Pulp International - Vintage cover of The National Tattler from May 1966

May 18 2010

I slink therefore I am.

The National Tattler is truly one of our favorite tabloids. How could it not be, when its editors had so few qualms about leaving reality coughing in a cloud of dust by the roadside? Plus, we have a soft spot for it because it was the first tabloid we ever posted. The Tattler’s niche was shock, and when they couldn’t find images of decomposing bodies or mutilated accident victims for their covers, they resorted to old-fashioned paste-up, as in this image of a human caterpillar who has a wife and family. Some would see his condition as a handicap, but certainly there are advantages to being born a caterpillar. For one thing, by the time you get married you’ve already learned to crawl.

The National Tattler Marilyn Monroe tabloid

The headlines that mattered yesteryear.

1967—Dorothy Parker Dies

American poet and satirist Dorothy Parker, who was known for her wit and wisecracks, and was a charter member of famed Algonquin Round Table, dies of a heart attack at age seventy-three. In her will, she bequeaths her estate to the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. foundation. Following King's death, her estate is passed on to the NAACP.

1944—D-Day Begins

The Battle of Normandy, aka D-Day, begins with the landing of 155,000 Allied troops on the beaches of northern France in an event codenamed Operation Overlord. The German army by this time is already seriously depleted after their long but unsuccessful struggle to conquer Russia in the East, thus Allied soldiers quickly break through the Nazi defensive positions and push inland in the largest amphibious military operation in history.

1963—John Profumo Resigns

British Secretary of State for War John Profumo resigns after the revelation that he had been sexually involved with a showgirl and sometime prostitute named Christine Keeler. Among Keeler's close acquaintances was a senior Soviet naval attaché, thus in addition to Profumo committing adultery then lying about it before the House of Commons, authorities pressed for his resignation because they also feared he had been plied for state secrets.

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