Aircrews in World War II decorated their planes with pictures of pinups and pretty girls, typically modeled after the "cheesecake" art of Gil Elvgren, Alberto Vargo, and George Petty. It was (and still is) an interesting practice.
June 26, 2015
10 Humorous Portraits of Jim Carrey Impersonating Celebrities in 1992
Jim Carrey has always had a knack for imitation, as proven by these unearthed 1992 photos of the comedian. See him morph into Hollywood icons, James Dean and Elvis Presley, with just simple changes in posture and facial expression:
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| Elvis Presley |
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| James Dean |
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| Clint Eastwood |
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| Steve Martin |
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| Henry Fonda |
10 Incredible Essential Products Made by Women During the First World War
The First World War was fought on a huge industrial scale. Munitions were needed in vast quantities to feed the guns and a variety of products were required to supply both military and civilian needs.
With men recruited for the armed forces, the industrial workforce changed. Women took on previously male-dominated roles in industry during the war, working alongside men in reserved occupations. Women made an increasingly varied contribution, working in labs, mills and factories, sometimes in hazardous circumstances.
These photographs below show the incredible range of essential products made by women in the North West of England during the war, via Imperial War Museums.
1. Making munitions
2. Lab workers
3. Working at the coal mine
4. Making tyres
5. Working with asbestos
With men recruited for the armed forces, the industrial workforce changed. Women took on previously male-dominated roles in industry during the war, working alongside men in reserved occupations. Women made an increasingly varied contribution, working in labs, mills and factories, sometimes in hazardous circumstances.
These photographs below show the incredible range of essential products made by women in the North West of England during the war, via Imperial War Museums.
1. Making munitions
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| Women munitions workers, alongside their male counterparts, produce 6-inch high explosive shells at the works of the Yorkshire & Lancashire Railway Company at Horwich, Bolton in 1917. Many companies switched to making munitions during the war, as well as welcoming more women into their workforce. |
2. Lab workers
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| Women at work in the laboratory of Brunner, Mond & Co in Northwich, a company that manufactured sodium bicarbonate. Sometimes known as baking soda, sodium bicarbonate was used for baking and a range of other purposes. Women at the factory did a variety of jobs, from scientific lab work to packaging the finished product. |
3. Working at the coal mine
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| Women pit brow workers of the Wigan Coal and Iron Company, 1918. These women sorted coal and moved heavy tubs on the surface of a coal mine – work that was dirty and physically demanding. Jobs like these had been done by working class women before the war and continued to be important in wartime. |
4. Making tyres
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| Women workers at the factory of Charles Macintosh & Sons in Manchester make tyres for motor vehicles. The company produced a wide range of vital rubber products, including mouthpieces for gas masks issued to soldiers. Making these products required technical skill. |
5. Working with asbestos
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| Women workers producing asbestos mattresses at the factory of Turner Brothers in Trafford Park, Manchester. Whilst appreciated as a hazardous material today, asbestos was used in a range of wartime products such as mattresses used to line the boilers of battleships. |
9 Iconic Photographs from African American History
These iconic photographs below were selected from the book Through the African American Lens by TIME magazine. Many of the images in the book are taken by famous photographers such as Spider Martin, Gordon Parks, Ernest C. Withers, Wayne F. Miller, and Henri Cartier-Bresson, serve as a view into the dynamic history of Americans of African descent.
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| Photographer Zack Brown shooting dapper men in Harlem, ca. 1937. (Eliot Elisofon—Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, © Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin) |
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| Elks Parade, Harlem, 1938. (Jack Manning—Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, © Estate of Jack Manning) |
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| African American Jewish Congregation in Harlem, children studying, 1940. (Alexander Alland—Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, © Alexander Alland Jr.) |
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| An afternoon game at Table 2, from the series The Way of Life of the Northern Negro, 1946-1948. (Wayne F. Miller—Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, © Wayne F. Miller) |
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| Ernie Banks, Larry Doby, Matty Brescia, Jackie Robinson, Martin's Stadium, Memphis, Tennessee, 1953. (Ernest C. Withers—Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, © Ernest C. Withers Trust) |
June 25, 2015
They Wore Saddle Shoes: 38 Vintage Photos That Show Women Enjoyed the Simplicity Design of an Icon During the 1940s to 1960s
“It’s the ‘hardy perennial’ of shoe fashions… ever smart…ever now!,” claimed a 1930s description for brown and white saddle shoes. If there ever was a 21st century shoe that was always in style it was the saddle shoe. It is an icon of vintage style today.
The classic black and white saddle shoe is an icon of the 1950s although it started in the 1920s and remained popular till the 1970s. Saddle is a white or light color lace up oxford shoe with black or dark color band around the middle. Teenagers were especially fond on wearing saddle shoes.
The classic black and white saddle shoe is an icon of the 1950s although it started in the 1920s and remained popular till the 1970s. Saddle is a white or light color lace up oxford shoe with black or dark color band around the middle. Teenagers were especially fond on wearing saddle shoes.
