TONIGHT: "Oddities” Marathon and Party, Observatory, 8:00 PM

We at Morbid Anatomy are very very excited about tonight's viewing party for our new favorite television series, "Oddities," which you might recall from this flurry of recent posts (1, 2, 3).

The "Oddities” Marathon and Party event--which will take place tonight at Observatory--will feature a four-episode marathon of the program, special drinks, a DJed after party, and prizes and giveaways, including an early brass "lucky skull" Mexican ring from "Oddities" cast member and Against Nature proprietor Ryan Matthew, a variety of 3D anatomical puzzles generously donated by Kikkerland, and, of course, Obscura Tshirts. The "cast" of "Oddities" will also be on hand for questions and comments.

You can see some clips (recommended!) and find out more about "Oddities" by clicking here.

Full details follow. Very much hope to see you there!

"Oddities” Marathon and Party
A four-episode marathon of the new television series Oddities, with give-aways, special drinks, surprise guests, and after party
Date: TONIGHT! Thursday, December 9
Time: 8:00
Admission: $5
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

On Thursday, December 9, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy and Observatory as we celebrate the new television series based on our favorite purveyor of curious and amazing artifacts, Obscura Antiques and Oddities in New York City’s East village.

The evenings festivities will include–as a special treat for those of us without cable–a screening of the first three episodes of Oddities, which will reveal, to the discerning eye, an assortment of familiar Observatory faces, including former lecturers Evan Michelson and Mike Zohn as well as a variety of members of the wider Observatory community. There will also be special drinks, a DJed after party, surprise guests, and prizes and give-ways throughout the night. Members of the cast will also be available for questions and comments.

To find out more about the show, check out http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/oddities.

Hope very much to see you there!

To find out more about the event, click here. You can see some clips and find out more about "Oddities" by clicking here. You can get directions to Observatory--which is next door to the Morbid Anatomy Library (more on that here)--by clicking here. You can find out more about Observatory here, join our mailing list by clicking here, and join us on Facebook by clicking here.

"Oddities” Marathon and Party, Observatory, December 9th, 8:00 PM

We at Morbid Anatomy are very very excited to announce an upcoming viewing party for our new favorite television series, "Oddities," which you might recall from this flurry of recent posts (1, 2, 3).

For those who have not yet heard about this somewhat surprising manifestation of a burgeoning popular interest in curiosities and the macabre: "Oddities," which premiered a few weeks ago, is a new Discovery Channel-based reality show documenting the day to day life of Obscura Antiques and Oddities, Morbid Anatomy's favorite purveyor of curious artifacts in New York's East Village. The series "stars" friends, proprietors, and Observatory regulars Evan Michelson and Mike Zohn, as well as old friend Ryan Mathew, and follows their adventures and travails as they pursue artifacts for the shop, research provenance and history of objects, and interact with their collector clientèle.

The "Oddities” Marathon and Party event--which will take place on Thursday, December 9th at Observatory--will feature a three episode marathon of the program, special drinks, a DJed after party, and prizes and give-ways throughout the night. Members of the "cast" will also be available for questions and comments.

You can see some clips (recommended!) and find out more about "Oddities" by clicking here.

Full details follow. Very much hope to see you there!

"Oddities” Marathon and Party
A three-episode marathon of the new television series Oddities, with give-aways, special drinks, surprise guests, and after party
Date: Thursday, December 9
Time: 8:00
Admission: $5
Presented by Morbid Anatomy

On Thursday, December 9, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy and Observatory as we celebrate the new television series based on our favorite purveyor of curious and amazing artifacts, Obscura Antiques and Oddities in New York City’s East village.

The evenings festivities will include–as a special treat for those of us without cable–a screening of the first three episodes of Oddities, which will reveal, to the discerning eye, an assortment of familiar Observatory faces, including former lecturers Evan Michelson and Mike Zohn as well as a variety of members of the wider Observatory community. There will also be special drinks, a DJed after party, surprise guests, and prizes and give-ways throughout the night. Members of the cast will also be available for questions and comments.

To find out more about the show, check out http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/oddities.

Hope very much to see you there!

To find out more about the event, click here. You can see some clips and find out more about "Oddities" by clicking here. You can get directions to Observatory--which is next door to the Morbid Anatomy Library (more on that here)--by clicking here. You can find out more about Observatory here, join our mailing list by clicking here, and join us on Facebook by clicking here.

"Oddities," Obscura Antiques and Oddities, Discovery Channel, Premiering Next Thursday at 9:30 on Discovery Channel

Wow. Its for real.

"Oddities," the new reality TV show (that's right, REALITY TV SHOW) based on Morbid Anatomy's favorite shop Obscura Antiques and Oddities in New York City's East Village. Seen above, in moving images and sound, in the just-released trailer. The show features shop proprietors and good friends Evan Michelson (aka Morbid Anatomy Library Scholar in Residence) and Mike Zohn, who recently dignified us with a wonderful lecture on Automata at Observatory.

Wow. Wow! Somehow I did not expect to see so many familiar faces.

"Oddities" premieres Nov. 4 at 9:30 p.m. on Discovery Channel; after the launch, it will air Thursdays at 8 PM. You can find out more about Obscura Antiques and Oddities by clicking here; you can see a recent MA Post on the story by clicking here. For more on the show--including a link to a story in the New York Post--see this recent post.

Librairie Alain Brieux, Paris, France

When in Paris last week, I stumbled upon the wonderful Librairie Alain Brieux (mentioned in this previous post). This antique store/rare book shop had a number of extraordinary (if out my price range) artifacts for sale, including, to name just a few: a 1/2 length wax anatomical Venus in a glass case (pictured second from the top); anatomical models rendered in wax and paper-mâché; various skeletal bits; an original poster advertising a popular anatomical museum (5th from the top); medical instruments; rare (and remarkably intact!) optical toy kits; and a wide array of antique medical books with astounding illustrations, which the shopkeeper, who kindly allowed me to take photographs, enthusiastically displayed for me.

Those of you unable to make it to Paris to check out this shop are in luck; Librairie Alain Brieux and some of their best merchandise are coming to New York City for the Antiquarian Book Fair, which will run from April 3-5th at the The Park Avenue Armory. I am promised they will have some really great stuff with them; I, for one, plan to go and check it out!

You can find out more about the book fair (where Alain Brieux will exhibiting in booth B5) by clicking here. To see more photos cataloging the many and various wonders of this shop, click here. You can check out their still-under-construction website, where you an also download PDFs of their catalogs, by clicking here.

Aria Antiques, San Francisco

When I was last in San Francisco, I stumbled upon a rather intriguing looking store called "Aria" tucked among the Italian bakeries and laundromats of North Beach. Sadly, the shop was closed until the day I flew out and I was unable to ever go inside, but I did manage to get some photos of the contents through the shop window. It definitely looks worth a visit--anatomical models, old science posters, taxidermy, decaying housewares...

Aria does not appear to have a website of its own, but here is a writeup from City Search. To see more photos, see this Flickr collection.

Obscura Antiques and Oddities, NYC

Long before Cabinets of Curiosity made their way to Barney's, Damien Hirst unveiled his diamond-encrusted skull, and Marilyn Manson made news for his compulsive collecting of dead children, there was Obscura Antiques and Oddities. Less a store than a museum you can shop at, Obscura, located in the East Village, is, by far, my favorite shop in New York City.

Stock varies, but on a given day, here are some things you're likely to come across: anatomical models, memorial photographs, medical art prints, taxedermied pets, shadow boxes, fraternal organization memorabilia, prosthetic limbs, victorian mourning jewelry, magic lantern slides, collections of pinned insects, funeraral ephemera, stereoscopopic cards, carnival castoffs, two headed fetal pigs, a jar of worms, corsets, top hats, glass fronted cabinets, victorian vitrines ... the list goes on. Don't be intimidated by their celebrity clientele (they feed the habits of The Sedarises and Chloë Sevigny, among others) or the uber-hip east-village customers you might see within; the proprietors are very friendly and extremely knowledgable, and you'll probably leave knowing something you didn't know before. See above photos for details of merchandise over the past few years.