Places

Tree House Rock: Face of the Creator

Wednesday, September 15th, 2010

“If you don’t believe in the devil,” said Horace Burgess, “you can look at that rock right there and tell that he’s much alive.” Horace is the builder of the Minister’s Tree House — largest in the world — and the rock that he mentioned hangs in the choir loft of the tree house chapel. [...]

Whatever Happened To Happy The Walking Fish And The Beautiful Atomic Tunnel?

Tuesday, September 7th, 2010

Those two questions may never be answered to everyone’s satisfaction. Both Happy and the Tunnel vanished over 50 years ago.

Dragon Man’s Crush on the 1950s

Sunday, August 29th, 2010

On our whirlwind tour of Dragon Man’s Military Museum, we spotted a few Elvis-Presley-as-GI photos near one of the armored personnel carriers. Elvis? Was tattooed tough-talking Mel “Dragon Man” Bernstein a fan? “I have a small Elvis collection,” he said.

Sliding Scale – NYC’s Playground

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

A neighborhood news aggregating site recently noted that Tom Otterness‘ gigantic sculpture and slide combo “Playground” had become a destination for the Gotham toddler set. The roundy-headed bronze behemoth has been reclining on a patch of artificial turf on West 42nd Street for over a year, in a public park adjacent to the twin 50-story [...]

San Francisco Ripleys – Quake, Mermaid, Matchstick Spacecraft

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditorium had its grand-reopening at Fisherman’s Wharf on Monday. Nestled among souvenir shops and tourist restaurants, Ripley’s has been a Bay area sideshow for decades. The attraction’s collection and decor reboot promised to offer heightened interactivity, along with all the wonders today’s discerning freakniks really care about.

Dime Museum Rises From Grave

Thursday, July 22nd, 2010

We were crestfallen when Dick Horne’s American Dime Museum closed in Baltimore in 2007. It was a unique showcase of the rare and ghastly. We thought we’d never again see priceless relics such as a Petrified Minotaur, or Abraham Lincoln’s Last Bowel Movement.

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