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August 12, 2019 6:13 PM Subscribe
A similar thing happened last year. And this year "residents in the Hampshire neighborhood on the west side of Richmond, VA, woke up to a bizarre sight: Old CRT TVs, left portentously on their doorsteps or front lawns." This time around, security camera footage shows that the culprit was “a guy dressed in a jumpsuit with a TV for a head. It’s the weirdest thing. He squats down, puts the TV there and walks off.”
Yeah. It's hard to understand what the putative crime is here. These are clearly gifts. Celebrate them.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
Also this reminds me of my big idea for a comic book villain, who is obsessed with committing "the perfect crime" but quickly realizes that any crime that benefits them materially would give them a clear motive and could be traced back to them, and thus is imperfect. So they go around doing stuff like this.
posted by aubilenon at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [16 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [16 favorites]
Well, now we know what Nam June Paik’s ghost has been up to.
posted by panglos at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [13 favorites]
posted by panglos at 6:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [13 favorites]
Vintage gamers ask got any CRTs for me?
Your 1080p HDTV may be great for Blu-ray movies, but it sucks for SNES games. Adopting new television technology means saying goodbye to the advantages of older hardware. And yes, there are advantages. There's no such thing as a best TV for all eras of content. And for retro gaming, diehard gamers and collectors turn to old CRTs and specialty scaling hardware in search for that perfect picture.posted by filthy light thief at 6:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
Bring this guy in for questioning (a little NSFW content)
posted by thelonius at 6:28 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by thelonius at 6:28 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
“It was a guy dressed in a jumpsuit with a TV for a head.”
are they 100% sure
posted by roger ackroyd at 6:29 PM on August 12, 2019 [9 favorites]
are they 100% sure
posted by roger ackroyd at 6:29 PM on August 12, 2019 [9 favorites]
Kudos for bending at the knees when leaving the TVs. Some of those suckers are heavy.
posted by lhauser at 6:32 PM on August 12, 2019 [13 favorites]
posted by lhauser at 6:32 PM on August 12, 2019 [13 favorites]
Yeah. It's hard to understand what the putative crime is here. These are clearly gifts.
Not really, CRT are hazardous waste because of the lead content in the funnel glass. But the same disposal requirements don’t apply to household waste. So I could imagine someone trying an inventive way to get out of costly commercial disposal requirements.
posted by C'est la D.C. at 6:38 PM on August 12, 2019 [15 favorites]
Not really, CRT are hazardous waste because of the lead content in the funnel glass. But the same disposal requirements don’t apply to household waste. So I could imagine someone trying an inventive way to get out of costly commercial disposal requirements.
posted by C'est la D.C. at 6:38 PM on August 12, 2019 [15 favorites]
Max Headroom trying to relive his glory days is the saddest Max Headroom.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:40 PM on August 12, 2019 [24 favorites]
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:40 PM on August 12, 2019 [24 favorites]
I have a vintage Sony Trinitron CRT that can take the expansion card (OEM if you can find it, DIY if you can’t) to allow display of composite/component/lowest-latency analog video signals possible. Make me an offer, but you’re paying for shipping.
posted by infinitewindow at 6:42 PM on August 12, 2019
posted by infinitewindow at 6:42 PM on August 12, 2019
Also, wearing a flaming bag of dogshit mask gets old much faster.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:48 PM on August 12, 2019 [19 favorites]
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 6:48 PM on August 12, 2019 [19 favorites]
https://www.google.com/search?q=prince+robot+iv+cosplay?
More info. Source (very worth it).
posted by Wobbuffet at 6:50 PM on August 12, 2019 [5 favorites]
More info. Source (very worth it).
posted by Wobbuffet at 6:50 PM on August 12, 2019 [5 favorites]
Chaotic good strikes again.
posted by reductiondesign at 7:09 PM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by reductiondesign at 7:09 PM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
"Not really, CRT are hazardous waste because of the lead content in the funnel glass"
This was exactly my thought, you have to pay to recycle/dispose of those these days, these guys don't want to pay ... and have a good sense of humor.
My neighbors across the street have left a GIGANTIC old CRT TV out on the curb for THREE WEEKS now, playing some kind of garbage chicken with the garbage men, who are (correctly) refusing to take it. The TV owners have to haul it to the local electronics recycling themselves (households don't even have to pay for a normal quantity of household electronic waste! It's included in our taxes!). I assume they don't want to, so they're leaving the TV in the hopes the garbage men give in or some very desperate person wants a gigantic heavy old TV and takes it.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 7:11 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
This was exactly my thought, you have to pay to recycle/dispose of those these days, these guys don't want to pay ... and have a good sense of humor.
My neighbors across the street have left a GIGANTIC old CRT TV out on the curb for THREE WEEKS now, playing some kind of garbage chicken with the garbage men, who are (correctly) refusing to take it. The TV owners have to haul it to the local electronics recycling themselves (households don't even have to pay for a normal quantity of household electronic waste! It's included in our taxes!). I assume they don't want to, so they're leaving the TV in the hopes the garbage men give in or some very desperate person wants a gigantic heavy old TV and takes it.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 7:11 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
> ...CRT are hazardous waste because of the lead content in the funnel glass. But the same disposal requirements don’t apply to household waste. So I could imagine someone trying an inventive way to get out of costly commercial disposal requirements.
Depends on where this is happening. In many communities there's a disposal fee for CRTs. Where I last lived residents paid $3 to drop off anything at the city's waste site, plus an additional $14 for computer monitors, or $1 per diagonal inch for TVs. There was no pickup service. So disposing a 28" television would cost $31 in fees plus my time and gas (or a favor cashed in with a friend). Where I live now, old TVs are picked up curbside for free, though I can only do it once a month.
In either place, businesses and organizations would have to contract with commercial disposal companies who would probably charge even more.
It's possible that somebody cleaning out an old TV and appliance repair back room could be saving thousands of dollars with this charming prank by hauling them to a neighboring town with hopefully no disposal fees. On the other hand they might be traceable if the serial numbers are still intact.
posted by ardgedee at 7:16 PM on August 12, 2019
Depends on where this is happening. In many communities there's a disposal fee for CRTs. Where I last lived residents paid $3 to drop off anything at the city's waste site, plus an additional $14 for computer monitors, or $1 per diagonal inch for TVs. There was no pickup service. So disposing a 28" television would cost $31 in fees plus my time and gas (or a favor cashed in with a friend). Where I live now, old TVs are picked up curbside for free, though I can only do it once a month.
In either place, businesses and organizations would have to contract with commercial disposal companies who would probably charge even more.
It's possible that somebody cleaning out an old TV and appliance repair back room could be saving thousands of dollars with this charming prank by hauling them to a neighboring town with hopefully no disposal fees. On the other hand they might be traceable if the serial numbers are still intact.
posted by ardgedee at 7:16 PM on August 12, 2019
>Chaotic good strikes again.
Concept: An alignment chart composed entirely of characters or people with TVs for heads.
...Now, where do you put the guy from Mondo Medicals?
posted by KChasm at 7:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
Concept: An alignment chart composed entirely of characters or people with TVs for heads.
...Now, where do you put the guy from Mondo Medicals?
posted by KChasm at 7:18 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
> https://www.google.com/search?q=prince+robot+iv+cosplay?
My first thought was FLCL's Canti.
posted by ardgedee at 7:20 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
My first thought was FLCL's Canti.
posted by ardgedee at 7:20 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
This is very timely and inspiring as I have just come into job-related mandatory possession of dozens of inkjet-based MFPs.
posted by glonous keming at 7:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by glonous keming at 7:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
Your 1080p HDTV may be great for Blu-ray movies, but it sucks for SNES games
When my boyfriend used to run vintage Smash tournaments (think Super Smash Bros Melee, which is GameCube, not SNES, but still), he would stop and pick up any CRTs he saw on the side of the road, and he was constantly asking people for CRTs ahead of tournaments. This neighborhood would have been the jackpot.
posted by jeoc at 7:38 PM on August 12, 2019
When my boyfriend used to run vintage Smash tournaments (think Super Smash Bros Melee, which is GameCube, not SNES, but still), he would stop and pick up any CRTs he saw on the side of the road, and he was constantly asking people for CRTs ahead of tournaments. This neighborhood would have been the jackpot.
posted by jeoc at 7:38 PM on August 12, 2019
And this shall be their song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9rekKQWQaQ
posted by ackptui at 7:57 PM on August 12, 2019
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9rekKQWQaQ
posted by ackptui at 7:57 PM on August 12, 2019
It's hard to understand what the putative crime is here.
Littering. Dumping. Fly-tipping. Whatever you call it.
CRTs are like mushrooms in my neighbourhood, appearing spontaneously overnight. After a day or so someone nicks the mains plug. After a week or so the council puts a sticker on them declaring them an illegal dumping site. After a month, the council remembers that they're not going to do anything about it and removes them.
posted by pompomtom at 7:57 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
Littering. Dumping. Fly-tipping. Whatever you call it.
CRTs are like mushrooms in my neighbourhood, appearing spontaneously overnight. After a day or so someone nicks the mains plug. After a week or so the council puts a sticker on them declaring them an illegal dumping site. After a month, the council remembers that they're not going to do anything about it and removes them.
posted by pompomtom at 7:57 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
That first witness! Oh my god. What a solid gold quote: "My first reaction was, did we order this?"
posted by minervous at 8:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by minervous at 8:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
Well, back when I was in high school, some friends created something called, "Orbing".
Which was the placement of fruit on some not so random people's front porches.
For no reason.
Good fun in the Kansas City suburbs.
posted by Windopaene at 8:28 PM on August 12, 2019 [4 favorites]
Which was the placement of fruit on some not so random people's front porches.
For no reason.
Good fun in the Kansas City suburbs.
posted by Windopaene at 8:28 PM on August 12, 2019 [4 favorites]
The object-head fandom is going to have a field day with this one.
Me? An object-head lover? I only like a few...
posted by brook horse at 8:35 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
Me? An object-head lover? I only like a few...
posted by brook horse at 8:35 PM on August 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
This was exactly my thought, you have to pay to recycle/dispose of those these days, these guys don't want to pay ... and have a good sense of humor.
Also the homeowners probably don't have to pay if the local police are hauling them away as evidence...
posted by happyroach at 8:44 PM on August 12, 2019 [5 favorites]
Also the homeowners probably don't have to pay if the local police are hauling them away as evidence...
posted by happyroach at 8:44 PM on August 12, 2019 [5 favorites]
I had a neighbor who was a community access TV producer and he had stacks and stacks and stacks of huge old TVs piled all over in his huge yard. ...Tim...is that you?
posted by a humble nudibranch at 10:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by a humble nudibranch at 10:22 PM on August 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
The object-head fandom is going to have a field day with this one.
Well there's a thing I didn't know was a thing. I've always been a Jack Pumpkinhead guy myself.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 10:49 PM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
Well there's a thing I didn't know was a thing. I've always been a Jack Pumpkinhead guy myself.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 10:49 PM on August 12, 2019 [1 favorite]
I give the reporters credit for avoiding all of the obvious "Police are monitoring the situation" joke.
posted by Nerd of the North at 12:09 AM on August 13, 2019 [9 favorites]
posted by Nerd of the North at 12:09 AM on August 13, 2019 [9 favorites]
Isn’t this the sequel to Videodrome?
posted by Servo5678 at 12:41 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Servo5678 at 12:41 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
Hey guys what if we've been in the TV all along?
posted by loquacious at 3:52 AM on August 13, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by loquacious at 3:52 AM on August 13, 2019 [2 favorites]
I was fortunate to haul my CRT TVs to Best Buy when they were still taking them free for recycling. They were functional after many years. Now I'm sitting with a defunct flat-screen that went bad because of a stupid glue failure on some backlight components, after only a few years. Another one is developing a big dark blotch in the top center of the screen, likewise after only a few years. Progress, they say.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:32 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:32 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
Prince Robot IV is assisting police with their inquiries...
posted by Naberius at 5:46 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Naberius at 5:46 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
Huh. On that Channel 12 News clip, the very first TV they show (the one with the integral VCR)...my wife has that TV. She uses it to watch old tapes from time to time. Wild.
posted by notsnot at 5:51 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by notsnot at 5:51 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
"My neighbors across the street have left a GIGANTIC old CRT TV out on the curb for THREE WEEKS now"
Update: they paid a junk hauler $80 to come take it away this morning. For $80 I would have wrestled that mofo into my hatchback and taken it to the town electronics recycling for free.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:04 AM on August 13, 2019
Update: they paid a junk hauler $80 to come take it away this morning. For $80 I would have wrestled that mofo into my hatchback and taken it to the town electronics recycling for free.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:04 AM on August 13, 2019
It's Henrico County... I'd be willing to place bets that the person doing this is/was a VCUarts student. This is a wild guess but it would make sense.
Needless to say, I love it.
posted by nightrecordings at 8:15 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
Needless to say, I love it.
posted by nightrecordings at 8:15 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
For $80 I would have wrestled that mofo into my hatchback and taken it to the town electronics recycling for free.
I don’t understand this financial transaction
posted by roger ackroyd at 8:26 AM on August 13, 2019 [3 favorites]
I don’t understand this financial transaction
posted by roger ackroyd at 8:26 AM on August 13, 2019 [3 favorites]
Oh my god, I love this. It's like Silent Hill and Persona 4 had a baby.
posted by Kikujiro's Summer at 8:33 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by Kikujiro's Summer at 8:33 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
My theory is that it’s a viral marketing stunt for a 45 year old Chevy Chase movie.
posted by TedW at 8:38 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by TedW at 8:38 AM on August 13, 2019 [1 favorite]
Your 1080p HDTV may be great for Blu-ray movies, but it sucks for SNES games
Mine works perfectly fine for SNES games on my SNES Classic, and the extra plus side is that I can actually see what is on the screen, because big CRTs in the original SNES days were more expensive in non-inflation adjusted dollars than a 50" LCD or whatever is today. A stupid dinky 13" CRT tv was like $150 dollars then. Old tv nostalgia is bad nostalgia!
Of course I am just playing, not trying to win tournaments or whatever.
posted by The_Vegetables at 10:20 AM on August 13, 2019
Mine works perfectly fine for SNES games on my SNES Classic, and the extra plus side is that I can actually see what is on the screen, because big CRTs in the original SNES days were more expensive in non-inflation adjusted dollars than a 50" LCD or whatever is today. A stupid dinky 13" CRT tv was like $150 dollars then. Old tv nostalgia is bad nostalgia!
Of course I am just playing, not trying to win tournaments or whatever.
posted by The_Vegetables at 10:20 AM on August 13, 2019
And we have to pay $50 to dispose of CRT tvs, which is why I still have a giant heavy old monitor taking up space in my closet. Stupid giant heavy POS. TVs didn't last longer in the old days either, but their failure state was more graceful (I guess).
posted by The_Vegetables at 10:23 AM on August 13, 2019
posted by The_Vegetables at 10:23 AM on August 13, 2019
aubilenon: "Also this reminds me of my big idea for a comic book villain, who is obsessed with committing "the perfect crime" but quickly realizes that any crime that benefits them materially would give them a clear motive and could be traced back to them, and thus is imperfect."
Socialism: Everybody benefits. The actual perfect crime.
posted by schmod at 10:58 AM on August 13, 2019
Socialism: Everybody benefits. The actual perfect crime.
posted by schmod at 10:58 AM on August 13, 2019
Socialism: Everybody benefits.
From each according to their TV inventory to each according to their porch.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:21 PM on August 13, 2019 [3 favorites]
From each according to their TV inventory to each according to their porch.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 12:21 PM on August 13, 2019 [3 favorites]
Any other Richmonders here on the blue?
I live in Glen Allen. My message to my wife was our neighborhood is boring and we need to move.
posted by COD at 2:29 PM on August 13, 2019
I live in Glen Allen. My message to my wife was our neighborhood is boring and we need to move.
posted by COD at 2:29 PM on August 13, 2019
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I like the distrust of the cops inherent in this reporting.
posted by aubilenon at 6:15 PM on August 12, 2019 [4 favorites]