Babushka lady behaviour
June 17, 2016 5:38 AM Subscribe
I'm looking for examples, real or fictional, of people acting in noticeably (seemingly) strange or incongruous ways during important events or crowd scenes.
Babushka lady (of JFK assassination fame) was the inspiration for this question and is a great example of the sort of thing I'm looking for.
Best answer: You see occasional time travelers being sloppy with their future tech.
posted by Rock Steady at 6:07 AM on June 17, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by Rock Steady at 6:07 AM on June 17, 2016 [4 favorites]
Best answer: Debunking the Charlie Chaplin Time Travel Video
Freddy Jackson
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 7:10 AM on June 17, 2016
Freddy Jackson
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 7:10 AM on June 17, 2016
Not sure if this fits what you are looking for but there are also your various Ridiculously Photogenic People.
posted by Rock Steady at 7:49 AM on June 17, 2016
posted by Rock Steady at 7:49 AM on June 17, 2016
Maybe my information is incomplete, but what was the Babushka Lady doing that was so incongruous? Isn't the whole thing that, after the fact, she may have had valuable footage from where she was filming?
posted by cmoj at 6:14 PM on June 17, 2016
posted by cmoj at 6:14 PM on June 17, 2016
Best answer: In The Netherlands we had an incident during the Memorial Day ceremony on Dam Square in 2010. Some guy started shouting during the 2 minutes of silence. His nickname quickly became 'de damschreeuwer' (the dam shouter).
The images of the incident, aired live on all public broadcast channels, look like a nightmare. The Queen and the members of the cabinet were quickly taken away. Dozens of people were wounded. Gennaro P. - the damschreeuwer - got sentenced to 18 months of jail.
"Damschreeuwer" was nominated for the new word of the year award.
posted by ouke at 4:44 AM on June 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
The images of the incident, aired live on all public broadcast channels, look like a nightmare. The Queen and the members of the cabinet were quickly taken away. Dozens of people were wounded. Gennaro P. - the damschreeuwer - got sentenced to 18 months of jail.
"Damschreeuwer" was nominated for the new word of the year award.
posted by ouke at 4:44 AM on June 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Not far from the The Babushka Lady was The Umbrella Man, whose reasons for standing underneath an opened black umbrella on a sunny Dallas day are fascinating.
posted by timshel at 11:55 AM on June 19, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by timshel at 11:55 AM on June 19, 2016 [6 favorites]
Response by poster: These answers were great, thank you all. cmoj, reports vary massively, but some suggest that she was fairly impassive during the shooting- that, combined with the footage never showing up, has given her a bit of a reputation, I think!
posted by threetwentytwo at 1:33 PM on June 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by threetwentytwo at 1:33 PM on June 21, 2016 [1 favorite]
Best answer: They call him the Streak... "Michael O'Brien was the first known streaker at a major sporting event when on 20 April 1974, he ran out naked onto the ground of an England vs. France Rugby Union match at Twickenham. The 25-year-old Australian was captured by a policeman, PC Bruce Perry, who covered his genitals with his police helmet."
posted by MonkeyToes at 6:08 PM on June 21, 2016
posted by MonkeyToes at 6:08 PM on June 21, 2016
Best answer: On the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Turkey last year, while Obama and Putin were having a private talk about Syria, Suspiciously Acting Man showed up. (First mentioned on MeFi by Atom Eyes).
The RT video got a lot of play, but I'm not sure if it was ever cleared up if this guy was a reporter, some aide, or the world's worst spy.
posted by Kabanos at 1:12 PM on June 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
The RT video got a lot of play, but I'm not sure if it was ever cleared up if this guy was a reporter, some aide, or the world's worst spy.
posted by Kabanos at 1:12 PM on June 23, 2016 [2 favorites]
Then there was the iconic photo of the passionate "Kissing Couple", apparently oblivious to (or turned on by?) the riot police, tear gas, and rampaging Vancouver fans around them.
The photo presents a more romantic image than reality though; here is some video from the event. However reportedly the couple was still together 4 years later.
posted by Kabanos at 1:32 PM on June 23, 2016
The photo presents a more romantic image than reality though; here is some video from the event. However reportedly the couple was still together 4 years later.
posted by Kabanos at 1:32 PM on June 23, 2016
Best answer: Funny, when you mentioned fictional examples, my mind immediately went to the floppy-red-haired guy in the crowd scene near the end of Ghostbusters who actually appears earlier during the shot with all the clergy of various faith praying.
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:20 PM on June 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Halloween Jack at 4:20 PM on June 26, 2016 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Another fictional example: the Ancient Booer in The Princess Bride.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 3:01 PM on June 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 3:01 PM on June 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Etrigan at 5:41 AM on June 17, 2016 [16 favorites]