singing, shape note singing, barbershop quartets, jubilee songs, spirituals, and other Gospel songs.

Gospel quartets sing in four-part harmony, with parts given to a tenor, or highest part; lead, which usually takes the melody; baritone, which blends the sounds and adds richness; and the bass, or lowest part. It is not uncommon for some quartets to switch parts between members for given songs.

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Snoring Remedies From the 1940s: Fun Photos Show a Variety of Gadgets and Tools Designed to Stop Snoring

Here are some fun pictures from a LIFE magazine article called “Snore Stoppers,” from their February 28, 1949 issue. As you might have guessed by now, it focused on a variety of gadgets and tools designed to stop snoring, one of mankind’s great remaining scourges.

(Photos by Herbert Gehr, via The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit)

New Metallic Collar Reflects Health Rays of Sun on Face, 1932

A new apparatus for directing the health-giving rays of the sun to the face, known as the “Rivierasonne,” has been introduced in Berlin in 1932. The device is made out of a thin metal and shaped like a large collar.

Health-giving rays from the sun are attracted to this thin metal collar and directed onto the face by means of the multiple reflectors. Flexible metal allows adjustment.

The metal collar collects the sun’s rays and throws them onto the face by means of a multiple reflector. Being extremely flexible, the apparatus, shown in the photo, can be adjusted to any angle to catch the rays and reflect them as desired.

Vintage Pinups of Beautiful Ann Miller With Halloween Themes From the Early 1950s

Ann Miller was not simply one of Hollywood’s great musical actresses during its Golden Age. Beautiful and gifted with an incredible figure (including perhaps the best legs in motion pictures besides Cyd Charisse), she was also a wildly popular pin up during World War II.

Several pin up pictures were taken of Miss Miller over the years, including pictures that seemed to cover every American holiday. Indeed, over the years a number of Halloween themed photos were taken of the legendary singer and dancer.

As a special treat this Halloween, here, we offer you several Halloween pin ups of the beautiful Ann Miller.

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Deluxe Character Masks, 1979

“Deluxe Character Masks” from Johnson Smith’s Fun Catalog, 1979.

These full head rubber or vinyl masks are made by the finest mask makers in the world. Most look like they could be used in the movies. All appear extremely realistic and many of our customers have reported winning first prize for “best costume.”

They’re great for Halloween or costume parties anytime of the year. Many come with synthetic “hair.” “Skin” looks so real it’s hard to tell the difference from a distance of only a few feet. 

30 Vintage Snaps of People Dressed Up as Superheroes From the Mid-20th Century

Superheroes tend to be thought of as monolithic icons by much of the public, but comic book fans know they have evolved over the decades. Powers develop, supporting casts change, and origins get refreshed. Costumes, too, have evolved, to keep up with changing social norms.

Ever since the first colorful costume debuted in 1938, there have been a wide variety of superhero costumes. Here, a collection of 30 interesting snaps of people dresses up in superhero costumes from the mid-20th century:

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Ingrid Bergman Wearing Arrow Love Collar in the Deleted Dream Sequence by Salvador Dalí for ‘Spellbound’ (1945)

Spellbound is one of several psychological thrillers produced in the 1940s when psychoanalysis was all the rage. Freudian dream interpretation, guilt complexes, and the miraculous power of psychoanalysis take center stage in this film.

Ingrid Bergman in the Greek Goddess dress with an arrow collar, conceived by Salvador Dalí for the dream sequence in Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound (1945). Costume design by Howard Greer.

Producer David O. Selznick had apparently enjoyed a highly successful bout of psychoanalysis, and he wanted Alfred Hitchcock to make a movie about it. Selznick was so enthused with psychoanalysis that he brought in his own therapist, Dr. May Romm, to serve as a technical advisor on the production. Dr. Romm and Hitchcock clashed frequently. When it came to the specifics of psychoanalysis, however, Hitchcock was less concerned with technicalities than Romm, and if she would offer her opinion, the director would purportedly tell her, “my dear, it’s only a movie”.

Further contention was caused by the hiring of surrealist artist Salvador Dalí to conceive certain scenes in the film’s key dream sequence. However, the sequence conceived and designed by Dalí and Hitchcock, once translated to film, proved to be too lengthy and complicated for Selznick, so the vast majority of what had been filmed ultimately was edited out. Two minutes of the dream sequence appear in the final film, but according to Ingrid Bergman, the original had been twenty minutes long.

One sequence was to have shown Ingrid Bergman turning into a statue. She was covered in plaster with arrows “piercing” her neck, and then she broke out of the plaster. They planned to project the sequence backwards so that she seemed to be turning into the statue instead of breaking out of one. Here are some images of this sequence from the filming:

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Gimmicks for Beauty, 1949

Few girls are born beautiful. But many plain Janes are getting pretty enough to make a guy go ga-ga, thanks to the odd gimmicks beauty gadgeteers are turning out.

To the male eye the strange beautifying machines look like modern versions of a medieval torture chamber. To milady the devices are the wonderful instruments that help nature transform the ugliest duckling into a lovely swan.

Here are four of the new gadgets from 1949 glorifying the New York girl: (1) Black Ray machine, for banishing skin blemishes; (2) “chinning” device, to pick up that slack under the chin; (3) multiple-wave oscillator, to perk up nerves and glands, and (4) electrical masseur, to mold the waist into the form divine.

Shower Hood, 1970

February 12, 1970: Munich actress Inge Marschall demonstrates use of the new shower-hood, invented in Germany to protect hair and make-up in the shower.

(Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)

Guard Prevents Lipstick Smears, 1934

A tiny device which slips between the lips effectively prevents lipstick from making smears while actresses try on gowns, 1934.

These lip protectors keep lipstick smears off costly gowns when actresses change costumes.

Studio wardrobe departments are finding the guard especially valuable in protecting expensive costumes. The device is pressed out of heavy paper.

The Amazing Story of Eddie Munster’s Kustom Chain-Link Bike From ‘The Munsters’ (1964)

Eddie Munster’s kustom chain-link bike built by famous customizer George Barris, who also built the Munster Koach and Grampa Munster’s coffin car: Dragula. The bicycle was never featured on the show, it was used by the child actor Butch Patrick to bike around Universal Studios backlot.

At one point during the show’s run George Barris came up with the idea that 11-year-old Butch Patrick, who played the series’ youngest character Eddie Munster, should also have a kustom-styled machine to ride around on. Barris thought it would be a fun thing to do for Butch  especially since the two of them got along so well together during his visits to the set. Butch was even invited by George to come over to the Barris kustom shop, where he was free to wander around and check out all the new projects.

George’s idea to make a kustom for Butch’s character Eddie Munster seemed like a great idea, especially since the Barris-made “Koach” and “Dragula” cars had been worth their weight in gold for appeal and publicity. This time around, though, it wasn’t going to be a spooky kustom car that would be made, but a spooky “kustom bicycle.” The bike that Barris proposed was not going to be any ordinary pedal-powered machine either, it was going be extraordinary. His expert team of specialists would see to that. A kustom bicycle for Eddie Munster had the potential to generate some good publicity; so, Barris gave the green light for the project to begin.

After Barris finalized the basic design concept it was decided that the main fabrication duties would be overseen by one of the shop’s most talented employees, Skip Barrett. The bike’s general specifications would be based around the popular 20-inch “high-rise” bikes available at the time, the Schwinn Stingray to be specific.

The outstanding feature of Eddie’s kustom bike would be its frame, which would be completely hand-made from lengths of welded steel chain, using Stingray frame tubes as a template. Of course some original Stingray frame components were used on the build, like the head tube, bottom bracket shell, rear dropouts, and a few inches of the seat post tube.

After getting the OK from Barris, Skip Barrett contacted the well-known fabricator and pin-striper Von Dutch, to see if he could do some of the fabrication work for the project. Von Dutch had done various jobs for the Barris shop over the years and seemed like the kind of guy who might be interested in an unusual project. Curiously, Von Dutch found the Eddie Munster chain bike project quite interesting, and immediately decided to sign onto the task of fabricating the chain link frame himself. Skip could not have been more pleased. In fact (as it turned out) the bike’s fabrication eventually wound up being a total collaborative effort between the two men.

Kool Components

The fork used on the Munster chain bike was a stock “Schwinn” unit, like the ones found on the Stingray “Super/Deluxe” model, (but with the chrome truss rods removed), and featured a small tassel hung off the spring bolt next to the rubber bumper.

The wheels were standard Stingray size (20”) with the rear sporting a “Sturmey-Archer” 3-speed hub (probably a S.A. “TriCoaster” model) controlled by a S.A. 3-speed trigger shifter mounted to the seat post.

The handlebars were standard “Wald” high-rise type, with a crossbar installed to serve as a mount for an antique bicycle lamp. A clear round “Plexiglas” windshield was mounted to the upper front section of the handlebars, and featured a spider web design- complete with spider. Arcing at the top of this windscreen was the hand-painted letters of Eddie’s name. Finishing off the handlebars were bright red Schwinn-type handle grips with tassels used for streamers, and a small looping bulb horn.

The seat was a plush banana-type  featuring black coffin-style upholstery and a decorative band of gold-colored trim running along its lower edge.  The sissy bar started off as stock 36-inch “Bill Mathews Corporation” unit, which was factory-made with a bent-back rounded top and a metal ring welded on about 8 inches above the seat mount holes. Von Dutch then gave it some additional metal work. Decorative elements were welded onto the tubes to give it an ornamental "creeping vine" type of effect, finished off with a coating of gold paint, the Chain Bike’s sissy bar was as wild as any seen on a chopper motorcycle. Mounted behind the seat was an antique brass tail lamp complete with a red lens. Finally, rounding off the rear of the bike was a chrome plated “Bill Mathews Corporation” nerf bar, similar in style to push bars seen on hot rods and dragsters, the nerf bar was bolt-mounted to the bottom axle holes of the sissy bar and covered the rear tire at the 10 o’clock position.

Rattling around at Universal Studios

When all these elements were put together it resulted in one of the wildest kustom bicycles made up to that point in time. Unfortunately, the bike never appeared in any episodes of The Munsters TV show. But as long as the series was being filmed, Butch Patrick had exclusive use of the chain bike to explore the back lots of Universal Studios. Between takes Butch would sometimes ride around on the bike in full costume- delighting everybody who saw him, and (supposedly) he even crashed the Chain Bike on at least one occasion.

Kids who watched The Munsters in the 1960s never got to see Eddie’s chain bike, and only a few insiders knew anything about the chain bike story until about ten years ago. Luckily, the bike itself has survived, along with a couple of vintage snapshots and a few documentation photos taken by Barris after the bike was completed. The main reason we know of the bike today is because a bicycle magazine (Lowrider Bicycle) ran an article on it back in the late 1990s, they managed to locate a few old photos of the chain bike and then speculated on what its significance was, effectively creating an origin myth for the lowrider bicycle movement.

The Chain Bike Survives

Barris eventually sold the bike a few years after The Munsters series stopped production. It wound up on display at Jim Brucker’s “Movieworld- Cars of the Stars” museum in California (where Von Dutch worked) sometime before 1973, and was eventually sold at auction in 1985. The bike has had a few different owners over the years, and is presently in the collection of a Munster aficionado living in the American West.

Although the bike is still essentially intact, it is now missing its windshield, head and tail lamps, and rear nerf bar. It appears that these parts were taken off the chain bike sometime in the late 1960s.

(This original story was published on That 70’s Page)