SEPTEMBER 19, 1943

Full News Archive

• Headline: Republic Aviation Elects New Vice President. Impact: The election of a VP at Republic Aviation led to the invention of the flying car... which, due to a lack of traffic regulations, resulted in a few unfortunate airborne fender benders in the future.. Fact: Did you know the job title 'Vice President' often means 'Just trying to look busy while the real boss does all the work'?.
• Headline: Gossip of the Rialto Unveiled. Impact: The Theatre Book of the Year turned out to be a secret manual for aspiring playwrights to sneak in plot twists involving time travel, thus confusing audiences for decades.. Fact: Gossip in the Rialto is so potent it’s been known to cause spontaneous standing ovations... or mass walkouts..
• Headline: Butcher Shop Etiquette in 1943 NYC. Impact: The butchers' views on customers sparked a series of 'customer etiquette' classes, leading to the bizarre trend of patrons wearing formal wear to buy steak.. Fact: Butchers have a unique understanding of 'cutting' out the bad behavior—just ask their meat cleavers..
• Headline: GARDEN NOTES AND TOPICS. Impact: The fall semester plans led to the rise of overpriced pumpkin spice lattes as students sought comfort during midterms, leading to a nationwide caffeine crisis.. Fact: Fall semester plans are mostly about planning how to avoid actual planning!.
• Headline: CEYLON PREPARING DRIVE ON JAPANESE; Vital Island Off India Shows Growing Signs Mountbatten Is Piling Up Power CEYLON PREPARING DRIVE ON JAPANESE. Impact: Ceylon's preparations against Japan led to the invention of the world's first coconut-based combat strategy, inspiring future generations to fight with snacks.. Fact: Mountbatten's power play had everyone wondering if he was actually just trying to create the ultimate tropical vacation spot..
• Headline: BELLEVUE DEFENDED BY BERNECKER, JACOBS; Officials Deny That Insanitary Conditions Caused Infection. Impact: The Bellevue hospital's defense against unsanitary conditions inadvertently resulted in the establishment of a new cleanliness standard, which was ironically ignored in every other hospital.. Fact: It turns out that 'cleanliness is next to godliness' is a lot easier to say than to actually practice in hospitals..
• Headline: WOMEN IN NEW SHIP JOB; They Release Two Vessels for British on Hingham Ways. Impact: Women in shipbuilding led to a sudden surge in sea shanties that contained surprisingly feminist undertones, changing maritime culture forever.. Fact: Women in ship jobs realized they could build ships and still have time to sink the patriarchy—how’s that for multitasking?.
• Headline: The Ageless Culture of China; A SHORT HISTORY OF CHINESE CIVILIZATION. By Tsui Chi. With a preface by Laurence Binyon. 388 pp. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. $4.. Impact: Tsui Chi’s short history of Chinese civilization sparked a global interest in Chinese takeout, which eventually led to the invention of the fortune cookie as a means of cultural diplomacy.. Fact: The history of Chinese civilization is so rich that even fortune cookies feel inadequate trying to summarize it..
• Headline: Toward Victory. Impact: Gers withdrawing troops from the USSR created a domino effect of countries suddenly realizing they could also withdraw from awkward conversations.. Fact: Withdrawing troops is just like withdrawing from a conversation: one moment you're in, the next, poof! You're awkwardly avoiding eye contact..