The Umbrella Sail at Last a Reality!
June 17, 2002 11:17 AM   Subscribe

The Umbrella Sail at Last a Reality! Technofetishists will love this fabulous collection of Popular Mechanics covers going back to 1902. Who'd have thought a weaving machine could be so beautiful? Futuristic cityscapes, bizarre weapons, new-fangled sports and surprisingly delicate and artful scenes are just a few of the pleasures in the year-by-year archive. The mag's male-dominated world can get kind of, um, gay, but it's hard to imagine a better display of the joys and fears (especially the fears) of our monkey fascination with technology.
posted by mediareport (40 comments total)
 
Bravo, mediareport! An excellent, excellent post. Informative, descriptive, funny, and even a tad snarky. Well done!

(now if you'll excuse me, I'll be over here contemplating my log-envy)
posted by ColdChef at 11:22 AM on June 17, 2002


A great resource, and entertaining as well. Thanks for the link.
posted by iconomy at 11:31 AM on June 17, 2002


that is wonderful. i knew there was a reason i loved pm. what it must have been to be alive in those different eras... thanks for the new bookmark.

tee hee. i said bookmark.
posted by folktrash at 11:38 AM on June 17, 2002


nicely done. i like it when posts give me a well-rounded experience.
posted by o2b at 11:41 AM on June 17, 2002


Speaking of gay...

Okay, I apologize for that.
posted by ColdChef at 11:42 AM on June 17, 2002


awesome, mediareport! Hey! Arent these the guys that promised us the jetpack?

In a similar vein, also see A Brief History of the Future.
posted by vacapinta at 11:43 AM on June 17, 2002


Why, thank you, ColdChef.

The earliest covers may not be as eye-catching but the text alone is worth it. There's something about seeing the words "Machine Ties Bundles" on a magazine cover that just cracks me up. So does this adorable photo. Yay, progress.

It's really too bad, though, that the quality takes such a huge nosedive after 1960.
posted by mediareport at 11:45 AM on June 17, 2002


"You keep using that word..."
posted by ColdChef at 11:45 AM on June 17, 2002


Greatest Invention of the Century???

Man, 1902 seems a little early to stake that claim.
posted by ColdChef at 11:48 AM on June 17, 2002


so, um... what are they saying with this concept photo?

(from a brief history of the future)
posted by folktrash at 11:53 AM on June 17, 2002


Whoa, the falling skyscraper. Get out of here with that. Yow.
posted by Faze at 11:58 AM on June 17, 2002


I don't even know what to say about this photo. Oh, and I like the slogan "Written so you can understand it."
posted by ColdChef at 11:59 AM on June 17, 2002


oh yeah - what is snarky?
posted by folktrash at 11:59 AM on June 17, 2002


Oh yeah, there's also this thread about a forward-looking article from February 1950.
posted by mediareport at 12:01 PM on June 17, 2002


all this blue and yellow should make us happy, right?
posted by folktrash at 12:05 PM on June 17, 2002


Are you talking about the dense linking in the post, folktrash? If so, I've actually thought about that. I do prefer making densely-linked posts, no doubt about it, but if anyone has thoughts about when a large number of links starts to look annoying, let me know.
posted by mediareport at 12:35 PM on June 17, 2002


This is the best kind of dense-linking, media report. Only a churl would complain.
posted by Faze at 12:39 PM on June 17, 2002


nah - i meant in a more depressing way! that february 1950 cover has a line like "color in our homes will make us happy" something like that anyway.

i indeed prefer posts with many different yet related links to whatever the topic is. this pm cover archive post is one i've connected with more than others in the recent past. it is an excellent example of a solid post.

mefi seems a bit sluggish today. i'm just glad i'm a member and stuff. i will never be fit to post on the front page, but i appreciate all those that do.
posted by folktrash at 12:39 PM on June 17, 2002


faze and i must have been typing at the same time. what's a churl?
posted by folktrash at 12:41 PM on June 17, 2002


Snark
posted by ColdChef at 12:45 PM on June 17, 2002


wow - thanks coldchef. that's plenty of background, tho... the grey is kinda scary.
posted by folktrash at 12:52 PM on June 17, 2002


I know I'm late to the party, but good post mediareport.
posted by Tacodog at 12:54 PM on June 17, 2002


wow - thanks coldchef. that's plenty of background, tho... the grey is kinda scary.
posted by folktrash at 12:58 PM on June 17, 2002


Excellent!

As a magazine designer myself I'm looking in wonder at how beautifully they show snapshots of the times.

30-40's war machines, 50's cars & consumer stuff & so forth.

Prefer the older ones with less coverlines of course...

...can I be greedy & ask for the contents pages too?
posted by i_cola at 1:01 PM on June 17, 2002


wow - thanks coldchef. that's plenty of background, tho... the grey is kinda scary.
posted by folktrash at 1:04 PM on June 17, 2002


wow - thanks coldchef. that's plenty of background, tho... the grey is kinda scary.
posted by folktrash at 1:04 PM on June 17, 2002


wow - thanks coldchef. that's plenty of background, tho... the grey is kinda scary.
posted by folktrash at 1:19 PM on June 17, 2002


*blushes*
posted by folktrash at 1:21 PM on June 17, 2002


Greed is good, i_cola. But I don't think it'll get you the contents pages.

Not that I care; I'm too busy enjoying my scoot.
posted by MUD at 1:42 PM on June 17, 2002


At work, we used to have a word called "Snarcasm" which was snarky sarcasm.
posted by PWA_BadBoy at 1:57 PM on June 17, 2002


Great post MediaReport. :) This was fun to explore. But now...back to the chemistry of the perfect Creme Brulee.
posted by dejah420 at 2:19 PM on June 17, 2002




As long as we're being greedy, I want one of these and one of these.

Btw, anyone else notice "Electric Light Burns 20,000 Hours" from July 1905? The conspiracy theorists were right; we've had long-burning light bulbs for almost a hundred years!
posted by mediareport at 2:28 PM on June 17, 2002


I have originals of a lot of these and I peruse them from time to time.
I also have a reprint set of The Boy Mechanic.
Manliness just ain't what it used to be.
posted by pekar wood at 6:36 PM on June 17, 2002


I was having a great time flipping through the 80's and recognizing many issues that are probably still in a box in my parents' basement. This sports car road test issue, for instance, launched me into two decades of auto fanatacism.

But, I didn't recall this eerie collapsing skyscraper cover. Ugh.

(Not the same as Faze's link.)
posted by Tubes at 10:08 PM on June 17, 2002


And the references just keep coming...
posted by Tubes at 10:11 PM on June 17, 2002






Well spotted, Frasermoo. DJ a-go-go!

This explains a lot of garage sales.
posted by rory at 5:15 AM on June 18, 2002


popsci has some stuff, too :) but it is not as gay!
posted by kliuless at 6:01 AM on June 18, 2002


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