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Image courtesy of Smithsonian Archives

We sifted through over 100 pre-historic entries in this month’s caption contest, ranging from riffs on insufficient food consumption of some type to mother-in-law jokes, but Big Steg finally has a winning caption.

See, look right there. The proof of intelligent design. It’s stamped, “Made in heaven.”

Many thanks to Larry Horrowitz Horowitz for his submission, and enjoy the virtual Smithsonian merit badge.

And as for the real photo caption? This image from the 1950s features a group of Cub Scouts being shown the skeleton of a Stegosaurus in the “Hall of Extinct Monsters” exhibit at the Smithsonian Natural Museum of Natural History. Behind the skeleton of the Stegosaurus looms a papier-mâché model of a Stegosaurus.

Out there in reader-land, let us know what you think:

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Image courtesy of Smithsonian Archives

Dinosaurs have invaded the caption contest!  So get all Jurassic on this photograph and provide us with your best humorous caption describing what might be going on in the situation.  Here’s a few examples to get things started:

• “Scouts, keep a lookout while I snap off one of these plates as a souvenir.”
• The Scoutmaster had delivered on his promise of an 8-course meal to the Stegosaurus. They were finally even.
• “Any more back talk out of you kids and you’ll wind up inside Mr. Stegosaurus!”

Just make sure to get your entry in before the contest goes extinct ends on October 12.  The winner will receive a virtual merit badge in captioning, along with a sense of satisfaction in knowing that his/her species is still in existence.

Image courtesy of Smithsonian Archives

We had to sift through nearly 150 entries for the contest, many of them involving Tom Cruise, foot soldiers or exaggerated German accents, but we’ve finally crowned our winner.

“Stupid mannequins. ‘Nougat filling,’ my a**.”

Kudos to Kevin for his winning submission, which he submitted just a few hours before the deadline.

So what’s actually going on in the picture above? It’s a 1976 photo of an exhibits specialist and a museum curator adjusting mannequins to fit into historic uniforms for display at the National Air and Space Museum. Since the uniforms are historically accurate, they cannot be altered to fit the mannequins; consequently, the mannequins are altered to fit the uniforms.

Out there in reader-land, let us know what you think.

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Image courtesy of Smithsonian Archives

UPDATE: Read which caption won! Comments have been closed on this post, but stay tuned next month for our next photo caption contest.

Any way you slice it, something a bit odd is going on in this image that we pulled from the Smithsonian Archives. Which, of course, means that it must be time for a Around the Mall caption writing contest! Readers, now’s your chance to impress us with your witty captions. And remember, we’re look for laughs, so tell us what might be going on in the picture. Here’s a few to get the ball rolling:

• It was Dr. Jones with the hacksaw in the museum!
• “Cutting my foot off? Do you expect me to talk?” “
  “No Mr. Bond, we expect you to die!”
• Bunion surgery

Just make sure to enter by Wednesday, August 12. We’ll be revealing the winning caption (along with the true story behind the photograph) that afternoon. A prize? Whatever it is, we’ll call it the Hacksaw Award. So get cracking!

Image courtesy of Smithsonian Archives

So what is the true identity of that tic tac precariously teetering on stilts? A quick glance at its driver’s license reveals it to be a Van de Graaf accelerator. Not too familiar with those? Any childhood memories of placing your hands on those metal spheres in science museums and then having your hair stand on end? Well, it’s kind of similar to one of those, except on a much larger scale. And this one happened to be installed in Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History’s Atom Smashers: Fifty Years exhibition back in 1977.

We received nearly 250 entries for the contest, with many entries riffing on the old chicken/egg debate and others referencing the television shows “My Favorite Martian” and “Mork and Mindy.” Our favorite, the Editor’s Pick selection for what we thought was the funniest and most clever:

“Here you are, Frank. Now you’re all set for the Digital Television Transition.“

A hearty Smithsonian thanks to David King for submitting the entry.

What do you think was the best entry? Vote now, or forever hold your peace.

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