Nestled behind and between two shopping malls, Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum party-store-ish, pink-awning-ed exterior belies the utter visual cacophony that will assault your senses upon entering the premises.
Once your eyes become accustomed to the light, they will feast upon 5500 square feet of horror vacui-style decoration consisting of old arcade games, automata, model airplanes, vintage fans, and other objects entirely suited to the venue. Among the strangest items in the museum is Dr. Ralph Bingenpurge “Country Food Inspector,” an automaton built to continuously vomit onto a pile of old bottles.
Collected over the last 50 years by pharmacist Marvin Yagoda, who passed away in early 2017, the collection requires more than one visit to fully appreciate.
Obscura Day location: April 9, 2011.
Marvin's is at the corner of Orchard Lake Road and 14 Mile Road, in Farmington Hills, Michigan. From I-696, take the Orchard Lake Road exit North about 2 miles. Marvin's is on the West side of the road, just South of 14 Mile Road (across the road from Kmart). Look for the big 'Marvin Museum Clock' sign, and drive right underneath it.
