Tomorrow is Fathers Day! It's a day to show your appreciation by giving dad gifts, a great meal, or time sharing his favorite activities. I have an additional suggestion from the perspective of a parent with several teenagers. Their father and I are trying to teach them what they need to live their lives, but it seems to fall on deaf ears -sound familiar? If you are lucky enough to still have your dad, you can please and honor him by letting him know how you remember and use the lessons he taught you about life. If your father has passed, you can honor him by telling your children of those memories. One day, I hope to find that my efforts didn't go completely in one ear and out the other. Let your father know his teachings stuck with you.

Stuff you don't want to miss at Neatorama this past week includes Jill Harness' post 8 Delightfully Geeky Wedding Proposals.

We had two contributions from Eddie Deezen: Elvis Presley and His Animals last Sunday and What Groucho Ate on Friday.

The Annals of Improbable Research gave us a poem in the style of Dr. Seuss with Horton Sees a Pluto.

Keith Moon, Bathroom Bomber came to us from Uncle John's Bathroom Reader.

And from mental_floss magazine, we learned The Surprisingly Cool History of Ice.

In the What Is It? game this week, the object in question is a salt pulverizer, for breaking up salt in a shaker. You can see several more patent sketches for it at the What Is It? blog. Strangely, no one guessed the correct answer. But a t-shirt from the NeatoShop goes to theoneoneandonly, who posited that this was for hurting parents’ bare feet before Lego bricks were produced for the same purpose. Wrong, but funny, so it's a winner!

Check out these Fathers Day classics from The Best of Neatorama: Life Lessons my Dad Taught Me and 12 Impressively Active Animal Fathers.

Want more? Be sure to check our Facebook page every day for extra content, contests, discussions, videos, and links you won't find here. Also, our Twitter feed will keep you updated on what's going around the web in real time. Thanks for spending time with us at Neatorama!

You know these two fine-looking young men, even if you've never seen a photograph of either one before. They are both featured at My Daguerreotype Boyfriend, a photo blog dedicated to the hotties of history, dating back to the invention of the camera. Really, who knew that Hermann Rorschach (of the ink blots) resembled Brad Pitt? The site is accepting submissions of more attractive public domain photographs. In case you are still wondering about the guys here, on the left is Almanzo Wilder, husband of author Laura Ingalls Wilder. On the right is Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov. Link -via Metafilter

Firefighters in Bridgend, Wales, were called to a home in Pontycymer because a sheep had been spotted walking around on the roof. A fireman at the scene said,

“We have never had anything like that before, though we have found sheep in some difficult places.

“It was running back and forward on the roof, but eventually it must have realised how many firefighters were there trying to get it down and thought, I’d better come down now, I think.

The sheep was absolutely fine and not harmed at all, and it was certainly an interesting call-out, it’s not where you’d expect to find a sheep, really quite funny.

“It brightened up our weekend, that’s for sure.”

The sheep was back on the ground about 40 minutes after the fire crew arrived. Link -via Arbroath

North Korea released the results of their "happiness survey" a few weeks ago (we had the item, but looking at it now would be *wink* cheating). According to the survey, South Korea and the United States are the UNhappiest places in the world. Meanwhile, Today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss asks you to name the top five happiest countries in the survey in one minute. Can you do it? Link

What's the use in taking a cell phone into space? After all, it's not like there's a cell tower nearby, and NASA has constant radio contact. But iPhones are going up on the final space shuttle mission in July, because ...there's an app for that.

The app in question is called SpaceLab for iOS (opens iTunes) and might be used in future space missions for some navigation tasks. However, the company notes that on the shuttle mission, the iPhones will not be used for critical navigation. There will be four experiments done with the iPhone and the instructions for the experiments are integrated into the app.

The experiments will include a “limb tracker” that looks at the Earth’s limb (or curved edge) to determine the altitude of the iPhone. A sensor calibration tool will be tested that allows of the calibration of the sensors and gyroscope of the iPhone in space. The app will also be tested to determine latitude and longitude based on photos of the Earth and to test the effects of space radiation on the iPhone RAM.

Link

(YouTube link)

The fashion industry unveils the latest swimsuits for the summer of 1952, designed to elicit wolf whistles. I can't decide which I like better, the Wingding (for "obvious" reasons) or the Dunk Me. -via Nag on the Lake

Neatorama presents a guest post from actor, comedian, and voiceover artist Eddie Deezen. Visit Eddie at his website.

Tastes in comedy vary and differ, just like tastes in colors, women, or cars. To me, Groucho Marx has always been the funniest guy ever. As talk show host Dick Cavett astutely observed, Groucho was the "consummate comedian." He looked funny, he talked funny, he walked funny, the content of what he said was funny, he danced funny, even his name was funny.

Like all of us, Groucho loved food and he loved to eat. Groucho always had a great fondness for chocolate. His first experience with chocolate happened when he was five years old. He and his older brother Leonard ("Chico") were traveling with their mother, Minnie, on a boat to visit Germany. Minnie was without her husband, Sam ("Frenchie") on the voyage, and like most single women, she attracted a man.

The man kept pursuing her, but Minnie told him to take a hike. Hoping to get his revenge, the man gave the young boys each a chocolate bar. He told them to go to a party their mother was attending that night. He said their mother wanted them to go to the party naked. Young Groucho and Chico did as the man said, but when they walked into the party naked, Minnie just laughed.

Even in his last days, Groucho craved chocolate, but limited himself to two pieces a day. ("Well, I've had my chocolates," he would say, "Now there's nothing to do but wait for tomorrow.")

Groucho loved sweets and as a young boy, he once ate six cream puff pastries called Charlotte Russes. After he scarfed them down, he threw up. ("I used to do a lot of vomiting in those days.")

As he and his brothers toured the vaudeville circuit with their comedy act, they often stayed at cheap boarding houses. They were forced to eat the sloppy, unpalatable meals these homes often served. At one boarding house, the boys had to endure eating chili, three times a day, for two weeks. At another, on Thanksgiving, they were served fish. Angrily (and hungrily), they made a late-night ice box raid that night, consuming all the remains of the turkey. They left an ominous note in the ice box: "The Black Hand." Groucho developed a lifetime aversion to seafood and later always ate huge turkey meals on Thanksgiving, giant spreads with all the trimmings.

Because of the greasy food served all slopped together in the boarding houses, in his later years Groucho always insisted he be served his food in separate dishes. Each main course, vegetable, salad, potato, whatever, was always served alone, in its own dish. "I'm rich enough to eat my food in separate dishes," he would explain. Groucho hated mixed vegetables, calling them "trick vegetables."

Groucho had a lifelong love of clam chowder. In his youth, his Aunt Hannah would cook up batches of the delectable soup for the Marx family. She would cook it out of the same pot the family used to do their laundry. Groucho claimed the dual-purpose pot enhanced both the wash and the flavor of the chowder. "I wish I could remember what it tasted like," Groucho later recalled wistfully as an octogenarian. In his later years, the Beverly Hills Hotel would break their ironclad "only on Fridays" rule and serve Groucho his beloved clam chowder any day he dropped in there.

Groucho loved bread, especially pumpernickel. He was absolutely crazy about pumpernickel. Chasen's, one of his favorite restaurants, served him his beloved pumpernickel and always kept a private stock of his favorite sweet butter.

He was never a big drinker. ("I only got drunk once in my life and that was in Jamaica drinking those sweet rum drinks.") Groucho was an extremely slow eater, chewing and relishing every bite. He liked to dine with friends, who were often surprised to find that as they had finished their meal, Groucho was still working on a half-a-plate full of food.

He took a walk each day in Beverly Hills, and he liked to stop and treat himself to an ice cream cone. Groucho was always very partial to a strange food combination: he loved to eat ice cream along with saltine crackers. He was crazy about the banana shortcake at Chasen's, but in spite of his sweet tooth, Groucho never let himself grow overweight. If he gained two or three pounds, he would discipline himself and cut back.

He enjoyed dining with his brothers, often being driven from Beverly Hills to Palm Springs to see them (a five-hour drive).

He always kept his icebox stocked full of his favorite goodies from Jurgenson's, his favorite market. Interestingly, Groucho hardly ever entered his kitchen. He liked to leave his cooks alone to prepare his meals.

In his last days, Groucho's health deteriorated severely and he was put on a salt-free, milder food regimen. His diet was bland, and salt-free tomato juice was a staple. For breakfast, he'd have orange juice, soft-boiled eggs, and decaf. "When I was a young man and I went to a restaurant, I used to look first at the prices. Now I'm an old man and I look at how fattening it is," he said.

Towards the end, a dining partner remembered Groucho sadly informing him that "I don't eat pumpernickel anymore." The great Groucho Marx, the funniest man in the world, passed away on August 19, 1977. If the universe is a just one, wherever Groucho is now, there is plenty of chocolate, clam chowder, and pumpernickel, and all the food is served in separate dishes.

(Image manipulation via Speechable)

Neatorama presents a guest post from actor, comedian, and voiceover artist Eddie Deezen. Visit Eddie at his website.

(Image credit: Flickr member ilovememphis)

At the age of two, little Elvis Presley cried for two days when his pet rooster died. Elvis always had a fondness for animals, even stuffed ones, including his beloved teddy bear, which he named "Mabel."

Elvis had a huge collection of teddy bears in the early days of his career; they were sent to him by swooning girls by the score. He even had a model of "Nipper," the RCA dog, which he kept in his bedroom in later years. In 1957 in L.A., Elvis simulated a sexual act onstage with a stuffed version of "Nipper," which got him plenty of severe criticism.

Elvis had several pet dogs over the years. As a boy, he looked after two small dogs that he named "Woodlawn" and "Muffy Dee." When he was serving in the army and was stationed out in Germany, he kept a poodle named "Champagne."

He liked giving dogs as gifts to the women in his life he loved. He gave his beloved mother, Gladys, a dog called "Sweet Pea;" he gave a toy poodle named "Little Bit" to his early girlfriend, Anita Wood; he gave a poodle named "Honey" to his wife Priscilla; and he gave "Foxhugh," a Maltese, to one of his last girlfriends, Linda Thompson.

By the end of 1960, Elvis' pet collection at Graceland included a monkey, spider monkeys, peacocks, chickens, pigs, poodles, and a Great Pyrenees dog called "Muffin." Elvis had a chow called "Get Low" in the seventies who outlived his master by a year.

Elvis wasn't so fond of cats, although stray that turned up on the Graceland grounds would be found new homes. He did reputedly have a pet cat called "Wendell," named after his co-star in his movie Loving You, Wendell Corey.

When Elvis and his family moved to Graceland mansion in 1957, the barns were stocked with pigs and chickens. That year, Elvis drove out to the country, filled the back seat of his Cadillac with geese and brought them back to Graceland to keep the lawn trim.

Elvis also kept a few donkeys he had been given in the drained Graceland swimming pool when he first moved in, until work was finished on the fence around the property. Thought the larger farm animals were gradually pensioned off, Elvis retained a hen house at Graceland for a supply of fresh eggs. At one time or another, Elvis also had goats and turkeys (one called "Bow Tie").

Elvis donated a wallaby to the Memphis Zoo after receiving it as a gift from Australian fans in 1957. He became a serial wallaby donator by repeating the gift in 1962.

(Image credit: Flickr member Geir Arne Hjelle)

Elvis was briefly a cattle rancher when he bought the Circle G Ranch in 1967. He bought horses for all his entourage and his wife Priscilla. Elvis loved riding his horse "Rising Sun." He often went out riding with Priscilla, he on "Rising Sun" and she on "Domino," the horse Elvis bought for her. Once "Rising Sun" got upset and started running amok with Elvis on him. Elvis couldn't so anything to stop him. Finally, after a wild, uncontrolled ride, "Rising Sun" came to a stop. Most people would have been scared in such a situation, but Elvis was furious. According to a witness, Elvis jumped off the horse and -literally- punched him in the face (much like the famous scene in the Mel Brooks movie Blazing Saddles a few years later).

For a while, he had a peacock on the Graceland grounds, but the bird started damaging the cars, after which it was given away. He also owned myna birds, one of which could say, "Elvis! Go to hell." The Graceland menagerie included mules at one time. Snakes that happened to venture onto Graceland had a rough time. A maid remembers Elvis blazing away with a rifle at a tree after a snake was seen slithering up the trunk. 

He acquired his first monkey, a spider monkey called "Jayhew" back in 1956, to liven up his home. His best known pet was a very fresh, mischievous chimpanzee called "Scatter." Elvis loved this crazy monkey, but hardly anyone else shared the King's affinity. Elvis enjoyed walking around and carrying "Scatter" on his shoulder and often brought him out to Hollywood when he was filming movies in the '60s. "Scatter" liked to wear clothes, drink whiskey, and tear up rooms. Elvis bought him a wardrobe of suits and ties. "Scatter" had the annoying (at least to the women involved) habit and penchant for pulling up women's dresses. When drunk, he had no qualms about about engaging in public masturbation. "Scatter" was reputedly poisoned in revenge by a maid he had bitten. Other sources pin his demise on alcohol-related liver problems.

One more degree of difficulty, and this picture might have been a candidate for the What Is It? game. It's a graduating class that really called for an overhead shot.



They are the Graphic Design Majors of the CalPoly Pomona graduating class of 2011, who received their diplomas last night. Each decorated their mortarboards with an oversized Pantone chip! Congratulations to all. -Thanks, Professor Ray Kampf!

(Image credit: Robby Cavanaugh)

Baubotanik, or botanic architecture is the art and science of creating structures out of growing plants. A program at the University of Stuttgart in Germany explores the possibilities of this new architecture.

The architects begin with stabilizing elements—iron rings, polyester bands, steel grids—and environmentally-appropriate plants that are designed to grow around the armature, becoming stronger at structurally-critical junctures. "Plants have learned to carry heavy loads," says Ferdinand Ludwig, the team's biologist and botanist. "We want to explore what is possible when trees are re-thought as building support structures." After a period of natural growth, the reinforcing elements can be removed, and the structure is comprised entirely of plant elements. By leveraging the "constructive intelligence" of organic forms, Baubotanik architects have designed a pedestrian bridge, a bird-watching house, and a willow pavilion.

Read more about these projects at Garden Design. Link -Thanks, Claire!

Could you recognize the United States presidents from their baby pictures? Then you should do well in today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss! Yeah, the more recent presidents are easier, but I still managed to score 70%. Can you beat that? Link

Very busy artist Mike Bukowski has a project going in which he is illustrating each and every creature found in the stories of H.P. Lovecraft. In many cases, he has only a short description (or sometimes none at all) to work with, but they all seem to be at home in the nightmares those stories can induce. Picture is Deep One, from The Shadow Over Innsmouth. Some images are NSFW. Link -via Laughing Squid

The following is an article from the book Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Salutes the Armed Forces. It was selected to run today on the 67th anniversary of the Allied Invasion of Normandy, also known as D-day.

"The boy's alive and we're going to send someone to save him...and we're going to get him the hell out of there." -from Saving Private Ryan

FACT OR FICTION?

In 1998 Saving Private Ryan gave moviegoers an infantryman's view of the 1944 invasion of Normandy on D-day. The film follows Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and the survivors of his unit as they battle their way onto Omaha Beach. Then, instead of getting a hoped-for rest, they get another dangerous assignment -to go behind enemy lines and find a missing soldier, Private James Ryan (Matt Damon). Private Ryan's three brothers have all recently died in combat and, in accordance with War Office policy, the last living son must return home alive to his family. Private Ryan must be "saved."

Directed by Steven Spielberg, Saving Private Ryan won five Academy Awards and the admiration of World War II veterans who said the movie faithfully depicted their experiences. The film renewed interest in the men who fought at Normandy, but filmgoers also wanted to know of there was a real-life Private Ryan.

THE REAL PRIVATE RYAN

Sergeant Frederick "Fritz" Niland

The fictional Private Ryan was inspired by Sergeant Frederick "Fritz" Niland -a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division and 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment. Just after midnight on D-day, June 6, 1944, a plane dropped Sergeant Niland into France. He was supposed to land near the city of Carentan, but -like Private Ryan- got "lost" when his plane was hit by enemy fire and he had to jump miles away from his target.

Fritz, 24, was born in Tonawanda, New York, the youngest of four brothers, from oldest to youngest, Edward, Preston, Robert, and Fritz. Their mother Augusta "Gussie" Niland, later recalled that the brothers had always been best of friends. They graduated from Tonawanda High School and attended local colleges, but they were all attracted to military service. Their father had been a Rough Rider with Teddy Roosevelt during the Spanish-American War, and they grew up listening to his war tales. By spring 1944, they were all overseas: Robert was a mortar sergeant in the 82nd Airborne, Preston was a lieutenant in the 4th Infantry Division, and Edward was flying B-25s for the Army Air Force in the Pacific. Robert, Preston, and Fritz were all stationed in England, waiting for the invasion of Europe.

(YouTube link)

A look at alkali metals and how they react with air and water may seem like a dry science lesson at first. Despite the delivery, this presentation builds as it goes along, with a satisfying climax at the end. -via Buzzfeed

When L. Frank Baum wrote The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, could the yellow brick road have been inspired by a road in Peekskill, New York? City historian John Curran thinks so, and has done the research. Baum attended Peekskill Military Academy in 1868, when he was 12 years old. He did not enjoy the experience.

Mr. Curran believes the ordeal shaped the Wizard of Oz. "Whenever Baum had an emotional experience, such as his two years at Peekskill Military Academy, it showed up in the book," Mr. Curran says during his Oz presentation at the museum. "Whenever the characters get off the yellow brick road, they get into trouble."

In 2005, a Fulbright scholar and artist persuaded John Testa, who was the mayor of Peekskill at the time, to conduct an authenticity study on the road. Mr. Curran uncovered maps showing that West Street, which leads from the steamboat dock up a hill to the military academy, was indeed made of Dutch pavers, a common yellow-hued brick in the Dutch-settled area.

The maps showed Mr. Baum had to have walked along the road to get to school, Mr. Curran said.

Only a small part of the road is still brick. Curran would like to restore the road, or build a monument of some sort to Oz, but the city does not have the money for such a project. Link -via The Daily What

(Image credit: Shelly Banjo/The Wall Street Journal)