Did you know that 3D movies didn’t start in the 1950s? They’ve been around even longer! And it’s not just 3D movies – many everyday items like sparkling water and condoms have been around for much longer than you might think.
The Name Tiffany
If you’re in your 40s or 50s, chances are you know a lot of people named Tiffany. But Tiffany isn’t a new name—it’s been around for a long time. It comes from the Greek word “Theophania,” which means “the appearance of God.” It became “Tifaine” in Old French and then “Tiffany” in English around 1200. There have been babies named Tiffany since the 1500s.
Because so many Tiffanys were born in the late 20th century, it can seem strange to see their name in stories set in earlier times. Author Jo Walton called this “the Tiffany problem”—when something seems out of place because it doesn’t match our idea of history.
3D Movies
On June 10, 1915, people went to the Astor Theatre in New York City to see something special: the first 3D movie ever shown in a theater.
It wasn’t one long movie but three short ones. First, they showed scenes from different parts of America; then, footage from a movie set; and finally, a visit to Niagara Falls. The audience had to wear special glasses with red and green lenses to see the 3D effects. These effects were created by showing two images that were slightly different from each other.
The first full-length 3D movie was called The Power of Love. It premiered at the Ambassador Theater in Los Angeles in September 1922. One interesting thing about it was that viewers could pick how the story ended: one lens showed a happy ending, and the other showed a sad one.
Synchronized Swimming
Synchronized swimming became popular during the Golden Age of Hollywood, with stars like Esther Williams showcasing it in films like Million Dollar Mermaid. The term “synchronized swimming” wasn’t used until 1934 when the Modern Mermaids performed at the World’s Fair in Chicago. It became an Olympic sport in 1984, now called Artistic Swimming.
Interestingly, ancient Romans had something similar. They flooded an amphitheater and had a performance described by poet Martial in the 1st century. He talked about sea nymphs doing formations like a “menacing trident” and a “welcoming star.” Some people don’t think it’s exactly synchronized swimming, but it’s still impressive and would probably do well in today’s Olympics or at your local pool.
Oreos
Oreos have been around much longer than you might think. They first appeared in 1912, but they weren’t advertised as the perfect milk-dipping snack we know today. Instead, they were seen as a fancy treat. One ad from that time described them as “a delicious chocolate biscuit with cream filling” that was quite pricey at 45 cents per pound, which would be around $14 today.
Juicy Fruit Gum
Juicy Fruit gum has been around since the 1890s, thanks to William Wrigley, Jr. He originally sold soap, but started giving out baking powder with soap orders. Eventually, he switched to selling baking powder, which came with a free gift: chewing gum. People loved the gum so much that he began selling it on its own.
Wrigley was known for his business moves and for giving unexpected free gifts with purchases. For example, he gave a variety of items like coffee grinders, cheese cutters, and even lace curtains to customers who bought his products. At one point, he even gave away items like mandolins, clocks, saws, lamps, and souvenir spoons with his gum.
Juicy Fruit gum made its debut at the World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893 and became a hit. Its exact flavor remains a secret, but it’s said to have hints of lemon, orange, pineapple, and banana.
Zildjian
Making music can be as simple as hitting a metal disc. Cymbals, those big metal plates you see in bands, have been around for thousands of years. The Metropolitan Museum of Art even has one from as far back as 2300 to 2000 BCE. That was during the Early Bronze Age, and yes, it was made of bronze.
What’s surprising is that Zildjian, a big cymbal company today, has been making cymbals for four hundred years. Back in 1618, a 22-year-old chemist named Avedis in Constantinople was trying to make gold. Instead, he accidentally made the perfect metal mix for cymbals. It’s a mix of copper, tin, and silver, but the exact recipe is a secret.
The Ottoman Empire liked Avedis’ cymbals so much that they gave him a special last name: Zildjian, which means “family of cymbal makers.”
So Avedis started his own cymbal-making business in 1623 and taught his son everything he knew. That tradition continued for 15 generations of Zildjians. It’s still a family business today. Craigie Zildjian, the current president and executive chair, ran the company from 1999 to 2019. Some might not like family-run businesses, but we’re okay with it, especially in the cymbal world.
Sparkling Water
Before La Croix became popular, sparkling water was already bubbling up from natural springs for thousands of years. But humans didn’t start making it themselves until much later, thanks in part to pig bladders. English chemist Joseph Priestley used them in the late 1760s to mix gas bubbles with water.
Priestley wasn’t the first to experiment with this idea. Many discoveries led up to his contraption. However, historians often credit him as the pioneer of sparkling water. He wrote about his process in a paper called “Directions for Impregnating Water With Fixed Air” in 1772.
But there was a problem with using pig bladders: Some people thought the water tasted like urine. John Nooth, another inventor, even created his own seltzer-maker a few years later.
Priestley didn’t like these accusations at first and even suggested that someone might have been peeing in the water used by Nooth. But he eventually admitted that Nooth’s machine, made mostly of glass, worked better.
So, the next time you enjoy a cold seltzer, remember to thank pig bladders—or rather, be grateful that we don’t use them anymore in today’s methods of making sparkling water.
