Based on the state of plastic surgery in the 1920s, and with regular improvements in science, one journalist suggested in 1922 that soon women wouldn’t have to age – ‘I mean shriveled or waddling old and all that.’
Vintage inventions & discoveries
This classic advice from the 1970s helped consumers choose and take care of audio cassette tapes.
Looking back at 7-Up history, you can see that it’s a testament to the lemon-lime soft drink’s popularity that the brand could weather so many stumbling blocks – not the least of which included being introduced right before the Great Depression.
In the world of modern technology, it’s easy to take the humble typewriter completely for granted. But have you ever wondered who invented the typewriter – and how it introduced a new role for women in the workforce?
Find out how some of the earliest color photography was created using potato starch!
Join us as we journey through futurism history, exploring predictions made about the future by those from the past!
These vintage touch-tone phones – featuring push buttons, speed and musical tones – represented a totally new signaling system, and opened the way to increased versatility in communications.
From the Pantheon to skyscrapers: Modern concrete rises through the ages Concrete is one of the most versatile construction and design products available — one
They’re known by many names: 45 rpm record inserts, single record adapters, 45 rpm spindle adapters, spider inserts… all terms for the thingie that goes in the middle of an oldie! See a bunch of them here, and find out mroe!
‘Just add water and you’ve got instant life!’ they said. ‘Over 150 amazing Sea-Monkeys born ALIVE before YOUR eyes!’ But, oh, the disappointment when the critters didn’t look anything like the pictures on the package.
Old pregnancy test sticks like these were a huge step forward, and meant that millions of women finally had a way to find out they were pregnant without going to the doctor, and without having to do a more complicated liquid chemistry test.
The Kodak Disc camera was was lightweight, foolproof (with auto-exposure and built-in flash), affordable, and used a brand new kind of film cartridge… but it was only sold for six years.
Remember how yummy baby aspirin tasted? Flashback to those fever dreams of yore with this collection of everything vintage baby aspirin.
Look back at the biggest news in the universe on July 20, 1969 – the day we first landed on the lunar surface, walked on the moon, then went for a drive.
Did you know that Silly Putty was originally marketed to adults? Read on for more interesting tidbits about this fun and magical stuff!
People were used to big records, but then the music industry wanted everyone to adopt a new format and a new size, and came out with 45 RPM record players and 7″ vinyl records with a big hole in the middle.
For years, curious kids have loved experimenting with vintage chemistry sets and science kits like these with countless things to explore!
Imagine getting paid to think up the wildest retro-futuristic space-age inventions. Back in the 50s and 60s, that’s what commercial artist Arthur Radebaugh got to do.
Have you ever wondered where products like Formula 409, 7-Up, WD-40 and Preparation H got those famous vintage brand names? Find out here.
Here’s some eye-opening insight into the invention of contact lenses! The contacts were made of glass, and although they worked much like they do today, they were thick, uncomfortable, and even a little dangerous.
The Picturephone, an electronic moving picture device that debuted in the late 60s, let you video chat long before the internet, and way before Zoom, Google Meet, Facetime et al.
Do you recall playing with vintage clicker and Clacker toys trend of the early 60s and 70s. Inexpensive and fun hard plastic balls on strings, their popularity spread like wildfire over the course of just a few years.
Want to know how to make an old rotary phone work? Here’s your handy guide, straight from the 50s!
Starting when vintage portable radios were finally small enough to be carried in the 1950s, through when they got almost too big to carry in the ’80s, here’s a little sound history of AM & FM radios from the days of transistors onward.
The old Apple QuickTake digital camera was in stores from 1994 to 1997. There were three models – the 100, 150 and 200 – and offered a 640×480 image resolution.
When vintage Instamatic cameras were introduced in the 60s, they came along with the invention of the quick-load film cartridge – and both were so affordable and easy to use that they were instantly successful. Flash back here!
Although penicillin was discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming, real research and production started in earnest in mid-1941, thanks to World War II.
The history of fitted sheets: A revolution in bed-making A lot of people may be surprised to know that fitted sheets — ones that weren’t
Cash register history goes back to the Victorian era, and were used to both streamline accounting, and to keep cashiers from stealing money. Find out more here!
It was on that memorable day in telephone history – June 2, 1875 – when Bell and Watson were testing a number of transmitters, connected by a single wire to a corresponding set of vibrating reed receivers, that the first sounds were transmitted electrically.
With better quality than fixed-lens Instamatic-style cameras, but far less complicated than standard SLR cameras, these vintage point-and-shoot 35mm cameras were just what people were looking for in the ’80s.
Retro air-pop popcorn makers like these were super popular in the ’70s and ’80s, because they made it so easy to make a big batch of perfectly puffed popcorn. Here’s a look back!
A whole new era of vintage pinball machines was ushered in by the Humpty Dumpty pinball machine released in 1947 – and then dozens more of the games hit the market. Take a look back!
This new, revolutionary wall-mounted refrigerator and freezer that hangs from the wall is a completely new and advanced concept of modern living. Truly, it is the most convenient and magnificent refrigerator-freezer ever produced!
If you need a book, you used to need to look for the most important item in the library — the vintage card catalog.
Did Coca-Cola once have cocaine in it? Amazingly, yes. Originally marketed as a health drink when it debuted in the 1880s, Coca-Cola was said to cure everything from a migraine (aka “sick headache”) to physical exhaustion to depression.
These vintage selfies, several of which date back to the 1800s, prove that the desire to capture our own images has been around for a long time. Here’s how people took self-portraits with old cameras long ago!
ternational long-distance phone calls for ‘only’ $12 for the first three minutes? And this old ad said that price was low. See more about what it took to dial abroad back in the sixties here!
To help you remember the heyday of the Xerox, check out some vintage copy machines here – and be grateful that email and scanners have made running a business nowadays so much simpler.
Who invented television? Unfortunately for anyone looking for a quick answer, the first TV sets weren’t made by one single person — there were several inventors who were incredibly important to its creation and evolution. Here’s a look!
When you look back at how people talked about and used computers in the 1960s, it’s easy to get a feel for how exciting the technological advances were at the time. It was a whole new wild frontier.
Here’s the original press release that a small company called Apple released back in 1984, announcing the launch of their new Macintosh personal computer – the first mass-market PC with both a graphical user interface and a mouse.
Check out some of the vintage Cessna propeller planes you could buy back in the fifties, sixties and seventies. They were popular for business use, but were also owned by celebrities and hobbyists.
Find out about the famous B-17 Flying Fortress planes from WWII – how they were invented, built, tested and used – and what happened to them after the war was finally over.
First entering service with Eastern Air Lines in 1959, the Lockheed L-188 Electra was a leap forward in airline technology when it appeared. But the planes had a fatal flaw.
United States astronauts who go to the moon may wear headgear designed and produced by a ladies’ milliner.
Back in 1920, lots of people – including media and leading scientists – thought there was an active society on Mars, and that the Martians wanted to talk to us. Find out why they believe that here.
When the old Victrola record players were first introduced, those turntables were some cutting-edge tech. Here’s a look at the history of the famous Victor Talking Machines!
These vintage 980s personal computers weren’t just expensive, but some had hard drives so small that just one of these old PC ad images would have maxed them out.
The 1970s personal computer revolution began as those ingenious devices that put men on the moon, revolutionized science, and perplexed millions were finding their way into the home.
Edward Jenner, the discoverer of vaccination – including the smallpox vaccine – and one of the greatest benefactors of the human race, performed his first test experiment in 1796.
The dance music of the Edison Phonograph is irresistible. It offers the most fascinating waltzes and spirited two-steps of the world’s, great composers as well as the popular dance music of the hour.
