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Copyright recognition is silly, because it's obvious I hold no rights to images from motion pictures, LIFE magazine, or the Smithsonian. I do make every effort to credit sources and illustrators, because it just seems right. However, all text here is "copyright Blue Electric Room" unless otherwise noted. Some posts are true facts about the world, other posts describe the world as it might have been if I were in charge. Please include any text, captions, and credits if you reblog.

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As I mentioned last December regarding the Pacific Telephone Magazine, those long-forgotten phone company publications now function as indicators of what we lost. Compare this with the bill you receive next month from your phone service provider, and then stop wondering why the connections drop out so often, or why you can’t reach a human being in customer service. Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover.

As I mentioned last December regarding the Pacific Telephone Magazine, those long-forgotten phone company publications now function as indicators of what we lost. Compare this with the bill you receive next month from your phone service provider, and then stop wondering why the connections drop out so often, or why you can’t reach a human being in customer service. Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover.

Women With the Top Down update: Wouldn’t you like to know what Suzy Parker, the legendary redhead from Texas, is shooting with that little camera as she scoots around Ceylon in a 1951 MG TD? photo by Georges Dambier

Women With the Top Down update: Wouldn’t you like to know what Suzy Parker, the legendary redhead from Texas, is shooting with that little camera as she scoots around Ceylon in a 1951 MG TD?

photo by Georges Dambier

Am I the only one excited about this week’s announcement of the iPod Retro? It’s a bit unwieldy for folks on the go, but the chunky design scheme and the music’s warm tones really do harken back to that era of the hit single. The clever thing also boasts an intriguing fragrance—a barely perceptible hint of burning wire—which I find absolutely intoxicating.

Am I the only one excited about this week’s announcement of the iPod Retro? It’s a bit unwieldy for folks on the go, but the chunky design scheme and the music’s warm tones really do harken back to that era of the hit single. The clever thing also boasts an intriguing fragrance—a barely perceptible hint of burning wire—which I find absolutely intoxicating.

The upcoming release of The Great Gatsby got me to thinking about how, even during the prosperity and all-around giddiness of the Jazz Age, there was plenty to worry about. Sure, you might be an oil baron or a stock market wizard, but as a bald, deaf guy sporting a funny-shaped nose and bad skin, you probably won’t be dancing the Charleston, at least not with those knock knees. That’s assuming you even have two knees. image: Popular Mechanics

The upcoming release of The Great Gatsby got me to thinking about how, even during the prosperity and all-around giddiness of the Jazz Age, there was plenty to worry about. Sure, you might be an oil baron or a stock market wizard, but as a bald, deaf guy sporting a funny-shaped nose and bad skin, you probably won’t be dancing the Charleston, at least not with those knock knees. That’s assuming you even have two knees.

image: Popular Mechanics

I’ve not kept a close eye on recent developments in the marriage equality issue, but I think I know enough to suspect that lesbian nuptials could result in the sort of activity we see in this illustration. I certainly hope so, at least. image: Agence Eureka; artist: Gabriel Raymond Lambert, aka Raylambert

I’ve not kept a close eye on recent developments in the marriage equality issue, but I think I know enough to suspect that lesbian nuptials could result in the sort of activity we see in this illustration. I certainly hope so, at least.

image: Agence Eureka; artist: Gabriel Raymond Lambert, aka Raylambert

There is much to admire about LIFE photographer Nina Leen. Her early work (and personal life) revealed a deep affection for the world’s non-human creatures; she could capture in a few shots the essence of teenage behavior (at a time when the very concept of teenage subculture was a new idea); Leen kept an ever-alert eye for the playful side of feminine beauty. Her least-appreciated but most intriguing contribution is a small, yet wonderful, notion: a pretty girl is most appealing when she’s in her bare feet.  

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