Ripley's Believe It or Not!

Ripley's Believe It or Not

Ripley started out drawing comics. He would travel the world searching for oddities then record them through drawings with crayons. Ripley's Believe It or Not became a cultural icon. "Believe It or Not! became such a common household phrase that its potential as an advertising tool was well exploited. The tremendous amassed backlog of cartoons was licensed for virtually any promotional use...Ripley's unmistakably recognizable graphics were frequently used to represent everything from auto parts manufacturers to coffee shops." Something that started out as a comic turned into a cultural phenomenon.



Ripley's Believe It or Not museum//Gatlinburg, Tennessee

This is the first thing I thought of when I was reading the article. I went here on a family vacation many years ago. It was kind of cheesy but at the same time it was fun to look at all the odd things that they fit into one building. Ripley's is based on oddities. It is what made him famous and what made these museums so popular.



"Tori Spelling Stars in Attack of the TORPION!"//Artist: 14 // March 2, 2009

There is nothing more odd than what 14 produces on her site Gallery of the Absurd. She creates her own bizarre objects using celebrity mishaps as her inspiration. 14 has portrayed other artists such as Britney Spears, Gary Busey, Tom Cruise, Brangelina, and so on. It's an amusing portrayal of celebrity mayhem.