Step Stools vs. Rooftops

“One could spend days on YouTube cataloging the phenomenon, but I’ll cherry-pick some of the better public proposals I’ve seen. Ideally, the backdrop is a very public space, usually with a built-in audience of spectators (tourists will do in a pinch).”
 — Hairpin pal Silvia Killingsworth traces the strange and stirring/horrifying history of the modern public proposal.