ABSTRACT
There are fads that people eagerly participate in and there are those that people only watch in wide-eyed wonder. Sitting atop a flagpole for days on end was definitely an exhibition to be gawked at and not tried. For a brief two years (1929–1930) America followed the zany heroics of Alvin “Shipwreck” Kelly. However, his career began earlier in 1924 in Hollywood. A theater manager hired him to attract crowds by, of all things, sitting on a flagpole. Kelly agreed and climbed up on the small perch (a disc 13″ in diameter). The stunt produced exactly what it was supposed to- large numbers of people pointing skyward. A huge success, soon other businessmen bid for Kelly's services.
