The Chewing Gum fad of the 1890’s (and how the exiled Mexican General Santa Anna helped introduce chicle-based gum to the United States).

From 1890 to 1900 was the greatest era in the history of chewing gum in the United States. The press, the pulpit, and the medical profession were largely occupied in denouncing the “vulgar” habit as detrimental to mankind.

Official Napster client running on a iBook 2001

With the movement of popular entertainment mediums to electronic formats, file sharing became quite common and widespread. Popular with teens, file sharing often involves copyrighted properties such as music or movie MP3 files and hence, is typically considered illegal.

Rarely has a toy reemerged over and over again as a hit “new toy” like the Lemon Twist (or Jingle Jump, Footsie, Skip-A-Roo, or Skip It). First introduced in the late 1960’s as the Footsie toy, it became immensely popular for several few years before gradually fading away into obscurity. Then in the mid-1970’s the…

Girls throwing a Frisbee disc - Wham-O commercial frame

In the United States, two simultaneous “inventions” of the flying disc occurred on opposite ends of the country while a major tweaking of the disc design and a hearty dose of marketing set off the 1970’s Frisbee craze that lasted for nearly two decades.

Twenty-two students cramming into telephone booth at St. Mary’s College, Moraga, California

In early 1959, twenty five students attempted something nobody had ever tried before. The South African students of Durban tried to see if all twenty five people could fit into a phone booth.

University of Missouri School of Journalism student Marie Hensen became the first woman to swallow goldfish April 1939

Introduction It began in the 1930’s, a fad so bizarre; some mistakenly believe it to be an urban legend. Goldfish swallowing, where a live goldfish is swallowed, started in mid 1939 and sizzled out a few months later. Despite its short life, the fad secured a firm spot in American’s history of bizarre fads. Lothrop…

Various types of swing dances, including the Lindy Hop, Jive, the Big Apple, West Coast Swing, the Whip, the Push, and the East Coast Swing, were referred to as the “jitterbug” dance.

It was 1979 when Xavier Roberts and five of his friends developed the Little People Originals dolls, a loveable but odd-looking children’s toy that would soon become known as the Cabbage Patch Kids.

Gary said, jokingly, that a “pet” rock would be an ideal pet to own. He explained that a pet rock did not require feeding, walking, grooming, would not die or become sick and would not be disobedient. In short, they would be the perfect pet.

In late 1959, as bored students returned from summer vacation, the sport of phone booth stuffing morphed into a new form. Volkswagen stuffing became all the rage as students tried to stuff as many people as possible into a Volkswagen car.