Danish Classic Blonde Bombshell: Glamorous Photos of Greta Thyssen in the 1950s and 1960s

Born 1927 in Hareskovby, Danish film actress and former model Greta Thyssen arrived in the United States after winning the Miss Denmark crown in 1952. She attempted to follow in the footsteps of the reigning blonde sex symbols Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield by forging a movie career. She was Monroe's double in Bus Stop, and appeared in Accused of Murder, Terror Is a Man, Three Blondes in His Life and Journey to the Seventh Planet.

In addition to her appearances on the television series Dragnet and Bachelor Father, she appeared as Roxy Howard, the title character in the Perry Mason episode, "The Case of the Nervous Accomplice". Thyssen also appeared on Broadway in Pajama Tops as a replacement for June Wilkinson.

Thyssen is probably best remembered for her appearances in the Three Stooges films Quiz Whizz, Pies and Guys and Sappy Bull Fighters. From 1956-1958, Thyssen was the original Pirate Girl on the game show Treasure Hunt, assisting host Jan Murray with presenting prizes hidden in miniature treasure chests. After appearing in the musical comedy Cottonpickin' Chickenpickers (1967), she retired from acting.

Thyssen died of pneumonia in 2018 at her home in Manhattan, aged 90.

These glamorous photos that show the beauty of this Danish blonde bombshell in the 1950s and 1960s.

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Vyvyn Lazonga: Seattle Tattoo Artist Makes Mastectomy Scars Beautiful

As an artistic kid in Seattle, Vyvyn Lazonga loved to draw and bead. Then she discovered tattoos in the early 1970s.

“This lightbulb went off in my head! I thought tattoos might be a good medium for my artwork.”

Vyvyn Lazonga through the years

Lazonga came through the Emporium doors and asked Danny Danzl, a WWII veteran who learnt his craft from the legendary Percy Waters, for an apprenticeship. While she was there, Lazonga began to create original tattoo designs: black and white geometric abstractions, inspired by indigenous art, as well as colorful flowers, fish, birds and other wildlife.

Vyvyn Lazonga with mentor CJ 'Danny' Danzl, a WWII veteran who learnt his craft from the legendary Percy Waters

Danny and Lazonga, circa 1970s 

Vyvyn and Danny Danzl

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30 Rare Behind the Scenes Photographs From the Morrison Hotel's Album Cover Photo Shoot in Los Angeles, 1969

Morrison Hotel is the fifth studio album by American rock band the Doors, released February 9, 1970 by Elektra Records. The Doors entered Elektra Sound Recorders in Los Angeles in November 1969 to record the album which is divided into two separately titled sides; “Hard Rock Cafe” and “Morrison Hotel”. The group included session bassists Lonnie Mack and Ray Neapolitan on the album’s songs.

Front and back album covers of Morrison Hotel.

The album peaked at number four on the Billboard 200, and performed better overseas than the preceding album. Only one single from the album was released, You Make Me Real/Roadhouse Blues, but it reached only a position of 50 Billboard 100 chart.

The album’s cover of Morrison Hotel was shot by photographer Henry Diltz through the window of this transient hotel in Los Angeles back in December of 1969. The location was ‘discovered’ by Ray Manzarek and his wife a few days before the shoot. When the group returned with Diltz and approached the desk clerk about taking photos inside the building, they were turned down. So Diltz took several shots of the group outside the building. Eventually the clerk took a break and the group was able to sneak in and take their places inside the window for what would end up as the album cover. Today the hotel sits vacant and is near the Staples Center.

After the photo shoot, the group traveled north to get a beer and came across a bar called the Hard Rock Café. A photo of the bar would serve as the back album cover and a few years later a restaurant chain would take it’s name from this album. The building is now home to a convenience store.

Years later photographer Henry Diltz recalled; “I guess though sometime the next year after the album came out with that picture on the back, they [The Doors] got a call from England and this guy says, ‘Hello. Would you mind if we use that name on the back of your album? We’re starting a cafe over here in London and we would like to use that name.’ And they said, ‘No, go ahead,’ and that was the beginning of it. Now every time I go into a Hard Rock Cafe, whatever city I’m in, I always feel like I should get a free hamburger.”

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One of the Most Famous Vehicles in History: Rare Photographs of JFK Lincoln Limousine Under Construction in 1961

No other vehicle is as seared into the memory of a nation as the Lincoln limousine President John F. Kennedy rode in during his assassination on November 22, 1963, in Dallas.

In 1961, a short time into Kennedy’s presidency, the White House leased a specially-modified Lincoln Convertible built by the Ford Motor Company. The vehicle — codenamed the SS-100-X by the US Secret Service — came with added extras such as telephones, a retractable roof, flashing lights, standing platforms for security agents and — questionably, in hindsight — a hydraulic lift that raised the president’s seat so that he could be more easily seen.

It was by far the most expensive and sophisticated car built for a president but, impressive as it was, the SS-100-X did not have the armor plating and bulletproof glass that would soon become standard for presidential limousines.

The Kennedy limousine is one of the most famous vehicles in history, with countless documentaries, films and books devoted to what happened to its most famous passenger in 1963. Photos and vision of the limousine on that day have been examined, dissected, discussed and disputed for decades, but many people do not know what happened to the vehicle in the years that followed.

“A lot of people assume it was destroyed, or locked away in some warehouse never to be seen again,” said Matt Anderson, transport curator at the Henry Ford Museum.

After the assassination, and still covered in blood, the SS-100-X was flown from Dallas back to Washington DC, where it was stored in the White House garage and searched for evidence by the FBI.

Lyndon B Johnson was sworn in as president and one of the biggest criminal investigations in history began.

It would have been well down his list of priorities given the recent events, but the new president found himself without an official limousine — certainly without one that met appropriate security standards given the events in Dallas.

“It was a simple matter of expediency — the president needed a parade car, and it was much faster to rebuild the existing car than to build something from scratch,” explained Anderson.

So, the decision was made to refit the SS-100-X. This was considered the quickest and most cost-effective solution, earning it the nickname The Quick Fix.

The vehicle was sent to the Hess & Eisenhardt company, which specialized in making armored vehicles, and was stripped back to its bare bones before being modified. Titanium plating was added to the body, along with a bulletproof roof and windows, and flat-proof tyres. It was also fitted with an air-filtration system to protect against chemical attack.

However, Lyndon B. Johnson must have had at least some qualms about the vehicle because he had it painted black, not wanting anyone to recognize his presidential limo as being “that” presidential limo.

“Johnson took one look and ordered that the car be repainted in black,” Anderson said. “He thought the blue was too associated with President Kennedy and the assassination.”

After a repaint, the limousine was returned to the White House in May, 1964, six months after JFK’s assassination. President Johnson was said to have been extremely uncomfortable about riding in the infamous limousine, for obvious reasons, but used it as his official car until 1968.

The SS-100-X clocked up tens of thousands of kilometers on the road in the service of the White House, and even more air miles on many overseas trips.

But, even when Johnson commissioned a new limousine, which came into service in 1968, that was not the end of road for the iconic car. The vehicle stayed in service at the White House until the late 1970s and — although no longer the main presidential limousine — was occasionally used by presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter.

“People are surprised to learn that it was rebuilt and used for another 14 years following the Kennedy assassination,” Anderson said.

After the White House stopped leasing the SS-100-X in 1978, it was returned to the Ford Motor Company and now sits in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan.

A worker from the Hess & Eisenhardt Company works on the extension of the limousine. Far from the stretch models used today, this Lincoln Continetal measured just 21 feet.

Customization of the John F. Kennedy presidential limousine was performed by the Hess & Eisenhardt Company of Cincinnati, Ohio. The car was stretched by 3.5 feet, steps were added for Secret Service agents, and a siren and lights were added to the limo.

Transformation of the limo took about six months. It was delivered to the White House in June 1961, six months into Kennedy’s term.

Another part of the JFK limo’s customization effort included a hydraulic rear seat that raised the president up nearly a foot for better visibility.

Ford Motor Company collaborated on the car’s customization and retained ownership of the car after the transformation was complete. The automaker leased the car back to the Secret Service for just $500 per year.

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34 Fascinating Photos Capture Street Scenes of Gibraltar in 1960

Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It has an area of 6.7 km2 (2.6 sq mi) and is bordered to the north by Spain.

The landscape is dominated by the Rock of Gibraltar at the foot of which is a densely populated city area, primarily Gibraltarians. It shares a maritime border with Morocco.

These old photos were taken by Allan Hails that show street scenes of Gibraltar in 1960.

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Amazing Found Photos Show a Beautiful House From 1938 That Still Exists in Needham, Massachusetts

These amazing photos were found by Suzanne that captured a beautiful house at 214 Hillcrest Rd., Needham, Massachusetts in 1938. It still exists and looks to be in beautiful condition.

“What a nice surprise to find that this house still exists and looks to be in beautiful condition. You can see how much larger the two trees in front of the house are now. There is also a large letter L on the chimney, so I would say the owner's last name started with L. My parents were married the year the house was built. I'm going to mail the photos to the current owner.”

Our 1st New Home, Hillcrest Rd., Needham, Mass., 1938. Notice a large letter L on the chimney

Our First Built Home - 214 Hillcrest Rd., Needham, Mass., 1938. This photo may have been taken on a snowy night

The house in 2013. Search by Google

Vintage Photographs of Debbie Harry Posing With Her Damn Cool Cars From the Late 1970s

In 1979, the pop world was agog over a New Wave band fronted by an aggressive and slightly loopy blonde female singer known as Debbie Harry. The band was Blondie. Their hits were legion. From the breakthrough album “Parallel Lines” in 1978 alone they had Hanging On the Telephone, One Way or Another, Sunday Girl and Heart of Glass. Blondie’s band accrued several more hit songs before the decade was over.

Blondie was a new start. The Punk rock scene from England was starting to affect New York City clubs and Blondie was hanging around with early fans of the music including Richard Hell, The Ramones and Television. Blondie also remained friends with the New York Dolls and The Magic Tramps who represented the Glam Rock scene. Through this entire period of transition and growth towards becoming major music stars. Debbie Harry drove a classic pony car; a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro coupe.

Of course back in the early 1970s, it was just a used car. Debbie described it as “an inheritance from her Mother.” She didn’t have enough money to properly take care of it and living in apartment buildings in the roughest part of New York City. Debbie owned it from her arrival in New York in 1971 all through the Stiletto band era. She mentions the car in a poem she wrote during this time. Debbie’s car contributed greatly to keeping body and soul together. She mentions how convenient it was to have transportation for gigs and the luxury of enjoying trips to the beach or Coney Island during the summer.

Read more of the story of Debbie Harry and her cars on phscollectorcarworld. And here, below are some of amazing photographs of Debbie posing with her cars from the late 1970s:

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