Little known fact about the 1900s:
Cankles were not allowed on the beach.
Life has published a bunch of old photographs on line. Old photos are fun because the people in them are so – er – old! Here’s a batch from the 1900′s, with a little wise-assed commentary for your enjoyment.
The Czar of all the Russias, Nicholas II, and his main squeeze. His outfit is rather cool. Hers appears to have been designed by the “Czarina in the Box Toy Company of Minsk, Ltd.” Either way, I suspect that wearing either in the summer for more than 50 seconds would result in instant dehydration.
Which would not be good.
The family, in happier times. Although Alexandra never looks happy, does she?
Also, would it be ungentlemanly of me to observe that Nick and Alex’s eldest (Olga – to the left of the Czarina) has quite the rack? And, based on her expression, she knows it.
Rufus, before he changed his facial hair style.
J.P. Morgan. It was said that he was rather sensitive about his schnoz.
Can’t imagine why!
Marconi and his assistant recieving the first trans-Atlantic wireless signal. It was a tip on the fifth race at Belmont, I believe.
King Edward VII of England. Also known as “Edward the Baked”.
Henry James, adopting his “harumph – how dare you interupt me with that infernal box whilst I am exercising my literary genius!” pose.
(I wonder if anybody still makes pince nez glasses? Somebody must, don’t you think?)
TR, calling a rapscallion a rapscallion! Love the way he can detatch his jaw and get those lower teeth so far forward that he can swallow his entire face, should he choose to do so.
The woman up front appears to have taken several medicinal doses of Dr. Batty’s Miracle Elixer before coming to the rally. She undoubtedly passed out 30 seconds after this picture was taken.
Top hat or bowler? Decisions, decisions.
Did the two groups make fun of each other? I bet they did.
Leopold II – “King of the Pinheads”.
Just kidding.
King of Belgium.
(Kind of the same thing though…)
(And that is a pretty small head to body ratio there).
Damn Boers! Worse than bores, say what?
Quite.
This does not seem to be an efficient way to hawk The Evening News. These boys would do better if they were on different street corners.
Unless this was a turf war. In which case, things would get ugly!
James MacNeal Whistler.
Reputed to have a mother.
The Curies, probably fooling around with Radium and not likely to be concerned about second-hand smoke.
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Wow, Marie Curie looks positively…..glowing.
That top pictures is a bevy of Gibson Girls. Enough hubba-hubba for my day.
Did the Gibson Girls and Harvey Girls get into turf fights?
I don’t know, but I’d pay to watch.
Funny stuff, Rich! And, for the record, I’m a bowler man and I’ll pop the jaw of any tophatter who says different.
The current craze for the bowler hat is symptomatic of the general decline of Western civilization, you bounder.
Gentlemen, gentlemen! Please! There are ladies present! Kindly retire to the drawing room and have a sarsaparilla.
Get used to it, Old Man! You and your top-hatted buddies are being passed by.
Progress!!
I like to think of TR in that picture actually in the process of catching a bullet in mid-air.
“Go ahead, punk. Shoot at me. I dare you. C’mon. Shoot me in the smile. I’m smiling. See? Shoot me in the smile. Punk.
“That all you got? Only able to shoot faster than the speed of sound? Hah. Here’s your bullet back. Next time, get a laser.”
TR: most badass president in the history of the United States.
That woman down front sure does look a lot like Edna Mae Oliver.
@justjack – The badass prez link is priceless. Thank you muchly. I would have rated Jackson higher though. The man was a out of his freakin mind. (But don’t tell him I said so).
Rich, you’re like the MST3K of old photographs.
Justjack, nice summary of Teddy Roosevelt’s badassery. Scorsese is working on making a biopic about him (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0480046/), and he apparently decided that only one actor could portray someone so mind-numbingly tough and manly…Leonardo DiCaprio.
That better be a joke about Teddy. At this point I’m assuming Scorsese has been playing hide the sausage with Leo since he picks him to play every role. He also wants him to play Sinatra which will most certainly drive me to violence.
JimmyC – if what you say is true (about Leo DC playing TR, not about yours truly – and thanks for that by the by) I am going to have to ask for volunteers to help me bitch-slap that idea out of Scorsese’s head.
Marty’s dead to me after putting his name to one of the “Free Polanski” petitions, so sign me up, please. I’ll gladly beat him with a copy or three of Kundun. do believe I saw more than a few in the used bin at Wherehouse (or FYE, whatever they call themselves these days).
At your service!
My favorite cinematic portrayal of TR was Brian Keith in “The Wind and the Lion”.
James MacNeal Whistler looks like Alan Rickman