Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Amazing Craze A guide to the world's weirdest, most thrilling contests
Whether it's flinging frozen rats or parading in holly evergreens, racing snails or carrying wives, human beings have long displayed their creativity in wild, odd, and sometimes just wonderful rituals and competitions. To show what lengths we'll go to uphold our eccentric customs, British American graphic designer Nigel Holmes channels his belief in the power of hilarity to bring together a bewilderingly funny tour around the globe in search of incredible events, all dryly explained with brilliant infographics.
You'll encounter the startling facts behind peat-bog snorkelling in Wales (wet suits recommended), hotdog-swallowing in the USA (tip: avoid breakfast), or who can make a baby cry quickest in Japan. Through this gallimaufry of gamesmanship and passion, an endearingly warm and affectionate portrait of human endeavor and good humor emerges as Holmes proves, page after page, that when it comes to feats of bravery, endurance, or sheer nonsense, the world is united as one in the fine, and often hilarious, way of celebrating culture.
Synopsis
At the dawn of the automobile age, Americans' predilection for wanderlust prompted a new wave of inventive entrepreneurs to cater to this new mode of transportation. Starting in the 1920s, attention-grabbing buildings began to appear that would draw in passing drivers for snacks, provisions, souvenirs, or a quick meal. The architectural establishment of the day dismissed these roadside buildings as "monstrosities".
Yet, they flourished, especially along America's Sunbelt, and in particular, in Southern California, as proprietors indulged their creative impulses in the form of giant, eccentric constructions -- from owls, dolls, pigs, and ships, to coffee pots and fruit. Their symbolic intent was guileless, yet they were marginalized by history. But, over the past 40 years, California's architectural anomalies have regained their integrity, and are now being celebrated in this freshly revised compendium of buildings, California Crazy.
Brimming with the best examples of this architectural genre, California Crazy includes essays exploring the influences that fostered the nascent architectural movement, as well as identifying the unconventional landscapes and attitudes found on Los Angeles and Hollywood roadsides which allowed these buildings to flourish in profusion.
In addition, California Crazy features David Gebhard's definitive essay, which defined this vernacular movement almost forty years ago. The California Crazy concept is expanded to include domestic architecture, eccentric signage, and the automobile as a fanciful object.