The dandy-horse, also known as hobby-horse, is a human-powered vehicle that, being the first means of transport to make use of the two-wheeler principle, is regarded as the forerunner of the bicycle. The dandy horse was invented by Baron Karl Drais in Mannheim, Germany, and patented in January 1818. It is also known as a Laufmaschine (Drais' own terminology, German for "running machine"), velocipede, or draisine (a term now used primarily for light auxiliary railcars regardless of their form of propulsion), and in its French form draisienne.

The dandy-horse was a two-wheeled vehicle, with both wheels in-line, propelled by the rider pushing along the ground with the feet as in regular walking or running. The front wheel and handlebar assembly was pivoted to allow steering.

Several manufacturers in France and England made their own dandy-horses during its brief popularity in the summer of 1819—most notably Denis Johnson of London, who used an elegantly curved wooden frame which allowed the use of larger wheels. Riders preferred to operate their vehicles on the smooth sidewalks instead of the rough roads, but their interactions with pedestrians caused many municipalities to enact laws prohibiting their use. An apparent further drawback of this device was that it had to be made to measure, manufactured to conform with the height and the stride of its rider. No manufacturer appears to have taken up Nicéphore Niépce's 1818 invention of an adjustable saddle for his 'velocipede'.

Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".

Buster Keaton (his lifelong stage name) was recognized as the seventh-greatest director of all time by Entertainment Weekly. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Keaton the 21st-greatest male star of all time. Critic Roger Ebert wrote of Keaton's "extraordinary period from 1920 to 1929, [when] he worked without interruption on a series of films that make him, arguably, the greatest actor-director in the history of the movies."

Orson Welles stated that Keaton's The General is "the greatest comedy ever made, the greatest Civil War film ever made, and perhaps the greatest film ever made."

A 2002 worldwide poll by Sight & Sound ranked Keaton's The General as the 15th best film of all time. Three other Keaton films received votes in the magazine's survey: Our Hospitality, Sherlock, Jr., and The Navigator.

The Dandy Warhols are an American alternative rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1994. The band was founded by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström, with keyboardist Zia McCabe and drummer Eric Hedford. Hedford left in 1998 and was replaced by Taylor-Taylor's cousin Brent DeBoer. The band's name is a play on the name of American pop artist Andy Warhol.

The band gained popularity after they were signed to Capitol Records and released their major label album debut ...The Dandy Warhols Come Down in 1997, featuring the popular single "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth". In 2001, the band rose to international attention after their song "Bohemian Like You" was featured in a Vodafone advertisement. The band have released nine studio albums to date.

The band was formed in Portland, Oregon in 1994 by Courtney Taylor-Taylor and Peter Holmström. Soon after, drummer Eric Hedford joined, and following an unsuccessful experiment with Taylor-Taylor's girlfriend on bass guitar, keyboardist Zia McCabe joined the band after Taylor-Taylor saw her working in a coffee house. Taylor-Taylor described the band's beginning as a group of friends who "needed music to drink to". The Dandy Warhols performed in bars throughout Portland and became well known for their nudity-filled live shows. At their first gig in 1994, they were approached by Tim/Kerr Records, who offered to pay for the recording of an album. The result was 1995's Dandys Rule OK, which combined elements of 1960s garage rock and 1990s shoegaze music.