You know when you want to back up that urban legend with something official like a press release? Well, after spending all weekend listening to Outkast covers, I remembered how Polaroid issued a press release admonishing all those who were suddenly quick to shake their Polaroid pictures, as “Hey Ya!” urges. Well I couldn’t find that press release, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it doesn’t exist (I’d just have to leave my Philip Marlowe hat on a little longer); however, I did cruise through the Polaroid press releases vault, and I found a few that were especially, er, startling/awkward/priceless, including “Polaroid Hosts World’s Largest Birthday Party for One-Year-Olds”:

Polaroid today will celebrate the launch of the new Polaroid One instant camera by hosting the world’s largest birthday party for more than 100 one-year-olds at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan in New York City. The event, which marks one of the most significant product launches in the company’s history, will feature a giant 21-foot-long x 8-foot-tall birthday cake made of more than 1,500 cupcakes and will celebrate the milestone moment of children face planting into their first piece of birthday cake – a spontaneous moment symbiotic with instant photography.

1500 cupcakes? That seems a rather hefty per person if you’re only expecting (”more than”) 100 one-year-olds. But still way cute. The one that seemed more forthrightly suspect was “Nationwide Survey Finds 80 Percent of Teenage Girls Attend All-Female Get Togethers and Slumber Parties.” Goodness knows that generating publicity is a racket, but at least some people seem like they’re having fun with their jobs. Cheers to keeping it interesting, Polaroid. Anyone have a funny press release story, or just get something good in the fax/Inbox?