Have you ever wondered what happens to giant pumpkins that are grown for competition? While some win prizes, others just lay on their sides, and they won't fit into a stew pot. Besides, they don't make good pies. In Portland, they make good use of them. Recently, Larry Nelson and Jacob Baldridge of the Pacific Giant Vegetable Growers Club took a load of giant pumpkins to the Oregon Zoo for the annual ritual called the Squishing of the Squash. Every year since 1999, the zoo welcomes the shipment of fall gourds for the elephants, who have their way with the pumpkins. "First, they destroy them, then they enjoy them," elephant keeper Dimas Dominguez said. A good time was had by all.
Thursday, October 21, 2021
Squishing of the Squash
Miss Cellania's Links
The Untold Story of the Portuguese Diplomat Who Saved Thousands From the Nazis. Aristides de Sousa Mendes was wiped from history, but not forever.
A Roundup of Cute Animals in Their Clever Halloween Costumes.
14 Fascinating Queer Historical Figures.
One piglet is not like the others.
Only one in four Western Roman emperors died of natural causes.
Confused governor says looking at webpage's HTML is criminal hacking. We need to change the "page source" button to "hack me now."
The Mysterious Disappearance of Masterpiece the Poodle. He took the 1950s by storm, and then vanished.
The First Crusader Camp Ever Found has been Unearthed in Israel.
5 Of The Most Badass Ways Cultures Used To Treat Their Dead.
A blast from the past (2018): 10 ways Halloween has changed since you were a kid.
Mouse vs. Cookie
A little mouse in Russia has found a huge treasure: a cookie that's bigger than he is! But can he get the cookie back up the ledge where he came from? The video is short, but the suspense is gripping. (via Daily Picks and Flicks)
Tweet of the Day
That's not a real animal. That's a person dressed in a Muppet costume. (via Fark)I still can’t get over the fact that the shoebill stork is a real life animal. How is this real. pic.twitter.com/4J7FQ5er6b
— Nature And Science Zone (@ZoneNature03) October 16, 2021
Wednesday, October 20, 2021
Chattanooga Choo Choo
A real confluence of talent, with the Glen Miller Orchestra, Dorothy Dandridge, and the Nicholas Brothers. It gets better as it goes along. This clip is from the 1941 movie Sun Valley Serenade.
Carol
Click to the right to advance the comic. This story is from Kat Swenski at KatRaccoon Comics. (Thanks, Frank Wilhoit!)
(via reddit)
A Honest Trailer for Sean Connery as James Bond
The latest video from Screen Junkies is less an Honest Trailer and more of a tribute to the original James Bond played by Sean Connery. His agent 007 was the ultimate role model for 1960s men- skilled, handsome, brave, sophisticated, clever, cool, and very lucky. He was also attractive to the women who could buy into the misogyny and objectification of the time. It was a standard formula, but one that worked. The Connery Bond movies were far from perfect, but they were enjoyable in a simple way.
Jack-o-Lantern
His grand evil intentions have been turned into something quite benevolent. What a disappointment! This comic is from Elizabeth Pich and Jonathan Kunz at War and Peas.
Being the Ricardos
The story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz just grabs you. In an era when women were relatively powerless in Hollywood, Lucy knew her worth and used it. The series I Love Lucy was not only innovative, it was a juggernaut in 1950s television. Now we get a cinematic look behind the scenes with the Aaron Sorkin film Being the Ricardos. Lucy is played by Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem portrays Desi. Read more about the movie at Entertainment Weekly. (via Uproxx)
Broadway Bomb 2013
From 2013: The annual Broadway Bomb is an unsanctioned 8-mile race through Manhattan from West 116th Street down to the Financial District on skateboards. The New York Police Department was out in full force to stop the participants on October 12th, but as you can see from this video of one intersection, they weren't very successful. Racing skateboarders generally move faster than cops with a net. Still, out of somewhat over 100 skaters, at least 35 were issued summons, and several were handcuffed. The question is: which is more dangerous overall, 100 skaters in the streets of the city, or police officers movings nets around intersections? (via Viral Viral Videos)
Tweet of the Day
(via Fark)That felt so good 😂 pic.twitter.com/ZsCh1J2R2G
— Jonathan Webers (@JWeber988) October 17, 2021
Tuesday, October 19, 2021
A History of Orchestra
Orchestras vary from place to place, but they all have a basic organization. Who decided this? Why are certain instruments included and others not? British composer David Bruce brings us a history of the orchestra, in a style inspired by Bill Wurtz, but with a lot of solid historical information.
I was a bit surprised to learns there really weren't any orchestras until the 1600s. They early ones were somewhat experimental, but success breeds standardization, and competition breeds excess, but composers needed to know what instruments to write for. While the orchestral form is still quite standardized, it continues to evolve in new ways. Altogether, this video is way more interesting than you'd expect. (via Laughing Squid)
The Shooting Range that Crosses a Highway
At the Brünnlisau shooting range in Switzerland, the shooters are on this side of the road, and the targets are on the other side. Meanwhile, traffic is passing along in between. What could possibly go wrong? What might surprise you is that this shooting range has been in operation for twenty years with no incidents involving the vehicles passing by!
The explanation lies in the design of the shooting range and the rules that govern it. These rules are bolstered by the gun culture of Switzerland, in which shooters are numerous, but also highly trained and regulated. Also noted: this range has some very cool technology for scoring your shots.
Hard Times for Michael Myers
There, there. That new movie should start generating checks anytime now. Then he can give up moonlighting as the tooth fairy and get back to slashing. This comic is from Simon Johnson at Simon Said Comics.
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