Monday, June 18, 2018

Soviet Space Postcards


“The Soviet Union had some problems, but one thing they got right was space art. That's why there's nothing better than this gallery of adorable and awe-inspiring postcards from the USSR, looking at our future life in outer space.” Vincze Miklós 1/05/15

The Soviet and then Russian Space program began in the 1930s with rocket technology. One of the high points was the Buran shuttle launched in 1988. More recently, Roscosmos built a new spaceport the Vostochny Cosmodrome.

The Soviet Union had a fantastic arts program that included visual arts such as posters and postcards. These are some examples of Soviet space postcards. More can be found at the link below. Linked also is an old Soviet space video that gives the flavor of Soviet propaganda. 




  
Space-Themed Soviet Postcards Are a Cosmic Delight
Anthem of The Soviet Cosmonaut Program
Trump Calls on Pentagon to Create Military Space Force



Friday, June 1, 2018

Randy Senna As A Boardwalk Icon


Randy Senna is a boardwalk icon with over forty years of running vintage arcade games. He is currently running his nostalgic arcade dreams in Wildwood, NJ at the Wildwood Mall. Since 2011, he has operated the “Remember When Retro Arcade” in the basement of the Wildwood Boardwalk Mall. “As a boy he was enchanted by one game — Fascination, a test of skill that pits players against each other in a race to roll rubber balls down an alley and into holes that light up the game board.” (Courier Post).  Fascination would be considered in the same family as skee ball and the game dates to the 1920s at Chutes at the Beach in San Francisco. Across town on Pacific Avenue is the future Randyland, which is to be a combined arcade game parlor and arcade heritage museum. This former Woolworth’s building preserves 21,000 square feet of vintage arcade games, boardwalk memorabilia and even hundreds of mannequins. “Discomfortingly, there are also hundreds of mannequins, all lined up in rows, each an eerily perfect reproduction of Randy. They have Randy's grin, Randy's haircut. The only way you can tell them apart is that each wears a different costume.” (Jezebel). This historic preservation of vintage arcade games and boardwalk memorabilia both as a arcade parlor and museum is extraordinary.