Our Own Oddities
Encyclopedia
Our Own Oddities is an illustrated panel that ran in the Sunday comics
section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
from 1940 to 1990. When it began September 1, 1940, it was titled St. Louis Oddities. The feature displayed curiosities submitted by local readers and is often remembered for its drawings of freakish produce, such as a potato that resembled Richard Nixon
. The style of the panel was very similar to Ripley's Believe it or Not!
The curiosities, including actual fruits and vegetables, were submitted to Post-Dispatch illustrator Ralph Graczak , who each week selected several items and produced a color illustration to be printed in the Sunday paper. Graczak retired from the newspaper in 1980, but he continued to produce the panel for ten more years in addition to doing a talk show on St.Louis' KMOX radio. He died of a heart attack August 3, 1997.
with AIDS
." The newspaper printed several angry letters. Graczak and the newspaper's features editor expressed regret.
with the initials W.A.R., were illustrated by Post-Dispatch artist Dan Martin and featured in the October 6, 2003 edition.
Sunday comics
Sunday comics is the commonly accepted term for the full-color comic strip section carried in most American newspapers. Many newspaper readers called this section the Sunday funnies, the funny papers or simply the funnies....
section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
from 1940 to 1990. When it began September 1, 1940, it was titled St. Louis Oddities. The feature displayed curiosities submitted by local readers and is often remembered for its drawings of freakish produce, such as a potato that resembled Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
. The style of the panel was very similar to Ripley's Believe it or Not!
Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Ripley's Believe It or Not! is a franchise, founded by Robert Ripley, which deals in bizarre events and items so strange and unusual that readers might question the claims...
The curiosities, including actual fruits and vegetables, were submitted to Post-Dispatch illustrator Ralph Graczak , who each week selected several items and produced a color illustration to be printed in the Sunday paper. Graczak retired from the newspaper in 1980, but he continued to produce the panel for ten more years in addition to doing a talk show on St.Louis' KMOX radio. He died of a heart attack August 3, 1997.
Controversy
In addition to bizarre produce, Our Own Oddities featured other peculiar local trivia, such as a local woman who lived at 1919 Montgomery Street and was born at nine o'clock on August 19, 1919. Clever church signs and tombstone epitaphs were popular features. Despite its quaint illustrated style and typically benign subjects, the feature was the cause of controversy when, on May 24, 1988, it included a sign on a truck-repair shop that read, "These premises protected by a pit bullPit bull
A Pit bull is any of several breeds of dog in the molosser breed group.Many jurisdictions that restrict pit bulls, including Ontario, Canada,, Miami, Florida, U.S...
with AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
." The newspaper printed several angry letters. Graczak and the newspaper's features editor expressed regret.
Anniversary special
In September 2003, the Post-Dispatch accepted submissions for a 63rd anniversary special of Our Own Oddities. The best submissions, including a duck-shaped cucumber and a woman born on December 7, 1941Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
with the initials W.A.R., were illustrated by Post-Dispatch artist Dan Martin and featured in the October 6, 2003 edition.