1/26/10

The ULTIMATE guide to ELEKTRO the Moto-Man, essay by M. Sweeney Lawless







From the great reeking dumps rose Corona Park, site of the 1939's World's Fair and home – briefly – to “the world’s first celebrity robot,” Elektro. “Elektro the Moto-Man” began life as one of several different automatons built by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation in its Mansfield, Ohio laboratory.

Elektro could do no useful household chores or protect our nation in time of war, but no one had seen a real-life robot before – let alone a gleaming gold-painted gizmo in human form – and he became the star of the 1939 World’s Fair.

Though each robot reputedly cost Westinghouse hundreds of thousands of dollars, their feats of wonder were limited by a rudimentary technology.  Elektro’s "accomplishments" included walking, talking, and smoking, i.e. rolling forward slowly, moving his head, jaw, and arms via the action of ordinary motors and chains, playing a 78-rpm record, and using bellows inside his head to puff a cigarette placed in his mouth by an assistant.

1/18/10

Who Wore It Better?



Cast your vote in the comments section.

For more great photos of super-women, visit Meet the Lady

And click here for more "Who Wore It Better?"

1/12/10

VISIONS OF THE FUTURE



This month, KEVIN GEEKS OUT ABOUT VISIONS OF THE FUTURE

Friday January 22 @ 8pm
92Y Tribeca, 200 Hudson Street
New York, NY

The video-variety show features documentary clips, science films, Saturday morning cartoons and hard-to-find movie footage. Guest speakers include:

Elliott Kalan (The Daily Show) on 1930s British science-fiction

Jane Doherty (a genuine psychic!) answers audience questions about the future.

Kriota Wilberg (anatomy teacher) talks about medical advances of the future.

Seth Porges (Popular Mechanics) looks back at the predictions about technology.

Tenebrous Kate (Love Train for the Tenebrous Empire) makes a case for the best Italian vision of the future.

PLUS: admission includes a heaping helping of DIPPIN DOTS -- the "ice cream of the future."

We have seen the future of video-variety entertainment and it is KEVIN GEEKS OUT.

buy tickets HERE.