15 More Minutes of Mustache Fame

Long-time readers may recall one of our early video windows exhibits in the Hub which featured "Mustaches of the 19th Century" as one of six exhibits from the UK Archives. The blog companion to the exhibit was mentioned on BoingBoing and gained a cult following. This week the "Mustaches of the 19th Century" blog was awarded the "Most Whimsical Archives-Related Website" from the ArchiveNext's Winners of the Best Archives Website Awards.

It's amazing how much mileage you can get out of mustaches. Am I a little envious? Yes. My husband's blog has over twice the number of readers that I do. Maybe I should start blogging more about mustaches and less about the commons. :-)


Photo by Cheri Daniels

Mustaches Continue to Inspire

I just replaced the National Archives Month exhibit in the Hub on Thursday. One part of the exhibit was that notorious "Mustaches of the 19th Century" display with accompanying blog that was noted on BoingBoing and many other places at this point. Imagine my delight when a staff member called me, disappointed that the mustache exhibit had been taken down. Apparently the exhibit/blog inspired some staff members to have a mustache contest. Pictured are a couple of the staff who were inspired (impressive 'staches, Josh and Jesse!)

Now this was a fun way to celebrate National Archives Month. What could we possibly do next year to top this?

(Photo by Cheri Daniels)

Fleeting Internet Fame

For some time I have been fascinated by how quickly an idea or site can spread across the Internet. Over the last 48 hours, I've had the opportunity to see the phenomenon first-hand as my husband's Mustaches of the 19th Century blog has spread.

Jason has pointed out that BoingBoing is like the Today Show of the Internet. It's true that since his "appearance" he has gone from two to at least 30 readers and counting. And keep in mind that the blog is just about mustaches--19th century ones at that. He's been contacted directly by archivists at other schools, congratulating him on celebrating National Archives Month in a fun and creative way. The blog has been saved, linked to, commented upon, and shared by hundreds and that number continues to grow with each hour (including participants on the Beard Community Bulletin Board and students celebrating Octobeard).

I'm pleased about all this attention for several reasons. In addition to the obvious ones, "Mustaches of the 19th Century" will be one of six exhibits displayed on the video windows at the Hub starting Monday. All six exhibits are from our AV and University Archives and focus on the theme of leisure. In addition to mustaches, we'll have exhibits focused on movie theaters, the circus, campus recreation, yearbook cartoons, as well as "curiosities and wonders" from the local paper throughout the 20th century. I'll plan to post a few images next week. Thanks to Jason and Deirdre for putting together the exhibit.

UPDATE: The press release for the exhibit which is now on display.

(Photos by Alice Wasielewski)

My Husband Just Got Boing-Boinged

Another silly post but I had share the Boing-Boing post recognizing one of the family blogs.

I've nearly finished the Hubbub recap part three so hopefully that will be up later this week. In the meantime, enjoy some mustaches.