The Return of Smell-O-Vision !

It appears that one of the strangest inventions in the history of entertainment may be due for a comeback: Smell-O-Vision.

Originally developed by inventor/guy-with-too-much-time-on-his-hands Hans Laube, Smell-O-Vision was designed to be used in movie theatres and could release a series of 30 smells coinciding with what was happening on-screen.

The system was only used once as part of the 1960 film Scent of Mystery.

Scenes featuring wine, pipe smoke and baking bread were shown as the Smell-O-Vision machine blasted the audience with coinciding wafts of stink.

Needless to say, the movie was a total flop and Smell-O-Vision was never used again; a tragic loss, to be sure.

Thankfully, researchers at the University of California have decided that instead of solving the energy crisis, they’d rather take another crack at developing odor-generating capabilities for TV’s and cell phones!

Unlike the original Smell-O-Vision system which was the size of a 1980’s arcade game and could only produce 30 smells, this new system will be small enough to fit in portable electronic devices and can generate 10,000+ odors.

Okay so maybe it’s an intriguing idea, so long as it can be disabled or “blocked” in certain situations.

For instance, do you really want to smell what’s going on in a gory horror flick or war movie?

Offbeat Earth