F

Flavorwire

Mickey Mouse

History

Amusing Vintage Photographs of Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloons

By Jennifer Lewis on

Happy Thanksgiving week, folks! Will you be watching the Macy’s parade on Thursday? If so, you might want to check out these fascinating old photos and remember a time when lip syncing pop stars were nil and creepy balloons were aplenty. The parade debuted in 1924 as the “Macy’s Christmas Parade,” featuring Macy’s employees in lively costumes and animals from the Central Park Zoo. In 1927, the very first balloon was thrown into the mix, and the rest is history. Did you know that they used to set the balloons free, and whoever found a deflated one could mail it back to Macy’s in exchange for a gift? Crazy stuff. Anyway, check out our selection of vintage Thanksgiving Day parade photographs after the jump, then hit the comments to name your favorites. … Read More

Television

Comic Book Characters Who Should Have Their Own TV Show

By Michelle Rafferty on

After five seasons on Smallville, DC’s Green Arrow returns to the CW tomorrow night, this time with his own series and a brand new pair of abs. If the hooded vigilante hits the mark (sorry, we couldn’t help ourselves), Arrow would be one on a short list of successful TV superhero programs in recent years. Not too long ago AV Club did a nice piece on why networks can’t get the genre right, making the good point that it’s not the ”powers” part that matters most, but human story that expands beyond them. Arrow doesn’t technically doesn’t have powers, so he’s already off to a good start. And since TV is only getting better at grand, humanity-exploring serials, it stands to reason that there could be any number of successful superhero programs in the future. Which leads us to the big question: If you could choose any comic book character to get their own series, who would it be?! We turned to some experts in the field for their thoughts, and of course invite you to add your own to this impressively diverse wish-list in the comments. … Read More

Pop Culture

Early Sketches of 11 Famous Cartoon Characters

By Jennifer Lewis on

Earlier this week, we were pleased to find the very first drawing of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Seeing these earliest forms of Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello piqued our curiosity and led us on a hunt for early sketches of our other favorite cartoons. As you’d expect, these first renderings are somewhat strange to behold — faces seem distorted, eyes seem too big, and familiar characters have a foreign air. Needless to say, they’re all pretty fun. Click through to check out the debut sketches of Toy Story, Mickey Mouse, The Simpsons, and more. … Read More

Pop Culture

10 Iconic Pop Culture Tees

By Alison Nastasi on

While you’re combing the Internet this holiday season for the perfect nerdy t-shirt to gift someone, we thought we’d take this opportunity to invite you to look back on a few classics. The things we choose to brand our bodies with — whether it be the logos of our favorite bands, or symbols from most-loved films — are bold statements that help define who we are and what we’re feeling. Some t-shirt designs have become larger than life — absorbed into the pop culture mind grapes and resurrected in various 2.0 redesigns. Others have stayed the same and are classics for a reason. Click through to check out ten iconic pop culture t-shirts, and leave your favorites below. … Read More