The Streets of Cairo in Coney Island from 1890s-1900s

Although many know this tune (there are surely hundreds of regional interpretations), few know of its origin and its importance to the New York City midway and sideshows of the early nineteenth century. Best known as “The Streets of Cairo,” it is oftentimes connected to visions of Arabia and Egypt, to snake charmers, belly dancers, and other mysterious notions of Near East mysticism.

Although not quite “a place in France,” there were certain locations in New York where the fabled song came to life. “The Streets of Cairo” sideshow was constructed on Surf Avenue, Coney Island, after the success of the Algerian Village at the World’s Columbian Exhibition in Chicago in 1893.

Show at Coney Island with a man “levitating” a woman on stage, ca. 1908.

Woman gypsy/dancer posing outside at Coney Island, ca 1896.

A woman in a carnival or side-show with three large pythons, ca 1895.

Beggar among the crowd on Surf Avenue, Coney Island, ca 1896.

Crowd wandering through the “Streets of Cairo” show with camels at Coney Island, ca 1896.

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Faking It – Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop

A funny and interesting collection of manipulated photography before photoshop

The Pond - Moonrise, 1904

Nude Woman on Man's Necktie, 1911

Rodin—The Thinker, 1902

Partial Dematerialization of the Medium Marguerite Beuttinger, 1920

Couple with Figure of Cupid, 1910s

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The Swastikas Hockey Team, c.1916

That's The Swastikas, a Canadian girls' hockey team from Edmonton circa 1916. Before it became associated with the Nazis, swastikas had been used for hundreds of years as a symbol of good luck and prosperity:

For many millenia, before it was appropriated by the Nazis, the swastika was a symbol of good luck and prosperity. Almost every race, religion and continent honored the swastika -- a perfect example of the universal spread of a symbol thru the collective unconscious used by American Indians, Hindus, Buddhists, Vikings, Greeks, Romans, Celts, Anglo-Saxons, Mayans, Aztecs, Persians, Christians, and neolithic tribes. There are even Jewish swastikas found in ancient synagogues side-by-side with the star of David!

The swastika was associated with the hammer of Thor which returned to him like a boomerang, the footprints of Buddha, the emblem of Shiva, Apollo, Jupiter, and even Jesus Christ! The swastika was the first Christian symbol and is found in the catacombs in Rome. Hindus and Buddhists to this day still revere the swastika as their sacred sign. Jains make the sign of the swastika similar to the Christian sign of the cross.

In the early part of the twentieth century Rudyard Kipling used the swastika as his coat-of-arms, Coca Cola made a swastika-shaped lucky watch fob,American pilots used it on their planes when they fought for the French in World War One, it was the symbol for the Ladies Home Journal sponsored Girls' Club and the Boy Scouts. A town in Ontario was named Swastika in 1911 because of a lucky gold strike.

(via Neatorama)

The Rolling Stones' 1966 Tour Programme

Here is a UK Stones’ tour programme from the autumn of 1966 when they went on the road to promote their Aftermath LP.

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Old Photos of David Bowie in The 1970s

When David Bowie burst onto the scene in the early ’70s in full Technicolor Ziggy Stardust Glitter Rocker Regalia– he forever changed the Rock ‘n’ Roll landscape, and revolutionized a new genre of pop star and multi media artist like no one before. His influence was felt and reflected in music, culture, dress and attitude. The doors of self-expression and exploration were thrown wide open– with musical and artistic avenues never before explored now becoming ripe, new territory for a young and hungry generation.

1974, New York — David Bowie performs as Ziggy Stardust on TV in a room at the Delmonico Hotel. — Image by © Henry Diltz/Corbis

1972 — David Bowie, as Ziggy Stardust, in concert in the US. — Image by © Neal Preston/Corbis

David Bowie & Mick Ronson. Mick (in white on the Les Paul) was a major collaborator w/Bowie through 1973. — Image by © Michael Ochs Archives/Corbis

1973, LA — Rocker David Bowie backstage with fans — Image by © Michael Ochs Archives/Corbis

Glitter Rocker David Bowie Performing as Ziggy Stardust — Image by © Lynn Goldsmith/Corbis

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Mobile booking cage, c.1920s

Old Harley Davidson police motorcycle and mobile booking center.

Cheers in London, 1945

People crowd on top of a van during VE Day celebrations, London, 8th May 1945.