Behind the Scenes at Macy’s, 1948

Two things you and I clearly need are a time machine and a “backstage pass” to everything. But the next best thing of course, is the internet and all its wonders, such as one of my favorite places to fish, the LIFE Archives. Today we go behind the staff only doors of the iconic Macy’s…

The Moon Ballet: One Giant (graceful) Leap for Mankind

It’s too bad Neil Armstrong didn’t break into dance and literally take a giant (graceful) leap for mankind rather than one small step for man. Luckily for us however, there is the Moon Ballet. I dug up this curious little gem from the LIFE archives, photographed in 1950 by Allan Grant on what any sci-fi film…

The Amazing All-in-One Breakaway Dress, 1944

Every girl likes to have options, especially when it comes to dresses; you just never know when you’re going to need to rip off that ball gown and take a spontaneous dip in the pool– a common predicament we can clearly all relate to. Here’s a design for the most indecisive of ladies, plucked straight out…

Moulin Rouge for Kids in 1950s Paris

Who knew? The iconic Parisian cabaret venue infamous for bare-breasted women, scandalous liaisons and erotic dancing in the heart of the city’s red light district, has a kiddie matinee! Even more unexpected is that these photographs, simply titled, “Moulin Rouge Night Club -Sunday Children’s Matinee“, were taken sometime in the far more conservative 1950s (and on a Sunday)– gotta love the…

World War II on a Paradise Island

Rare color photographs of a moment lost in time, faraway from home in a tainted paradise. Buried in the bowels of the LIFE archives, I stumbled upon this unique glimpse into the island life of American soldiers stationed on the Tawara Atoll, located in the Gilbert Islands of the Pacific Ocean. Captured by photojournalist J. R.…

Euro Train Tripping in the Summer of 1970

At the dawn of the 1970s, it cost around $24 to travel from London to Italy. As the train went clickety-clack, rattling through the ever-evolving landscape, two strangers could strike up a conversation over a few slices of shared bologna ham and make it last for a thousand miles. A new breed of traveler was…

Inside the National Geographic Archives

Just so we can get an inkling, a whiff, a tiny peak into what it would be like to have the job of ‘vintage collection archivist’ at the legendary National Geographic magazine, here is a video in which we meet the man that does just that, Bill Bonner. [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mgFQ_wAgz4&] He’s also the guy that curates…

A Good Old Southern Weekend, 1951

We’ve all had a weekend like this once in our lives, whether it was deep in the fried green tomato south of USA or an hour’s drive outside the city in French Brie country. It’s a soul-lifting kind of weekend that doesn’t require much more than the great outdoors, a roof to sleep under, good…

The Slenderizing Salon: Looking for Shortcuts since 1940

How’s your New Year’s health and fitness resolution doing so far? For our friend, little Miss Pat Ogden, it doesn’t appear to be going too well. The young LIFE Magazine model has been pressured into joining the Slenderising Salon, the newest fitness fad that is all anybody can’t talk about in 1940s New York. Shot…

A Trip down Memory Lane with the NSA Vintage Photo Album

Everybody loves a good photo album, even the NSA! For their 60th anniversary last year, they put together this heart-warming album of top secret snaps dating all the way back to the 1930s when the nation’s most secretive intelligence agency was just a baby spy agency. So with the NSA being such a buzzword as…