The Secret Lives of Fashion Mannequins
For a brief moment in the 1930s, one of the most famous celebrities of the…
Category Obscure history
Never thought of it like that: Versailles, a Giant Nightmarish Hotel
The Palace of Versailles, famously opulent and vast, is often celebrated for its architectural grandeur…
The Paris Horror Show
Friday night at the theatre would never be quite the same again. Down a dark…
New York’s Real-Life Handmaid’s Tale
Revivalist sects, polyamorous communes and radical experiments in communal living – America was rife with…
Classrooms without Walls: A Forgotten Age of Open-air Schools
This old black and white photograph pops out at me every now and again on the…
The Parisian Poison Panic and Versailles’ Secret Witch Hunt
This is a different kind of story about Versailles; one that they only dared whisper…
Bohemian Grove: The Secret Society Summer Camp
I just spent the morning finding out everything I can on the Bohemian Grove. For two…
Hollywood’s Original “Bad Girl”: The Tragic Muse of Kurt Cobain
Even before she was famous, Frances Farmer had a bad girl reputation. In high school,…
A Brief Compendium of Medical Quackery
The rise of accessibility to medicine in the 19th century was a beautiful thing, but…
The Golden Age of the … Enema?!
Look, it wasn’t enough to have flawless skin, a great wig, and a plump derrière…
The Bygone Era Of The Hotel Detective
“Saverio Bongiorno had no permanent home and had been living in various midtown hotels. Bongiorno…
How to Make an American Anti-Hero
They crusaded with horns sprouting from their heads, and rifles slung across their backs. Legend…