If you needed a bedside clock 60 years ago, the December 1963 issue of Popular Mechanics had a couple of good ideas. The gentleman shown here appears to be suffering some sort of night terror, but at least he knows what time it is, since the time is projected onto the ceiling. The projector is simplicity itself, consisting of a metal candy box (or some other enclosure that’s shiny on the inside). A 15-watt bulb illuminates a wristwatch strategically placed, and the image is reflected by a small mirror mounted at a 45 degree angle. The single lens makes sure that the image is not reversed.

The other idea was a $2.98 clock radio, which isn’t very different from similar ideas we’ve seen before. If you already own a perfectly good radio, you can turn it into a clock radio simply by attaching a switch to a wind-up clock.