The year is 1952.
After discovering the patent for Michael Flannigan’s infamous “Mammary Sympathizer” in a back issue of 19th Century Inventions That Could Have Been Less Offensive, early Emily Chesley enthusiasts Barry Tickson and Orson Flatbread (both citizens of Wetting-the-Bed-on-Surrey) decided to recreate this invention to celebrate their love for their long-suffering wives. It will be a Valentine’s Day gift to remember.
Because they both love their wives so much, they decide to increase the scale a hundred-fold, producing a Mammary Sympathizer ten times the size of that originally imagined by its inventor.
On the day of the test trials, high winds precluded a successful assessment, though Barry Tickson did achieve a new record for highest elevation in gas-bag-human flight.
Not that he ever got to collect the prize.
[From the Toulouse Le Grandfig Necrobiblia Collection]