Showing posts with label ww2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ww2. Show all posts

Bat Bombs



Here's a ten minute video about America's experiment with bat bombs in World War II. Wikipedia explains:
Bat bombs were bomb-shaped casings with numerous compartments, each containing a Mexican Free-tailed Bat with a small timed incendiary bomb attached. Dropped from a bomber at dawn, the casings would deploy a parachute in mid-flight and open to release the bats which would then roost in eaves and attics. The incendiaries would start fires in inaccessible places in the largely wood and paper construction of the Japanese cities that were the weapon's intended target.

Developed by the United States during World War II, four biological factors gave promise to this plan. First, bats occur in large numbers (four caves in Texas are each occupied by several million bats). Second, bats can carry more than their own weight in flight (females carry their young—sometimes twins). Third, bats hibernate, and while dormant they do not require food or maintenance. Fourth, bats fly in darkness, then find secluded places (often in buildings) to hide during daylight.

The plan was to release bat bombs over Japanese cities having widely-dispersed industrial targets. The bats would spread far from the point of release due to the relatively high altitude of their release, then at dawn they would hide in buildings across the city. Shortly thereafter built-in timers would ignite the bombs, causing widespread fires and chaos. The bat bomb idea was conceived by dental surgeon Lytle S. Adams, who submitted it to the White House in January, 1942, where it was subsequently approved by President Roosevelt. Adams was recruited to research and obtain a suitable supply of bats.
Much more here.

UPDATE: Coincidentally, I just saw this:



Roger Dean's album art for "Nitro Function" by Billy Cox. Via these sites.

*Buy propaganda posters at eBay.

Disney's World War II mascots



This site features a few dozen of Disney's World War II mascots. I used some of them to create the widescreen wallpaper you see above. Via.

*Buy World War II : The Disney Patches at Amazon.

Link roundup

1. I love when artists sketch their roleplaying characters.

2. Serious Eats gave McDonald's new oatmeal a terrible review.

3. Collection of old Mickey Mouse versus the Nazis comic strips.

*Buy Dr. Seuss Goes to War: The World War II Editorial Cartoons of Theodor Seuss Geisel at Amazon.

Anatomy of a goldfish cracker (link roundup)



Anatomy of a Goldfish Cracker by Jason Freeny, who has art on sale here.

And a few more links:

1. "Viva la Resolution."

2. Universal Orlando's Wizarding World of Harry Potter now has a website complete with virtual flying tour. Via.

3. "New evidence supports that dwarf dinosaurs once existed on a Transylvania island."

4. New article by Malcolm Gladwell about spies. Not as sharp as his usual work, but the book about WW2 spies that's the focus of his article sounds great - - it's called Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured an Allied Victory. Relatedly, you can buy tickets to hear Gladwell speak on a mystery topic.

*Previously: Harry Potter ends, Sporanos style.

*Buy anatomy models at eBay.

Retro futuristic items (link roundup)




Hi-tech phonograph and armband radio from this Worth 1000 contest.

And a few more links:

1. Dead bees were quarantined in Australia and under examination, began to move. They contained real-life chestbursters.

2. British soldier Denis Avey smuggled himself into Auschwitz so that he could report on what was going on inside. Via.

3. Klingon Bird of Prey cake by Celebration Generation. See also: Wedding cake based on the movie Tremors. Via.

*Previously: Star Trek recruitment poster.

*Buy Alien toys at eBay.

When Mickey Mouse invaded Japan

Circa 1936 or so, a cartoon propaganda film featuring Mickey Mouse invading Japan with an army of machine gun-tongued snakes, only to be defeated by samurai. Felix the Cat also makes a cameo.















New to me, but you can read all about in the comments here. Via these sites.

*Previously: "Crush the Germans with your mind" propaganda poster.

*Buy World War II : The Disney Patches at Amazon.

Underwater graveyard (link roundup)



Underwater graveyard ad by Bruketa&Zinic OM for a group fighting to protect the oceans.

And a few more links:

1. Turkey intends to build a hydroelectric dam that would drown the 10,000 year-old village of Hasankeyf.

2. Gallery of WW2-era flak towers in Germany.

3. If I understand it correctly, Nike has taken over a motel in San Clemente, California and calls it the Motel No Tell. Via.

*Previously: The Graveyard Book desktop wallpaper.

*Buy Coraline Dunks at eBay.

Downloadable Patapon masks (link roundup)



Download these Patapon masks here. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Photos of the American Merchant Mariners’ Memorial in New York, designed by artist Marisol, to commemorate "a true event during World War II, in which a Nazi U-boat attacked an American merchant marine vessel. While the marines held on to their sinking vessel, the Nazis photographed the victims, then left."

2. Adorable five-year-old Ellie May Challis lost all of her limbs to meninigitis and has become the youngest person in the world to be fitted with special carbon framed limbs.

3. Desktop wallpapers and other downloads available at the Inglorious Basterds website.

4. Alex CF needs ideas for what to create next. Winning idea gets a prize.

*Previously: Okami mask.

*Buy Tarantino movie posters at eBay.

Video of some truly impressive trompe l'oeil (link roundup)



This video shows the creation of some really incredible trompe l'oeil pavement art by Edgar Muller - - it's supposed to depict a new ice age in Ireland, and the illusion makes it look like the artists are suspended in midair as they work. There's more street art here.

And a few more links:

1. Andy Suriano throws in a sketch with every purchase of a t-shirt or book.

2. I'm not crazy about the site design, but wow, brothers Jake and Dinos Chapman have used model railroad miniatures to create an incredible depiction of the undead conquering the Third Reich. Well worth your time. Via.

3. Win a Monsters vs. Aliens prize pack.

4. Uncle Sam-bot.

*Previously: Another Uncle Sam robot.

*Buy Civil War relics at eBay.

Remains of the Enterprise found in middle of the Pacific Ocean



This image, which looks like a recently exhumed flying saucer isn't photoshopped. It's called The Cactus Dome, but you'll have to go here to find out what it is. Via.

*Previously: Flash Gordon-style Lego spaceship.

*Buy Star Trek posters at eBay.

There was an all-women Soviet bomber regiment called the Night Witches



A Soviet all-woman bomber regiment was nicknamed the "Night Witches" (Nachthexen) by the Germans. The Night Witches flew 23,000 sorties and was the most highly-decorated unit in the Soviet Air Force. You can see a preview of Garth Ennis' new comic about them here. Via.

Here's a few more links:


This logo for Art Van Furniture has been found to violate Hershey's trademark. Via.




There's a new iTunes game called Tap Tap Revenge: Nine Inch Nails Edition that features music from the last two NIN albums. A high score could earn you merchandise and concert tickets. Via.


1. The blog started by former EGM editors Dan "Shoe" Hsu and Crispin Boyer has already managed to get itself banned from using Google AdSense.



2. Target (wrongfully) suspected a woman of trying to pass counterfeit bills and referred her name to the authorities, which led to Secret Service agents visiting her at work. She sued Target for defamation and just received a $3.1 million judgment. Target plans to appeal, but her attorney had a great line: "Where can we buy her back her good name? We've looked, and you can't buy it at Target." Via.



3. Per Rich Johnston, "Astonishing X-Men: Ghost Boxes" had 16 pages of story, and a cover price of $3.99. It can't get much clearer. Marvel thinks anyone buying new comics at the store is a sucker.



4. "Bandit catchers" are volunteers who work marathons and make sure no one who sneaks onto the course gets to cross the finish line without running the full race. Via.



5. An octopus at an aquarium in Germany shortcircuited the power to the entire aquarium by squirting water at a particular light he didn't care for, has been seen juggling crabs, smashes the tank with rocks, and periodically rearranges the scenery. So, if you believe in reincarnation, is this guy ready to be human, or a recently devolved criminal?

*Previously: Giant octopus desktop wallpaper.

*Buy Kim Stanley Robinson's tale of reincarnation at Amazon.

When Corey Rich was 13, a teacher noticed that he had very capable biceps.

"When Corey Rich was 13, a teacher noticed that he had very capable biceps." Best sentence I read today - - it's the first sentence of an introduction to an interview with an adventure sports photographer.

Here's a few other items that got my attention this week:

1. Japan fired its air force chief for writing an article claiming that Japan was actually pretty good to Koreans during WW2 and was tricked into bombing Pearl Harbor by those crafty Americans. Link. Via.


2. Criss Angel's new Cirque du Soleil show "Believe" is laughably bad, along the lines of Elizabeth Berkley's "Showgirls." On the other hand, the new rock opera about the life of Linda "Deep Throat" Lovelace gets a solid review from the LA Times.


3. Could there possibly be a shipping company called "HIV Carriers?"


4. California's anti-gay marriage proposition is so confusing that even experienced politicians opposing it are telling people to vote "yes."


5. Keys can be duplicated from a photo taken up to 200 feet away. Via.


6. And is this the sexiest photo ever taken of someone lying on Star Wars sheets?

*Previously: Wacky Japanese game show features human trebuchet.

*Buy "Our Dumb World" from The Onion at Amazon.

Big thumbs up for Neal Stephenson's version of Harry Potter



Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" is terrific. Anathem is basically Harry Potter, as written for adults, with "Erasmus" and string theory standing in for "Harry Potter" and magic. It's a little slow in the middle, but struggle through and you will be rewarded. I read the last 250 pages or so in one night. Perhaps because the string theory discussion is so dense, Stephenson dramatically simplified everything else about his writing - - unlike his last few books, the entire story is told from the point of view of a single narrator in a single consistent voice. You'll never start a chapter wondering what the heck's going on. There's also some remarkable similarities to Dan Simmons "Olympos," but I don't want to say more for fear of revealing spoilers. Anathem is 34% off at Amazon.


Here's some more quick reviews:


Mighty Avengers Vol. 1 was terrible. This confirms it. I hate Brian Bendis and his cute little thought bubbles. I didn't care for the art, either. Frank Cho's pencils actually looked much better before they were colored. (There's some Frank Cho desktop wallpapers here.)




Runaways: Dead End Kids was also disappointing. Was Joss Whedon's success in Astonishing X-Men dependent on John Cassaday's art?





Speaking of, I keep seeing mention of a rerelease of Cassaday's comic I Am Legion: The Dancing Faun. I read the first issue when it came out years ago. It was boring. Impossible to keep track of which character was which because they all looked alike.





Huge thumbs down to Alan Levy's Nazi Hunter: The Wiesenthal File, which I read for my book club. It should have been fascinating - - the real life story of a man who survived the concentration camps and devoted the rest of his life to hunting down Nazis. But everything about the book, from structure, to word choice, and everything in between was bad.

On the plus side, thanks to the book, I did learn about the incredible heroism of a man named Raoul Wallenberg. Wikipedia summarizes:
With the money raised by the board, Wallenberg rented thirty-two buildings in Budapest, and declared them to be extraterritorial, protected by diplomatic immunity. He put up signs such as "The Swedish Library" and "The Swedish Research Institute" on their doors and hung oversize Swedish flags on the front of the buildings to bolster the deception. The buildings eventually housed almost 10,000 people. Sandor Ardai, one of the drivers working for Wallenberg, recounted what Wallenberg did when he intercepted a trainload of Jews about to leave for Auschwitz:

... he climbed up on the roof of the train and began handing in protective passes through the doors which were not yet sealed. He ignored orders from the Germans for him to get down, then the Arrow Cross men began shooting and shouting at him to go away. He ignored them and calmly continued handing out passports to the hands that were reaching out for them. I believe the Arrow Cross men deliberately aimed over his head, as not one shot hit him, which would have been impossible otherwise. I think this is what they did because they were so impressed by his courage. After Wallenberg had handed over the last of the passports he ordered all those who had one to leave the train and walk to the caravan of cars parked nearby, all marked in Swedish colours. I don't remember exactly how many, but he saved dozens off that train, and the Germans and Arrow Cross were so dumbfounded they let him get away with it.

Incredible stuff, and I'd never even heard of him before.




Finally, if you haven't been watching the new Clone Wars cartoons, you're in for a treat. I have three words for you: Ninja Battle Droids.




*See more of my reviews here.

*Buy Star Wars sketch cards at eBay.

Walt Disney Goes To War




The Hollywood Animation Archive has posted an article from Life Magazine about Disney's efforts to help America during World War II. Pictured, you can see helpful tips for where to hide if you want to shoot Hitler's tank, and also the dangers of weather for pilots. Head over here to see high res versions of the entire article.

*Previously: Michael Phelps and Julianne Moore as Mermaids.

*Buy "Realityland: True-Life Adventures at Walt Disney World" at Amazon.

Cinematic war moment

From the obituary of Roger Hall:
One of his favorite OSS stories involved a colleague sent to occupied France to destroy a seemingly impenetrable German tank at a key crossroads. The French resistance found that grenades were no use.

The OSS man, fluent in German and dressed like a French peasant, walked up to the tank and yelled, "Mail!"

The lid opened, and in went two grenades.

Click through to read how Hall handled the surrender of a German colonel. Via.

Here's a longer obituary in the NY Times, which convinced me to add Hall's book You're Stepping on My Cloak and Dagger to my Amazon wish list.

Airboy desktop wallpaper



A cropped version of one of several Air Fighters comics covers found here.

*Find vintage pulp magazines at eBay.

The Greatest Manhunt of World War II

"How a black soldier killed an officer, disappeared into the Burmese jungle, and joined a tribe of headhunters." Slate has a slideshow about Brendan I. Koerner intriguing new book Now the Hell Will Start: One Soldier's Flight from the Greatest Manhunt of World War II . Via.