Move Back
![T.V. Glasses, 1963]()
Inventor Hugo Gernsback wears his television glasses, a product that didn't really take off back in 1963.![Motorized Surfboard, 1948]()
Hollywood inventor Joe Gilpin rides his motorized surfboard in 1948.![Baby Cage, 1937]()
A nanny supervises a baby suspended in a wire cage attached to the outside of a high tenement block window in 1937. The cages were distributed to members of the Chelsea Baby Club in London who have no gardens, or qualms about putting a child in a box dangling over a busy street.![Rainy Day Cigarette Holder, 1954]()
President of Zeus Corp., Robert L. Stern, smoking a cigarette from his self-designed rainy day cigarette holder in 1954.![Hubbard Electrometer, 1968]()
American science fiction writer and founder of the Church of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard uses his Hubbard Electrometer to determine whether tomatoes experience pain, in 1968. His work led him to the conclusion that tomatoes "scream when sliced."![Fast-Draw Robot, 1960]()
A robot equipped with a fast-draw invention shoots it out with a live gunner in 1960. It's always easy to question the wisdom of giving a robot a gun -- but also making him quick on the draw is just irresponsible. See more: Full slideshow at LIFEA Brief History of Dumb Inventions
The 20th century saw many astounding technological innovations, from the automobile and the Internet to putting a man on the moon. But some technological advances weren't exactly meant for the history books. Because they were stupid. See more inventions in the full gallery at LIFE.
Move Forward
- A Brief History of Dumb Inventions
