Category Archives: Blast from the Past

When Black Friday Comes!

Posted on November 24, 2023 by Joe

This is a terrific hour-long collection of vintage toy commercials from the 1950s, 1960s and maybe a couple from the 70s. Continue reading →

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Over the River and Through the Woods

Posted on November 21, 2023 by Joe

During those long road trips when nobody could agree on what songs to sing along to or The License Plate Game proved to be a bust, a heaping stack of comic books was Mom and Dad’s best friend. They were … Continue reading →

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Our Biggest Hit

Posted on November 10, 2023 by Joe

How To Sew An iPod Case – Part Deux Despite Apple’s ceasing production of iPods more than a year ago, this post continues to be our most popular. Maybe people are adopting the sewing pattern for use with cell phones, … Continue reading →

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Pathos in a Pencil?

Posted on October 24, 2023 by Joe

I found this unusual advertisement for artist pencils in a 1976 issue of American Artist. Ads nowadays usually push whimsy to would-be artists — never pathos.

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And he shows them pearly white…

Posted on October 17, 2023 by Joe

In the wake of the blockbuster success of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975) there came a spate of books and publications designed strictly to cash in on the fascination with man-eating sharks. Sure, there may have been the occasional issue of … Continue reading →

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He’s a Pinball Wizard!!!

Posted on October 15, 2023 by Joe

Making the Pinball Machine Costume Enjoy this blast from the past, and if you’re going to attempt this costume for Halloween, time’s wasting! Hop to it! Click the link above!

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There’s No Escape from a DEADLINE!

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Joe

Back in the late 1990s I was exploring the illustrative possibilities of my newly purchased Power Mac 7300. I put a lot of time and effort chasing down what meager information I could via a dial-up modem; picking the brains … Continue reading →

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We Were Warned

Posted on August 27, 2023 by Joe

Usually we all have a good laugh at the way authors, illustrators and filmmakers of the past imagined the future. It’s usually little men from Mars or silver needle spaceships or hulking automatons serving sinister masters. That isn’t the case … Continue reading →

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With The Comico Boys

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Joe

Among the well worn stack of comics that I refer to as Barbershop Comics was an old issue of the X-Men that hit the stands late in 1981. There is nothing special about that particular issue, but the advertisement above … Continue reading →

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