Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts

I have only possessed this tract for a few hours and it has grabbed my heart and my funny bone. I realize if you are a nerdlinger (see photo below) and graduate of Bob Jones University like Hal Webb, the 60s counterculture was a major freakout. Like other out-of-touch fundies (notable examples Vic Lockman and DeVore Walterman, Hal Webb (circa 1926 - 2011). does a unintentionally hilarious take on the long hair craze of the 60s. Webb is the epitome of Susan Sontag's concept of naive camp. Webb thought long hair was part of a Soviet plot to sissify American men.

A revised version of the tract is printed here.

Webb's pic reminds me of the wedding photo of a dweeby Mike Warnke that was instrumental in exposing the self-proclaimed former Satanic priest as a fabulist (see below and more on Warnke here).

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

For more on the gallery, check out the web site here and the gallery's Twitter handle is @ZazousLes. The Twitter handle for the museum is @WeirdTracts

The index of tracts for the museum's website is here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

Monday, January 25, 2021

Weird Tract Number 127: "Talking to Himself in Hell" by D.M. Fletcher

Troy Davis writes:

This old-timey double-sized circular written by D.M. Fletcher is rather unimaginative. It gives the testimony of a wretched soul who was sent to the "everlasting fire, prepare for the devil and his angels." It's not pretty. The only thing cool about this tract is the funky art.

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

Saturday, December 19, 2020

Weird Tract Number 126: "Christmas/Xmas" by Hubert Hotchkiss

Troy Davis writes:

This old-timey 4-paged pamphlet by Hubert Hotchkiss is one of many bemoaning the removal of "Christ" from "Christmas" and creating the supposed secular holiday Xmas. To Hotchkiss, Satan himself is behind it: "Satan's work is obvious as we notice the change from "Christmas" to Xmas. Satan has effectively hoodwinked many followers of Christ."

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

Tuesday, December 15, 2020

Museum Artifact: Mormon Temple Garments

Troy Davis writes:

One of the latest additions to the museum's collection is a pair of men's Mormon Temple Garments (holy underwear). I got them on eBay from a guy who bought them at an estate sale. I love them. Below is a small tag that reads "Authorized Pattern with a tiny illustration of the main Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City. This is a one-piece design and has a buttoned "crap flap" in back.

Wikipedia's entry on temple garments is comprehensive.

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

Monday, November 30, 2020

Museum Artifact: 1983 Moral Majority Coin Set in a Velvet Box

Troy Davis writes:

The museum has many things related to Jerry Falwell (1933-2007) such as a 1996-97 Liberty University application package and a Moral Majority paperweight. This is a really cool item that financial contributors to to the then-powerful, now-defunct pressure group of Reaganism, the Moral Majority. The group fit into Falwell's view of a macho Prince of Peace ("Jesus," Falwell told his flock, "wasn't a sissy"). The coins come in a cheap but showy velvet case. Below is the cover of a Chick tract parody of Falwell I'm working on.

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

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Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Weird Tract Number 125: "Liquor Is The Enemy of Body and Soul" by Cyrus Osterhus

Troy Davis writes:

Osterhus Publishing House has been around since the turn of the 20th century. Cyrus (who died in 1967) took over the publishing house when his father, the founder, died in 1931. This undated but old-timey tract discusses the evils of drinking alcohol; the on-the-nose illustration of the drinkers flying too close to the flame makes this tract goofy enough for inclusion to our collection. I previously featured an Osterhus publication on the evils of brew: "Rats in the Beer Vats" that gives some gross-out details of alleged brewery practices in the early 20th century.

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.

Sunday, October 18, 2020

Weird Tract Number 124: "Closet Witches" by Jack T. Chick (Interview with Defrocked Physician Rebecca Brown and "Elaine")

Troy Davis writes:

Jack Chick (1924-2016) embraced and stood by some pretty sketchy characters such as John Todd and Alberto Rivera, but Dr. Rebecca Brown was a rising star in the Chick Publications stable of authors who fell out of favor with the Chickster after a brief alliance in the 1980s. Chick never publicly gave his reasons for his break with Brown; David Daniels didn't mention Brown in his official biography of Chick.

During her brief tenure as a Chick Publications author, Brown wrote two books (whose covers feature kickass Frazetta-esque artwork by Fred Carter): He Came to Set The Captives Free and Prepare for War. He Came to Set The Captives Free is the story of "Elaine," a alleged captive of Satanism who allegedly was the bride of the Devil. The book also tells of Brown's struggles with satanism at the hospital that employed her (Brown, born Ruth Bailey, lost her medical license for, among other things, of diagnosing patients, including Elaine, of being possessed by demons and for administering dangerous dosages of drugs such as Demerol). I remember seeing Brown interviewed on a TBN program and I concluded she was batshit crazy. Prepare for War discusses various practices that open up a person to demonic possession (I includes some of those Brown listed such as vegetarianism and astral-projection in my satirical list of "doorways to demonic possession" panel that I use in my Chick tract parodies (see below; for more on how this list became a viral meme, read this article).

Closet Witches consists of two audio-cassettes in which Chick interviews Brown and Elaine. It's basically a rehash of the claims made in He Came to Set The Captives Free. One new revelation made by Elaine was that Satan was personally targeting Chick for destruction. It's a surreal listening experience; it's too bad the audio isn't available on The Internet.

One final note on Brown: She and her husband Daniel Yoder are still around. I previously noted that she sold $46 vials of anointing oil.

UPDATE: Several years ago, Brown's website announced that Elaine had passed on. Rebecca Brown died June 23, 2020. Here is her obituary.

NOTES ON JACK CHICK: In my introductory post, I listed just a few of the many rare and valuable objects from The Museum's extensive Chick-related collection . . . The role of Ralph Rushtoi in the publishing careers of both Jack Chick and another comics-based tract writer Vic Lockman. . . I discuss the role of Bill Bright's prolific tract The Four Spiritual Laws in leading to a format change in Chick tracts that was a key reason why they have become much more popular since the late 1960s . . . My thoughts on Jack Chick's spreading of the peace symbol/broken cross mythology . . . Jack Chick's retro-futuristic car in the scarce 48-page version of "The Beast" . . . Chick tract parody "Constitutional Rites" . . .Jack Chick's cold war tract "Ivan The Terrible" . . . Article on Chick by fellow Catholic-baiting Bob Jones University magazine . . .Catholic-bashing tract by Chick's protege Alberto Rivera . . . Knock-off of a Chick tract by James Lloyd:"Left Behind" . . . Chick tract parody "Donald Trump Is The Antichrist; Prepare for the Rapture!" . . . The extremely rare 1970 Chick tract "Operation Somebody Cares" . . .The rare Chick Publications comic book "Jonah" by Chick and Fred Carter . . . The museum's prized cultural artifact, original art by Jack Chick . . . The museum's collection of Jack Chick's high school yearbooks . . . An appreciation of the deranged nature of the original 1972 version of the Chick tract "The Last Generation" . . The museum has a rare copy of the oversized 1964 Version of "This Was Your Life" by Jack Chick (Distributed by Rushtoi Publications)

The Museum of Weird and Demented Religious Tracts is a project of Les Zazous Postmodern Art Galley of Bellaire, Ohio. Read the Welcome Statement of The Museum here.

Contributions of weird tracts to the museum can be made by mail: send your weird tracts to Les Zazous Postmodern Art Gallery 3475 Guernsey Street, Bellaire, Ohio 43906.