#ocularfatigue

[mysteriousplanchette]

Hi! I hope you are hanging in there. Today is Part 3 of a multi-post series on the Radio Hypnotic Crystal, so if you need to catch up, click on my profile and start with the bright red glass globe from a few days back. You’ll know it when you see it. By 1905, the incredible success of various occult mail fraud operations enabled former stage hypnotist Elmer S. Prather to invest in, and then take total control of, F. T. McIntyre’s Metropolitan Institute of Sciences. The operation doesn’t change internally much from what we can determine, but it is *rebranded* to the National Institute of Sciences, under the umbrella of Prather’s former stage name: Elmer E. Knowles. One of my favorite representations of this is the change in the cover illustration for McIntyre’s “The Key to the Development of the Inner Forces” lesson booklet, which featured an ornate door flanked by two columns opening to a light of celestial illumination beyond, promising the secrets revealed within. The content doesn’t really change with the exception of McIntyre being swapped out for Knowles in photos, but later editions also add Knowles to the front cover, his hand now reaching toward the opening door as he looks back at the reader, claiming personal credit for your introduction to the secrets within (see today’s stories for a before/after!) The branding of the Radio Hypnotic Crystal is now in full effect, and it retains its glass bulb form and blue sand interior. The previously lathed handle is now flared to make a base that allowed the device to stand upright more securely without endangering its fragility, and its label now displays the full name shift. This specimen, like my other recently-acquired ones, comes in its original shipping box. Be sure to swipe through to see more of Knowles’ operation, the RHC in use, and the gorgeous cover to Lesson #3! #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B99LC7Rlsqw/?igshid=4nnqk8s913y4

[mysteriousplanchette]

This dark time is a great opportunity for another themed series! Get ready for the Radio Hypnotic Crystal! For the next week, I’ll be exploring the history and evolution of these unique hypnotic devices with an able assist from the research of my peers in IAPSOP, the International Association for the Preservation of Spiritualist & Occult Periodicals. The device that would come to be known as the Radio Hypnotic Crystal was first invented and used by a notorious hypnotist and mail-order occultist, “Professor” F.T. McIntyre, and sold by his Metropolitan Institute of Sciences. Getting into the details of his notorious career would be more than this format could bear, but give him a keyword search in IAPSOP founder Marc Demarest’s “Chasing Down Emma” blog for more! McIntyre’s invention was first named the “Ocular Fatigue Producer” or “Hypnotic Ball” upon its invention in 1895, and for those familiar with the hypnotist’s classic sleep-inducing swinging pendulum as a source of focus and relaxation, you’re on the exact right track. Essentially a wood-handled glass globe filled with sand surrounding a small, pearlescent ball on a thin rod, the Hypnotic Ball was used in the same manner as the ubiquitous pendulum. McIntyre’s 1903 “Practical Instruction in Suggestion, Hypnotism & Healing” described its creation: “I found myself continually looking for some object which I could use in producing ocular fatigue. At times I would use a pencil, a knife point, or...a diamond ring. In my experiments however I found that subjects would invariably look away from a pencil point and that they would not follow the diamond with sufficient concentration of vision.  I therefore determined to construct a device that would induce a condition of fatigue more rapidly than the articles mentioned. Hence—the introduction of the Ocular Fatigue Producer.” The pictured item is an original McIntyre model with an original box, and the only known surviving specimen, to my knowledge. It is now housed in the Mysterious Planchette archive. Swipe for more! #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B9389PNFuT3/?igshid=1lhlnwy7k1jr9

[mysteriousplanchette]

There is so much surrounding the history of the Radio Hypnotic Crystal that I can’t fit here, from hair tonic and patent medicine schemes to fraudulent mail-order occultism, which I’ll not only get into with future posts, but also feature the cover of one of each of the company’s six lessons, or “Branches,” at the end of each daily post. Be sure and check out yesterday’s post to get started. Professor McIntyre ran his occult correspondence course business, the Metropolitan Institute of Sciences, under the same framework as most mail fraud schemes of that time, including the system of my favorite occultist and talking board manufacturer, Theodore H. White. These schemes relied on cheap newspaper advertisements for free lucky trinkets or booklets that promised to open the door to wealth, fame, and personal power. It was all a front to harvest your address, at which point you would be bombarded with solicitations for the company’s various occult courses, lessons in hypnotism, and other products, like the Radio Hypnotic Crystal. Last post, we saw McIntyre’s proto-crystal, the “Hypnotic Ball.” At some point, very likely under the influence of our real focus here, Elmer Sidney Prather, or, as he was also known, the world-famous hypnotist Elmer E. Knowles, the Hypnotic Ball switched monikers, to the Radio Hypnotic Crystal, perhaps around 1904 when Prather invested in McIntyre’s operation. Though still labeled as McIntyre’s invention, this specimen is now more refined that the earlier Ocular Fatigue Inducer. The handle is more gracefully lathed with petite grooves, and the red sand of the previous model has been replaced with a pleasant shade of blue. It remains a glass globe, and there is at least one other specimen (in the collection of my publisher and fellow occult scholar, @erikmona) with a much more slender globe, which may date from around the same period (see my stories for a shot of this, and give Erik a follow!). Swipe through to see Prather-as-Knowles, all dashing and debonaire, as well as some shots courtesy, again, or Mr. Mona. #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B96kEAzF_cg/?igshid=1mvrm9bm15h60

[madurai-eyecenter]

Keep your eyes healthy! Excessive screen time can lead to various issues such as ocular fatigue, blurry vision, and headaches. It's important to take breaks and practice eye care. For more information, visit Madurai Eye Center or call us at [phone]. Let's protect those precious eyes!

Trust Madurai Eye Center as your best eye surgery hospital in RS Puram, Coimbatore. Experience the expertise of our eye doctors for a health

[madurai-eye-center]

Keep your eyes healthy! Excessive screen time can lead to various issues such as ocular fatigue, blurry vision, and headaches. It's important to take breaks and practice eye care. For more information, visit Madurai Eye Center or call us at [phone]. Let's protect those precious eyes!

Trust Madurai Eye Center as your best eye surgery hospital in RS Puram, Coimbatore. Experience the expertise of our eye doctors for a health

[mysteriousplanchette]

“It’s the End of the Series as we Know it!” *AHEM* Sorry. I couldn’t resist. Welcome to Part Six of my series on the history of the Radio Hypnotic Crystal. We’ve explored these chronologically, and if you’ve missed the previous entries, check out my profile and catch up! By the 1930s, just a few years prior to Elmer’s death, Prather’s fraudulent mail practices had been in operation for nearly four decades. And while the details changed somewhat, the enterprises largely followed the same system of collecting addresses and aggressively soliciting them for purchases of all manner of patent medicines, personal enrichment schemes, and, as we’re seeing here, occult correspondence courses, of which the Radio Hypnotic Crystal was the crown jewel. *WAS*, anyway, until the worldwide economic turmoil hit and, presumably, caused Knowles & Co to severely downgrade production of their Radio Hypnotic Crystal—which had previously been handcrafted glass globes and industrial-strength aluminum frames—to, well, this. I mean, it’s OK, but the company basically downgrades their signature product to a cheap, stamped-metal cutout of itself. These specimens are unusually rare (maybe they weren’t produced for long?), and my friend and publisher @erikmona generously took the time to set a matching backdrop to my other posts and capture a special picture of his, seen here. It’s a strange jewel in the occult crown of Radio Hypnotic Crystals, but it does have a certain charm, doesn’t it? I hope you’ve enjoyed this series! Be sure and swipe through for some bonus content, and thanks again to @erikmona for contributing images from some of his rare volumes for this series. Stay home, wash hands. “And I feel fiiiiine!!” #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B-E9K0oFArz/?igshid=i9u03ap4bcla

[mysteriousplanchette]

It’s PART 5!! That’s right—you’re tuning in to a 6-part series on the history of the Radio Hypnotic Crystal, so if you are just getting here, scroll back a few days and catch up! Today, we finally come to the most common and recognizable of all of the RHC incarnations: Knowles’ aluminum-bodied Radio Hypnotic Crystal. The lessons and literature surrounding it were reprinted often and recycled a lot of content in ways that make dating these problematic, but we can place this one with confidence in the 1920-30s. Gone now is the McIntyre-designed glass globe, totally replaced with a sturdier, more two-dimensional aluminum frame. This frame nestles two glass panels to hold the device’s integral rod and ball, and, of course, contain the shifting inner sands. The lessons do not really change in content, but the illustrations within are updated—mostly!—to account for the new design. If you scroll back to yesterday’s posted lesson, though, you’ll see the cover of Lesson #4 still has an illo of the older glass globe style, even well into the era of the aluminum model. These, for obvious reasons, survive in much greater numbers than the glass globes, due to the durable frames. Much less common is the small detachable footpiece, easily lost. In use, the instructions of the device’s utilization don’t change—it’s just a new, sturdy form for a new era. Knowles and his business partner and wife are, by this time, filthy rich off the ill-gotten gains of their various mail order enterprises, and have eluded US Federal Agents with the help of canny lawyers and overseas residence. The buy a massive historical estate in France, put the operations on autopilot, and play golf with French aristocracy until Elmer Prather’s death in the early 1930s. #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B-CRZ9IFZu1/?igshid=y1rjqjkv1ztj

[mysteriousplanchette]

Guest Occult Collector Post! My publisher and good friend @erikmona is a top collector of occult writings and objects (among other things), and a connoisseur of Knowles artifacts who has generously donated some rare images from his  collection to supplement my posts this week, of which this is Part 4 of a series. Thanks, Erik! Here is one of the two Radio Hypnotic Crystals from Erik’s collection that I will be featuring in this series. Given that the larger bulbs are relatively more common (but still exceedingly rare, with few surviving specimens) *and* the large globe style is featured in all the literature, I’ve decided to place it here at the tail end of the glass globe era as a transitionary piece to the more widely-known aluminum-framed pieces, which we’ll see tomorrow. Knowles’ operations all began with cheap newspaper advertisements promising free booklets or good luck charms. Once you wrote in for yours, you address would be plugged into a massive Rolodex-like cabinet, and you’d be in the system. Then, you’d be barraged with a series of solicitations promising to teach you personal power, magnetism, hypnotism, and all the keys to a successful and happy life, which soon necessitated the purchase of a Radio Hypnotic Crystal. The letters and offers were usually personalized and printed to look directly typed and signed to you, thanks to clever printing techniques and a crew of over 100+ secretaries it took to answer all the correspondence the company received. Other branches of Knowles’ operations included hair tonics, patent medicines, astrology readings, and all sorts of correspondence courses, AND was literally translated into other languages in dozens of countries. The income was so lucrative Knowles essentially bought himself into French aristocracy (see my Stories for pics!).    #hypnosis #hypnotism #hypnotist #ocularfatigue #mesmerism #radiohypnoticcrystal #mesmerisme #occult #psychic #suggestion https://www.instagram.com/p/B9_uQGAFRvr/?igshid=1iobtumqu2j7i