So most of us have probably heard the old story of how people during the Victorian era were so sexually repressed that they even covered the legs of their furniture, but that’s actually a fake story!

This myth was started by 19th century English writer and British Navy Captain, Frederick Marryat. Marryat authored many books throughout his life, including popular sea adventure stories.

In his book, Diary in America: With Remarks On Its Institutions, published in 1839, Marryat recounts his experiences in the young U.S. In this book, he wrote about two peculiar interactions he had while visiting America.

The first incident stems from an anecdote where a young woman that Marryat was traveling with scraped her knee.

He later asked if her “leg” was okay and apparently she found this so invasive that she replied that a gentleman only refers to “limbs” in the presence of a lady and never a “leg.”

The second instance further pushes this idea of puritanical purity to a whole new level.

While escorting a lady to a girls’ seminary, Marryat entered the reception room and noticed that the headmistress had done something weird with the pianoforte. He stated “…she had dressed all these four limbs in modest little trousers, with frills at the bottom of them!” 

When he asked the headmistress why they were covered, she allegedly claimed it was to “preserve in their utmost purity the ideas of the young ladies” under her charge.

Now, Victorians did cover their furniture with little do-dids like this, but only to protect the furniture from wear and tear, and not to keep young girls from being seduced by wily pianos.

But that didn’t matter, this anecdote caught on like wildfire.

The British press at the time picked up Marryat’s story and ran with it, suggesting that American society was puritanical and had ridiculously fastidious manners. 

This myth was further propagated by 20th century writers as a shorthand for Victorian repression, but the story backfired and started to reference British sexual repression rather than American.

Did you know that the term “slip them a mickey” may have come from Chicago?

There once was a man named Mickey Finn who, alongside his wife, Kate, opened a bar on S. State Street called the “Lone Star Saloon and Palm Garden Restaurant” in 1896.

It was located in a portion of Chicago called Whiskey Row, which was a pretty rough and tumble neighborhood in its heyday. His place was located on the west side of State St., between Harrison and Congress, at the southern end of Whiskey row near Harrison.

At this very saloon, Mickey ran a school for young pickpockets. The “Garden” of the Palm Garden was a robbing den where his students would pick the pockets of drunkards at the bar.

Mickey, wanting to increase his odds of being able to rob his patrons, created a signature drink called the “Mickey Finn Special.”

The Mickey Finn Special was a special drink consisting of alcohol, Tabasco, snuff-soaked water, and chloral hydrate, a white liquid that would knock the drinker out in seconds.

Women who were paid to flirt with men at the Saloon were instructed to encourage men to order the “Mickey Finn Special.”

Once the “Mickey Finn Special” knocked them out, Mickey and his men would drag the unconscious man into a backroom, strip them of their clothes and money, and then throw them into the back alley.

The person would wake up not knowing what would have happened.

While the Chicago police closed Mickey’s saloon on December 16, 1903, the term “Slip them a Mickey” is still used today!

Hey everybody, Amara here! What does the historic Chicago Theatre have to do with Walt Disney?

The theatre was built in 1921 by noted architecture duo, Rapp & Rapp.

With the increasing popularity of film throughout the 1920s, movie theater architecture was evolving rapidly, and Rapp & Rapp were the most sought-out architects for movie palaces.

They designed many notable theaters throughout the city of Chicago including the Tivoli, Oriental, and Uptown theatres!

And they didn’t just stay in Chicago! Throughout their career, they designed over 400 theatres throughout the country!

When it was built, The Chicago Theatre was one of the largest movie palaces in the country boasting a nearly 4,000-seat theater.

Something to know about movie palaces at this time is that a lot of them had different decorative theming. A lot of these were really harmful orientalist depictions of different cultures. The Chicago Theatre, though, was decorated in a French style.

The arch on the front of the building was based on the Arc de Triomphe. The Grand Lobby was modeled after J.H. Mansart’s chapel at Versailles. The Grand Staircase is modelled after that of the Paris Opera House, and there were also Louis XIV furnishings throughout the theater!

The interior lobby even included large French-themed murals created by Chicago artist Louis Grell.

Now, get this, Grell allegedly taught Walt Disney when he attended school here in Chicago, but that’s a story for another time.

Also, fun fact, the “Y” that is in the center of the marquee? That is actually the official logo for the city of Chicago. I have a full post on that on my blog, so go check it out!

Tata! 🙂