museum – Museum of the Weird

Posted on November 27, 2015 by MOTW Admin

Shocking Black Friday Carnage (video)

In the camps people begin to stir. They have waited restlessly for days, leaving family and friends behind for a grim existence without luxury. While others gathered around the Thanksgiving table, they remained vigilant, preparing for this moment. Now the day is upon them.

Adrenaline quickly overcomes the bleariness of fatigue in the predawn hour, but this is not something that arrives with the sun. The attack has been coming for days and planned for weeks. Notes are consulted as each objective is confirmed. Time to go to the line.

Everyone tries to keep their focus, surrounded by enemies. “Keep your mind on the target,” one of them thinks, nervously pumping her legs in place to deal with the waiting…the endless waiting.

Finally, suddenly, the signal is given. Darkness gives way to blazing light as the doors are flung open. The line surges forward. There! There! There is the first objective! It’s in view. The throng lunges, but not everyone makes it in the first wave. Some are cast aside, the first casualties of the day, as Black Friday has begun.

Yes, its the day of dystopian shopping, where individuals from all walks of life turn into a snarling mob that looks more like something from a Mad Max movie than a start to the holidays. We don’t have any footage of this year’s carnage yet, but here are some highlights of incredible scenes from last year.

According to this article from the Huffington Post, the term Black Friday has nothing to do with businesses getting “into the black.” The term was coined by the Philadelphia Police sometime in the 1960s to describe the mayhem they experienced trying to keep the peace in terrible crowds and traffic as shoppers descended on the city. According to this blog, the term was not really appreciated by retailers as late as 1985. Of course, all of that changed when some marketers decided they could stir things up with customers using the term and it has all gotten more insane ever since.

I’ll try to update this with some current footage when it becomes available, but you won’t find me out there getting it first hand. I’m going to rest comfortably in my bed and then I’ll see you at the Museum of the Weird tonight.

Of course, the Lucky Lizard is offering a great deal, that doesn’t require you to get up early. This entire weekend you can get 25% off almost everything in the store with the purchase of a museum ticket. Get away from the madness of the malls and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere of our mummies, shrunken heads and other amazing oddities. It’s all November 27-29. See you there!

Posted on October 23, 2015 by MOTW Admin

Ghost hag stalks children in Ft. Worth museum

You take your children to the Fort Worth Museum. After a day of educational fun you come back home and review the pictures of the day.

“Who’s that?” your child asks pointing to someone in a picture. With a chill, you realize that there is something unearthly in the picture. Something that was there with your child!

This is the exact experience that one gentleman had. Here is a picture he took in a little mock grocery store exhibit they had set up for younger children.

photo of a grocery store exhibit for kids with miniature shopping carts, shelves full of items and a checkout register — This looks like harmless family fun

In this next picture things look a little different. What is that strange figure in the upper right?

a photo of the grocery store exhibit in the museum with a ghostly figure in the upper right — What is that thing in the top right of the picture?

Do you see? Look again…

Closer view of the mysterious draped figure that seems void of color with exagerated arms and hands — Seriously! What is that?

The original post discussion was on Reddit by KRAMERisCRUNK. He says that when he took the picture he did not see anyone in that part of the exhibit. Skeptics insist that he was mistaken, but they weren’t there, were they?

In the discussion is this comment:

[–]CagedGod

Is this just a weird camera trick or is it evidence of the unseen world? If it is an apparition, what is its reason for being around these children? Is it just watching or does it have another purpose?

Most spirit encounters aren’t actually harmful. They are just strange and surprising because they defy our understanding of reality. The main spirit in our own Museum is sometimes even helpful in her own way and we definitely feel that she watches over things. (We are going to attempt to make contact with her and any other spirits in the area on Wednesday the 28th. Reserve your spot.)

I cannot draw any conclusions about this photograph. I do take the photographer at his word that he did not notice anyone there when he took the picture. It remains a mystery…and we like those.

Posted on October 7, 2015 by MOTW Admin

There’s evidence of alien life and the FBI has it

Depiction of a "grey alien"Rendered by Bobby from devientart.com — Depiction of a “grey alien”
Rendered by Bobby from devientart.com

In 1994, researchers were planning to open a museum in Hakui, Japan, devoted to the history and evidence of UFOs. Amongst the 10,000 reports they had collected was a memo dated March 22, 1950 to FBI Director J Edgar Hoover from Federal special agent Guy Hottel, who was in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office. This is three years after the reported Roswell incident. Here are quotes from that memo:

“An investigator for the Air Force states that three so-called flying saucers had been recovered in New Mexico.

“They were described as being circular in shape with raised centres, approximately 50 feet in diameter.

“Each one was occupied by three bodies of human shape but only 3 feet tall, dressed in metallic cloth of a very fine texture.

“According to Mr [redacted], the saucers were found in New Mexico due to the fact that the Government has a very high-powered radar set-up in that area and it is believed the radar interferes with the controlling mechanism of the saucers.”

If we read that correctly that suggests that nine extraterrestrial bodies were recovered from the crash in Roswell and that someone has the bodies and the wreckage.

The Freedom of Information act has now revealed further FBI papers dated from 1994 which indicate concern about what information are contained in these files. The FBI apparently began to keep a close eye on the planned opening of the museum. One particular memo from January 1994 cites specific areas of concern including these statements by museum official, Toru Wada:

“In the future, we hope the center will become a focus of international attention in terms of collecting and disseminating information on UFOS.”

“The city has painstakingly acquired the documents over a 10-year period from such sources as the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).”

The memo also cites this statement by Josen Takano, a municipal employee who was interested in UFOs who had collected US information on the topic: “Takano said efforts are under way to gather even more information through a network of enthusiasts in 12 other countries.”

Photo of UFO-shaped Cosmo Isle building which has a large model of a moon-style rocket standing to its right — Cosmo Isle Hakui
Photo by Hirorinmasa [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

What happened next may be more telling. The UFO center did not open as planned, but went through a lot of changes. It is called the Cosmo Isle Hakui. The building is still somewhat UFO shaped, but has placed much more emphasis on exhibits depicting NASA Space Research.

Did someone step in and change the course of the museum? There are rumors that some of the documents were actually seized by FBI agents, which is remarkable since this would be on foreign (if allied) soil.

There are critics who say that these memos don’t constitute any evidence and that the whole idea is just pure fantasy. Others point out that these documents are obvious indications that the government is hiding solid evidence on the nature of UFOs and the existence of extraterrestrials.

As in all cases like this, we wait to see more.

Read more reports at Yahoo News, Express News, UK, and Daily Star, UK

Posted on June 10, 2015 by MOTW Admin

You can see our museum, but then we have to kill you.

When visiting Austin, you must come by the Museum of the Weird to experience first-hand some of the strangest artifacts on earth. When we visit Washington DC, we’re going to go see the International Spy Museum.

This amazing place houses a collection of items and stories of espionage around the world and from the beginning of recorded history. See the stories of famous men and women considered above suspicion—and doubly effective as spies. A Spy’s Eye View of the Civil War is a gallery to highlight the significant role espionage played during the War Between the States. They even provide Interactive Spy Experiences, where you get to see first hand what it’s like to be a spy.

Would you be interested in interactive experiences through the Museum of the Weird? What kind?

Posted on May 26, 2015 by MOTW Admin

Munstrous Mansion in Texas

They say everything’s bigger in Texas, and that goes for fandom as well. In 2002, Sandra McKee and her husband Charles created a big Texas tribute to celebrate their passion for The Munsters, the iconic 1960s television series that took a light look at the Universal Studios movie monsters. Nestled in the wilds of Waxahachie, this replica of 1313 Mockingbird Lane features the architecture and much memorabilia.

The detail of this place is incredible, as many of the items in the house are either original from the show or painstaking replicas. This gallery from their web site will look very familiar to fans of the show. The Munster Mansion is not a museum or a public attraction. This is their actual home. They have special tour events, typically around Halloween. Watch their web site for availability.

Of course, the house is not the only thing that they recreated. Here is Charles McKee, as Herman Munster, firing up the Munster Coach. Nice!

This location is included on our Weird Places Map.

Are you a big fan of something? a cosplayer? If so, you should definitely check out all the goodies at Sfanthor, our sister store. Share your biggest fan moments and we’ll feature the best of them in a future post.