From The Archives

Be sure to note the music. From The Week:

In 1938, for instance, a category 3 hurricane left 600 people dead in New England. During that ferocious hurricane, also known as the Yankee Clipper and the Long Island Express, the Empire State Building reportedly swayed with wind gusts, and 60 people in New York City alone were killed, says Oren Yaniv at the New York Daily News. Unlike Sandy, 1938′s powerful storm came "without warning," says History.com, and "was born out a tropical cyclone that developed in the eastern Atlantic."

In this strangely compelling historic video of the storm, winds whip New York City residents braving the streets, power lines throughout New England lean and dangle precariously, and flood waters crash into seaside homes, engulfing what looks like a trolley in one of the region's cities.

In the heyday of MySpace, a news team tries to figure out Twitter; hilarity ensues.

From a letter dated October 1, 1861:

But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything.

Nice to know sh-tty days happen to the best of us.

"In 1969, Fred Rogers appeared before the United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications. His goal was to support funding for PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, in response to significant proposed cuts by President Nixon."

This fight sure could use him.

Note the maker: Out Of The Closet, Inc.

Circa 1970s.

Tuesday marks the 11th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, which means that the all-too-familiar reflections and remembrances will dominate the media over the next 24 hours.

But here's one story about Osama bin Laden that you probably haven't seen.

An investigation by Middle East expert Robert Fisk, published December 6, 1993, in the U.K.'s Independent, bore this headline:

Anti-Soviet warrior puts his army on the road to peace: The Saudi businessman who recruited mujahedin now uses them for large-scale building projects in Sudan.

How times have changed.

[arbroath]

These were President Nixon's prepared remarks in case Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's mission ended in tragedy.

Yeesh.

[bitsandpieces]

From Catholic France, circa 1880, a copper device to prevent self-pleasuring -- complete with air holes (pee holes?) for optimum comfort.

Was up for auction on eBay in 2008 for £750, or the equivalent of $1,170 today.

[dangerousminds]

Olga Korbut's "Korbut Flip" at the Munich Olympics -- captured here in slo-mo and set to Linkin Park -- is now illegal in the gymnastics world because it involves standing on the high bar.

But in 1972, it was awe-inspiring.

[cosbysweaters]

The date: February 17, 1996.

The setting: SNL.

The history-making photo: Tom Arnold and 2Pac shake hands… as a youngish Will Ferrell looks on.

(Don't miss the rest of the best pics from 1996, and also 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995, and 1998.)

[hypervocal]

Unless you never missed an episode of The Joy Of Painting with Bob Ross, odds are you didn't know he had an equally-talented son. Steve Ross appeared on the long-running PBS show from time to time, painting the familiar landscapes that made his father so famous. YouTuber carrotwhip recaps one appearance, which is a glorious mixture of epic mullets, porn 'staches and double entendres.

[hypervocal]

From 1970s-era McDonald's, unabashed pandering to the black community -- no tipping!

[hypervocal]

Perhaps the earliest cat vid ever, "The Sick Kitten" stars a miserable feline and its two underage vets. No word on whether kitty survived.

[presurfer]

Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z teamed up for a rendition of Biggie's hit "Get Money" at a 1996 birthday party, and the ancient footage surfaced this week. Just two legends of the game, doing their thing...

[cosbysweaters]

In which a young Jimmy Fallon channels the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Tommy Lee Jones, and the ghost of John Lennon in a 1998 audition for SNL.

[biotv]

This 1932 clip of a man testing his new football helmet prototype is a winner. Not only does he let football players kick him in the head ("Watch him take it, right on the old bean!"), but he encourages them to hit him with bats. Then he runs head-first into a wall. Oh, progress.

[stuffistolefromtheinternet]