The Weirder the Better is My Philosophy
Believe it or not, it’s hard to come down off the high of blogging your colonoscopy for two days. But I will manage — somehow. Thanks again for all your instructive and supportive comments.
On a completely different note, we’re going to do a bit of baby boomer reminiscing today.
When I was a kid in the 1960s, I remember reading the Ripley’s Believe it Or Not series. I lived for it. It was weird and is perhaps the reason I am still intrigued by weird things today.
The most amazing thing about Ripley’s was the quality of the drawings. No photos, just amazing black & white cartoons that depicted everything from the guy with the iron rod through his skull to shrunken heads to weirdly shaped vegetables.
Launched as a newspaper feature in 1918 by Santa Rosa., Calif., entrepreneur Robert Ripley, the Ripley’s franchise is still going strong, with dozens of museums, a TV show and books.
I always wondered if everything in the books was true.
August 1st, 2007 at 12:11 pm
Oh, Rhea, I absolutely adored Ripley! I could sit down with one of those paperbacks and just get totally engrossed (and, in some instances, the “grossed” part of that was front and center) for hours.
Did you know – YOU probably do – that the Mattapan/Ashmont trolley line in Boston was featured in Ripley’s? It is the only trolley line in the world that has its right-of-way go directly through a cemetery.
August 1st, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Ripley’s occupies, in my mind, the same sort of space as the Guinness records stuff–all crap, even if true. I just don’t care about their stuff, it’s like a form of entertainment that doesn’t belong in modern times, like stereoptican viewers, and bearded lady sideshows.
Actually, maybe I like the Guinness crap even less than the Ripley’s. I just don’t care about most “records.” Like, so what? And some of the records, you know, they are absolute jokes (if their pathetic nature doesn’t bleed all the humor out). The biggest cookie. The fastest Rhode Island Red chicken. Most dipshits in a Ford F-150.
August 1st, 2007 at 12:40 pm
Suldog: I didn’t know that the trolley line was in Ripley’s. Very cool factoid.
Gerry: I love your examples of record-setting feats.
August 1st, 2007 at 4:49 pm
I loved Ripley’s, too. I’d forgotten all about it until just now (the little girl who realized Grampa, laid out in his coffin, was still alive because his whiskers “wiggled”….). Thanks for this one, Rhea.
August 1st, 2007 at 4:59 pm
I love Ripley’s museums.
I hope you aren’t done writing about your colon. I had lots more lame comments to make.
August 1st, 2007 at 5:15 pm
Ripley’s ran in our paper when I was ten. I never missed a day. I also bought the little paperbacks at school from Scholastic. My family visited a Ripley’s museum in Gatlinburg TN and it blew my mind. (Remember the guy with two pupils in each eye? Ewwww…) Now it’s [...] years later, and my own 10 year old loves the Ripley’s museum in SF.
August 1st, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Believe it or not, I remember reading this in in the Sunday comic section with my beloved grandfather but I thought it was in color then. Am I remembering wrong? It’s highly possible I am!
August 1st, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Les: We’re kindred souls, I guess.
GoingLikeSixty: For YOU I will write more about my colon. Wait unti l get my results. I want to hear your comments.
Pam and Linda: I never had it in my newspaper but I bought the paperbacks.
August 1st, 2007 at 10:36 pm
I’m going back and rereading your colonoscaopy tales. Been there done that. I remember thinking in a druggy type haze as the probe was probing, “Wow, that’s the inside of my intestines. The actual inside. I’m not sure why I was so thrilled to see such a thing, but I was in a haze. That’s my excuse. When I came back to the real world, it didn’t all seem so interesting.
I’m glad all was okay with you. I’m sure the biopsy is more for a precaution, than anything the doc is really concerned about.
August 2nd, 2007 at 1:44 am
I had a huge big thick book compilation of Ripley’s – like four inch thick, thick – read every page over and over again, especially the gory ones – man lives for 20 years with iron bar through his head, that sort of thing, wonderful stuff.
August 2nd, 2007 at 7:54 am
I used to love this section of the Sunday papers!!!
August 2nd, 2007 at 7:59 am
For Linda: The Sunday one did run in color.
August 2nd, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Ruth: Yeah, I’m not too worried. Thanks for writing in.
Gary: Great stuff.
August 4th, 2007 at 11:41 am
Must join the Ripley love fest. I read the comics, bought the books, and took my kids to the museum in Hollywood (which is very entertaining!).
My great uncle was featured in Ripley once, in what is certainly the lamest Ripley’s entry ever. He was the pastor of something like 4 different churches over 17 years, and not one parishioner died during that whole time. I think he made it up and nominated himself.
August 4th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
Kelly: Now I know how Ripley’s got all those weird facts. Delusional people like your great uncle wrote in. Thanks for enlightening us!