The Ren & Stimpy Show made a strong impression on young minds (and probably warped a few too), but John K.'s incredible cartoon show wasn't made to be watched by kids alone.
And for the most part kids didn't get why Ren & Stimpy was such a special show, one that inspired the animation industry to give up safety for the sake of artistry and visual delight- they just liked the visual gags.
The Nerdwriter Evan Puschak grew up watching Ren & Stimpy in the 90s, but as he rewatched the series he started to appreciate all the amazing and groundbreaking elements that made The Ren & Stimpy Show super special.
Engagement photos have become a big social media show, and people have asked for their partner's hand in marriage in so many creative and clever ways they've set the bar far too high for the unengaged.
But if you're feeling intimidated by all the amazing engagement photos you've seen online don't worry- there are plenty of fails posted online too that'll make you say "WTF were they thinking?"
In theory engagement photos should make you either feel happy for the couple, jealous of their love or both, but terrible engagement photos make single people feel like they've dodged a bullet!
Weapon based martial arts are exciting to watch, and fighters who train in these deadly styles are truly a brave lot, but there's something so cringeworthy about fighting with a machete.
Maybe it's because machetes are made for chopping through trees so they do nasty things to human flesh, or maybe it's because I associate machetes with Jason Voorhees and Central American drug cartels.
But in Haiti machete fencing is not only a popular martial art with roots in agriculture- it's an important part of history that dates back to the Haitian Revolution of 1791 to 1804.
National Geographic spoke to machete fencing master Alfred Avril about Haiti's unique and deadly cool martial art, revealing how the machete became an important symbol of Haitian freedom.
Suffering from sleep paralysis must be a terrifying experience, especially when the unfortunate soul first learns they have the disorder the hard way.
Sleep paralysis occurs when we're about to enter REM sleep- the body becomes paralyzed to prevent the dreamer from acting out their dreams, turning the whole experience of sleep into a waking nightmare.
Photographer Nicolas Bruno has been suffering with sleep paralysis since he was 15 years old, and as a teenager he thought he was "possessed by demons".
Now that he knows better Nicolas wants to share his nightmares with us through his photos, recreating scenes that have played out in his mind while he dealt with having no control over his body.
“This project has gifted me a sense of who I am,” he said. “It gave me the strength to persevere in life, to create art and speak to people. It gifted me art, and I don’t know where I would be without it.”
Most people are familiar with the iconic look of the side mounted Graflex flash, the one that's always attached to those bellow-bodied folding Graflex cameras in old movies and TV shows.
This bright flash was often used as a comedic element, something that would blind the characters and deliver a laugh, but did you know it was also used to make movie history?
This video by DigitalRev In-Focus reveals how crafty prop builders used the battery tube from the Graflex flash to create the iconic lightsaber Obi Wan passed on to Luke and inadvertantly made movie history.
The Secret Of NIMH might not be Don Bluth's highest grossing film (that honor goes to Anastasia), nor is it his most popular film of all time (that's split between An American Tail and The Land Before Time).
But the animated adaptation of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH was Don's first film after he, John Pomeroy and Gary Goldman left Disney in 1979 to form Don Bluth Productions, and it totally blew 80s kids away.
The Secret of NIMH had suspense, intrigue and mice in mortal danger. There were sword fights, an old wizard and a magic amulet, and the characters are so sympathetic viewers can't help but hiss at the wicked rats led by Jenner and root for the Brisby family.
Speaking of the Brisbys- their name in the book is "Frisby" but Wham-O, makers of the Frisbee, made them change the name because it was too similar.
There's also the matter of Jenner's reluctant sidekick going nameless in the film, and since he's the one who puts an end to Jenner he deserves his name to be known, so here's to you Sullivan!
But what's up with the name NIMH? It stands for National Institute of Mental Health, which was only mentioned by the Farmer's Wife once in the film, but explains a lot about those rodents going psycho!
McDonald's has always tried to personalize the experience of dining at their restaurants in every way possible, from the (formerly clowny) decor to the food packaging to the little golden arches on every napkin.
They even have the largest drinking straws in the fast food biz, which some people feel are partly responsible for the rise of obesity in America, and now McDonald's is about to make history again with their new S.T.R.A.W.
It stands for Suction Tube for Reverse Axial Withdrawal, and it's the most over-engineered straw ever created, made to optimize consumption of McDonald's new half-mint half-chocolate shake.
Since no-one wants their chocolate to mint ratio to be compromised by poor technology, mcdonald’s turned to two highly-qualified engineering firms, JACE and NK labs to create the STRAW.
The STRAW is a J-shaped, snorkel-like vessel that provides optimal flavor flow dynamics. the tube has side openings to suck in both layers at once, and is engineered to work just as well at the bottom of the shake as it did at the top.
The fact that McDonald's hired two engineering firms to create a new milkshake straw may seem a bit crazy, but if you're a fan of milkshakes you know you wanna try one!
Everyone wishes they could vacation forever, roaming where they want to even if that means roaming around the world.
But between our jobs, domestic responsibilities and limited funding the dream of vacationing forever must forever remain a dream...or does it?
If you wear a vacation-themed t-shirt from the NeatoShop the travel fun never has to end, and now until February 26th all shirts in the shop are up to 20% off!
Jean-Michel Basquiat didn't live long enough to see how his loose, abstract style would inspire artists to make a beautiful mess, nor did he get to see the awesome movie about him starring Jeffrey Wright.
But while he lived he saw damn near every side of life in NYC, from squatting in abandoned buildings with junkies to living the lush life with wealthy patrons in artists' lofts and penthouses.
Basquiat saw so much more than other young people, and his vision made him famous once he started sharing it with us all through his paintings.
These rare photos were taken by his girlfriend Alexis Adler in the East Village apartment they shared in 1979, at a time when young Basquiat was still free- free from fame, free from drugs, and free to really enjoy life.
Zombie lore has changed quite a bit since the first Night Of The Living Dead film, and zombies have gone from being strictly undead eating machines to humans afflicted with a life-altering virus.
That means if and when a cure is found for their condition zombies may be able to rejoin human society, that is, if they're no longer seen as a threat:
In the aftermath of a zombie outbreak, zombies are cured and exiled to secluded camps. There has been talk about rehabilitating post-zombies back into society. Steve, the journalist reporting on the case, thinks the zombies still pose a threat to society. He ventures into one of these camps to prove to the world that rehabilitation is out the question.
JNCO took the fashion world by storm in the 90s by making ridiculously baggy jeans with the widest legs ever produced, which made them extra floppy, saggy and often made them look like an ankle length skirt.
With JNCO set to bring big legs back to the jeans scene VICE writer Devin Pacholik decided to see what he missed by not owning a pair of JNCO jeans in the 90s- so he bought a pair and wore them for a week straight.
Devin wore them to the symphony, the mall, while giving an university lecture, while hanging out with friends, while performing at a podcast taping attended by 200 people and out on a date with his wife.
After each event Devin asked people for feedback on his big, bold fashion statement and they told him things like "these are literally the worst things I've ever seen", "I thought you were going to kill me" and "I love them, I have the same ones".
And through it all Devin learned about trends, unwanted attention and the folly of using too much fabric to make a pair of jeans.
Photographers have always known they don't need fancy equipment to take a picture, because many early cameras were nothing more than a box with a hole in it and a glass plate covered with emulsion inside.
So when shutterbugs make their own cameras it's so they can take an unique image with their handmade creation, one that can't be taken or replicated with a normal camera.
That search for an unique image is what led Mich Farrell and Cliff Haynes to combine 32,000 drinking straws into an unusual analog "Straw Camera" that takes the most unusual photos.
The straw camera measures 20 x 24 inch, and the two artists have experimented to produce black and white, color, and negative images. They also explored the use of corrugated plastic instead of straws, to achieve a more even effect.
Haynes explains that the straws have a ‘raw’ f stop, where a 254mm long, 22mm wide straw gives an aperture of about f127, which they used as a starting point for exposure. Each straw has its own density and hue, and the analogue creation gives a straight indexical rendering of whatever is placed directly in front of it.
I think squirrels are swell little critters, and it really chaps my hide when I hear about people killing those little bushy tailed brats for no good reason.
However, I don't like squirrels enough to invite them into my home or party with them, but photographer Ashly Deskins does and the photos she takes at her squirrel parties are totally nuts!
Ashly sets up little parties on her back porch then waits patiently for her party guests to arrive before taking absolutely precious pictures of the squirrels eating and enjoying the festivities.
In an effort to keep the squirrels she has named Luna and Neville, and their friends, coming back to her yard Ashly is constantly changing and improving her party scenarios:
“It started with just some little props and eventually led to me buying flooring to create more detailed images,” Deskins said. “By observing the squirrels, I can determine what they feel comfortable jumping on… and what I can or can’t use.”
As a child my sister was terrified of escalators and I never understood why, until one of my friends almost lost a toe to some particularly sharp teeth on the edge of an escalator.
He was wearing flip flops at the time so the argument could be made that it was as much his fault as the escalator's, but seeing his toe after that incident made me switch to stairs for years to come.
Escalators are safe until they decide to drop out beneath your feet or gobble up your shoe, so ride that moving staircase with caution, folks- and keep all your toes where they belong!
Goats are interesting critters with fascinating minds and bold personalities, and that's why they're popular pets both on and off the ranch.
Sadly, some goats are treated poorly by humans, but if they're as lucky as Pearl the goat they end up in a rescue center like the Gentle Barn in Tennessee, where they can meet new, and much nicer, human friends.
And even though Pearl was abused by her former owner she still has lots of love to give to her favorite human friend- the UPS man.
