Einstein Sticking his Tongue Out: The Story Behind an Iconic Photo, 1951

Vintage Wonders Apr 28, 2025

On March 14, 1951, Einstein’s 72nd birthday, the photo was taken just following an event honouring him at Princeton. Reporters followed Mrs. Aydelotte back to their car with Dr. Frank Aydelotte, the former chairman of the Institute for Advanced Study, hoping to acquire pictures of Einstein. When the throng of reporters had scattered around the car, UPI photographer Arthur Sasse…

Building the Iconic Golden Gate Bridge in Rare Photographs, 1930s

Vintage Wonders Apr 28, 2025

Unquestionably an American landmark, the Golden Gate Bridge’s symbolic impact exceeds that of the Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty in part because of its portrayal of optimism, a very American quality. Its visual relationship of form and environment, goal and design, does not set limits but rather symbolizes Western prospects and Pacific possibilities. Here the American ideas of…

The iconic Hollywood sign in old photographs, 1924-1980

Vintage Wonders Apr 28, 2025

Among American icons, the Hollywood sign could be singular. It is a monument whose white letters are recognizable everywhere as the main movie sign. Day after day visitors wanting to position themselves for the finest possible angle on the sign stroll into nearby Griffith Park or troll up and down the streets for the Hollywood Hills with cameras. To moviegoers…

The story behind Princess Diana and John Travolta’s iconic dance, 1985

Vintage Wonders Apr 25, 2025

Early November 1985, Princess Diana and her husband Prince Charles visited the United States. The royal pair remained at the White House and on November 9 attended a gala supper. Photographed in the Entrance Hall dancing with actor John Travolta to the soundtrack of his 1977 film Saturday Night Fever, the 24-year-old Princess Widely shared worldwide, the pictures and TV…

Rah-Rah Skirts: The Iconic Fashion Choice of Young Women in the Early 1980s

Vintage Wonders Apr 25, 2025

With its unique fashion styles, the 1980s were a decade marked by excitement and daring taking the stage. Among the other classic designs that arose during this period, the Rah-Rah skirt was considered as a representation of young inventiveness and energy. The vibrant world of cheerleading is where the Rah-Rah skirt first originated. Renowned for their energetic displays and dramatic…

Test pilot George Aird ejected from his Lightning F1 aircraft, 1962

Vintage Wonders Apr 24, 2025

This is the narrative behind the well-known photo of test pilot George Aird thrown from his Lightning F1 fighter jet. September 13, 1962 saw Jim Meads take the image. Newspapers all throughout the world at the time published it; many people believed it to be fake until the Ministry of Defence attempted to place a “D Notice” on the picture…

The Hindenburg’s Interior: Vintage Photos Reveal What Luxury Air Travel Was Like in the 1930s

Vintage Wonders Apr 24, 2025

The finest thing in luxury air travel was the German Zeppelin airship before first-class suites and contemporary flight. With the dirigible gliding peacefully in the skies, the Hindenburg was built to carry passengers across the Atlantic in peace. Considered the longest class of flying machines and the biggest airship by envelope capacity, the airship was Airships such as the Hindenburg…

Lunch Atop A Skyscraper: Revealing the Backstory of an Iconic Photograph

Vintage Wonders Apr 24, 2025

Taken on September 20, 1932, the classic picture known as “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper” catches a moment captured in time. Eleven courageous ironworkers are shown in this black-and- white picture seated atop a steel beam, flying 850 feet (260 metres) over Manhattan, New York City. Nestled inside the grandeur of Rockefeller Centre, their great elevation is the sixty-ninth floor of…

What 1940s Teenage Girls Wore: Skirts, Saddle Shoes, and Schoolyard Chic

Vintage Wonders Apr 24, 2025

1940s teenage females had an unexpected degree of freedom and a way of life that would cause jealousy in many contemporary young people. Their childhood was anchored in custom, raised in a period when society standards stressed dressing well to woo a future husband and working part-time jobs to acquire things like nice wedding china. Still, the surroundings changed significantly…

With nylon stockings scarce, women would paint their legs so it looked like stockings, 1940s

Vintage Wonders Apr 24, 2025

The finest women’s stockings were fashioned of silk until the end of the 1930s. This changed in the US when DuPont started nylon production in 1939. October of that year saw restricted sale of nylon stockings, then a countrywide introduction at a few chosen locations in 1940. Though they cost the same as silk, eager American consumers bought the new…

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