MetaFilter posts tagged with Bizarre

Kings of Power 4 Billion%

flatluigi — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 18:39:50 -0800

Kings of Power 4 Billion% [12 min AVI] - A new release from pixel artist Paul Robertson, known for such previous works as the video for "Pirate Baby's Cabana Battle Street Fight 2006" and Architecture in Helinski's "Do The Whirlwind."

Papa Palmérino Sorgente, the Pope of Montréal

XMLicious — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:05:27 -0800

Papa Palmérino Sorgente, the Pope of Montréal Here's more photos of him and his art and here he is on YouTube in action and also on Google Video. More photos embedded in Flash in the Made in Montréal page for him. He's a bit dour in those but here he is smiling, straight out of Pixar's Geri's Game. I met this guy in the fall of Y2K while visiting “La Ville Aux Cent Clochers” / “The City of a Hundred Belltowers”. Flatluigi's recent post reminded me of him. He's a cool, talkative, and cheerful, if not entirely there, artiste of the grassroots genre. As you can tell by the frame of that first photo the Bedazzler was made for this man. It was quite confusing to try to carry on a conversation with him in my limited French until I realized that he didn't speak that language. (Or maybe his accent was so heavy I couldn't understand him.) According to the amusing anecdote on this page (in French) Papa Palmérino is a Kosovar. Though elsewhere it shows he emigrated to Canada from Italy. The YT video doesn't really do justice to what it's like being in his little shop, Le Musée de Papa Palmérino, but the Montréal Mirror says it best:

If religious collectibles are your thing, this place may be your little slice of heaven. The place is chock-full of Jesuses--statues big and small, crucifixes, key chains, mugs. Seems Papa is quite the Jesus fan, which makes sense, considering he believes himself to be his brother. Ask him to show you framed photos of himself mounted on a cross (I didn't ask if these were for sale). Papa Palmerino sells a wide variety of other religious doo-dads including rosary beads, candles and rings he claims cure arthritis. Even if the ‘Second Coming’ isn't quite the motif you're going for in decorating your house, this place is worth visiting for the browsing and... uh... conversation.

(Not sure if that's clear, but he actually has photos of himself mock-crucified, loincloth and crown of thorns and everything.) I don't know if he's still truckin' because he was 85 years old in 2003➚. I guess his shop burned down a couple of months after I met him! This person, Jona Pelovska, seems to have made a documentary about him. Her MySpace page says “in post-production.”

The Dyatlov Pass Mystery

Henry C. Mabuse — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 07:48:44 -0800

Nine experienced cross-country skiers hurriedly left their tent on a Urals slope in the middle of the night at around -30 degrees Celsius for no obvious reason, casting aside skis, food, boots and most of their clothes. Soon they would be dead, some with injuries more suited to car crash victims, and apparently dosed with radiation. Their deaths are still unexplained, 49 years later. The Mystery of the Dyatlov Pass Accident. Photos from the skiers' own cameras. Photo gallery (includes photos from cameras of victims, photos taken by searchers and others). Online version of the novella by Anna Matveieva

PSP Spontaneously Combusts, Burns Hole in Kid's Pants

JD Rucker — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 17:02:02 -0800

A PSP residing in the pocket of a Michigan elementary school student caught fire in the kid's pants and caused burns to the boy's inner leg. The boy escaped serious harm, only being treated for minor burns at the hospital. But maybe Chen should start considering what he puts or doesn't put in his pants.

The Dancing Pig

homunculus — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 17:15:20 -0800

Le Cochon Danseur. [Via]

....nothing but the truth so help you yourself

bap98189 — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 06:25:20 -0800

A judge has issued a court summons for Lord Hanuman and Lord Ram, two Hindu gods, to settle a dispute over ownership of a temple. The initial summons were rejected due to an incomplete address, following which adverts were placed in the local press. This isn't the first time deities have become involved in Indian politics. Earlier this year, the Culture Minister almost had to resign after a report into the proposed construction of a canal questioned the existence of the god Ram. The canal would have crossed the path of the bridge Ram and his army of monkeys supposedly built to reach Sri Lanka. Following a row involving many major political leaders, the report was subsequently withdrawn.

My sister was bitten by a moose once.

tkolar — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 08:43:26 -0800

Either yesterday was April 1 in Sweden, or northern officials have just given the go ahead to build a 6.5 million dollar, handicapped accessible moose. There's even a walkthrough video. I'm perfectly will to accept the idea that I've been punked here, but it does pass the Snopes test.

Odd creativity with sex toys

janetplanet — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 08:21:31 -0800

Odd creativity with sex toys - sometimes funny, sometimes sad, sometimes pretty far-out, and sometimes just unbelievable (all links probably NSFW to varying degrees)

Deanna Molinaro's Not-for-Children Books

CrunchyFrog — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:27:03 -0800

Deanna Molinaro's Not-for-Children Books consist of two bizarre picture books involving sea creatures, and a surprisingly touching story about an alligator. While you're there, check out a few additional paintings and drawings.

Dwarf Star Trek Pest Control

jonson — Wed, 16 May 2007 15:36:02 -0800

All the ads for Hulett Environmental Services have three things in common: bizarre themes, comically low production values, and an all-dwarf cast. For 17 years, diminutive brothers Greg & John Rice have written, produced & starred in a number of insane spots for their pest control company. My personal favorite is this Star Trek themed one, but really they're all pretty awesome.