(Source: arpeggia, via historicalwhatsits)
If I had not existed, someone else would have written me, Hemingway, Dostoyevsky, all of us. Proof of that is that there are about three candidates for the authorship of Shakespeare’s plays. But what is important is Hamlet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, not who wrote them, but that somebody did. The artist is of no importance. Only what he creates is important, since there is nothing new to be said. Shakespeare, Balzac, Homer have all written about the same things, and if they had lived one thousand or two thousand years longer, the publishers wouldn’t have needed anyone since.
—William Faulkner (via theparisreview)
(Source: retrohead, via tokiojaade)
Those who believe that they are exclusively in the right are generally those who achieve something.
—Aldous Huxley, Proper Studies.
Hemingway, Hounded by the Feds
A friend of Ernest Hemingway recalls the last year of his life, when he suffered from depression and paranoia.
“Capt. Nieves Fernandez, the only known Filipino female guerrilla leader and former school teacher, shows Pvt. Andrew Lupiga how she used her long knife to silently kill Japanese soldiers during the years of Filipino domination by the Japanese Army.”
From: r/HistoryPorn
Battle at Charlestown, June 17,1775. Engraving by Bernard Romans.
From: The National Archives
Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775. Engraving of the painting, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill by John Trumbull.
From: The National Archives
“Ronlewhorn,” aka Aaron Lewis Scamihorn, created these awesome “Presidential Posters” for a Dollar Shave Club promotion last year.
He says on his blog, “There are rarely projects that fall into one’s lap that hit every mark on the checklist of ‘Exactly what I want to be creating,’” and it’s clear this was a labor of love.
See more Presidential Posters and other illustrations here.
The attack on Bunker Hill with the burning of Charlestown, June 17,1775. Engraving by Lodge from a drawing by Millar.
From: The National Archives
The Giant Black Catfish that Shook Japan
In November 1855, the Great Ansei Earthquake struck the city of Edo (now Tokyo), claiming 7,000 lives and inflicting widespread damage. Within days, a new type of color woodblock print known as namazu-e (lit. “catfish pictures”) became popular among the residents of the shaken city. These prints featured mythical giant catfish (namazu) who, according to popular legend, caused earthquakes by thrashing about in their underground lairs.
The popularity of namazu-e exploded, and hundreds were available within weeks. However, the namazu-e craze abruptly ended two months later when the Tokugawa government, which maintained a strict system of censorship over the publishing industry, cracked down on production. Only a handful survive today; more can be seen here.
- Picture 1 - Namazu are normally kept under control by the god Kashima using a large rock. The Great Ansei Earthquake is said to have occurred when Kashima went out of town and left Ebisu (god of fishing and commerce) in charge. In this print, the giant catfish unleashes destruction on the city while Ebisu sleeps on the job. Kashima rushes home while the city burns, and Raijin the thunder god defecates drums.
- Picture 2 - Earthquake victims take revenge on the giant catfish responsible for the destruction.
- Picture 3 - This print refers to the old Japanese saying, “The most frightening things are earthquakes, thunder, fires, and fathers.” Here, a namazu and the gods of thunder and fire discuss their powers over a fish dinner while a middle-aged man (father) looks on.
(Source: pastdaily, via retrocampaigns)
Dolmabahçe Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey. October 1959.
From: The Dutch National Archives
“A line of Coast Guard landing barges, sweeping through the waters of Lingayen Gulf, carries the first wave of invaders to the beaches of Luzon, after a terrific naval bombardment of Jap shore positions on January 9, 1945.”
From: The National Archives
Ellie is the girl that broke your fucking fingers.
—The Last of Us. This game is so amazing.
