Tag Archives: vintage ad

Stiff Competition

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What a lovely and fashionable girl.

What do you suppose the 1913 ad she was featured in was selling?

Go ahead, take a guess.

An upscale department store?

No.

The season’s latest fur styles?

No.

A vacation to exotic Canada?

No.

Embalming fluid?

What are you, some kind of wise guy!?

Oh, wait…

You’re right!

It’s an ad for embalming fluid.

Magazine ad for the Clarke Fluid Company found in the December 1913 issue of The Sunnyside by Charles Addams back in the 1950s.
Magazine ad for the Clarke Fluid Company found in the December 1913 issue of The Sunnyside by Charles Addams back in the 1950s.

D-uh. It’s so obvious now!

Bone Shards:

Ripley’s has a lovely handful of weird embalming stories just waiting for you.

The next time you’re in Houston, don’t forget to stop at the National Museum of Funeral History. Slogan: “Any day above ground is a good one.”

I know! I’m sad I missed out on this auction too.

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You might feel a little prick.

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1948 magazine ad for Elizabeth Arden
1948 magazine ad for Elizabeth Arden

Sometimes a cactus is just a cactus.

Elizabeth Arden was born Florence Nightingale Graham.

The history of lipstick? Well, if you insist.

Did you know drinking cactus water might not be such a good idea?

A $1.25 lipstick in 1948 would cost $13.72 today.

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For Movers and Quakers

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I forgot to note the year of this Quaker Oats magazine ad, but the packaging matches those sold in the late 1890s.
I forgot to note the year of this Quaker Oats magazine ad, but the packaging matches those sold in the late 1890s.

“Does this cereal taste great? Who knows? But at least the box is cute.” — Crazy People (1990)

Do you know the difference between Quakers and Shakers?

In 1969, Quaker Oats owned Fisher-Price.

Quaker Oats paid for the production of the original Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.

Quaker Oats is currently owned by PepsiCo.

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“Men. They look.”

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1969 magazine ad for Dr. Scholl's
1969 magazine ad for Dr. Scholl’s

Do your feet hurt? Because you’ve been running through my mind all day.

Bits of toe jam:

Dr. Scholl’s full name is/was Dr. William Mathias Scholl.

The human foot has 26 bones.

If you stub a toe, rather than swearing, you can exclaim, “My phalanges!“

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I beg your pardon. I never promised you a Weingarten.

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Magazine ad for WB Erect Form Corsets from around 1901, I think.
Magazine ad for WB Erect Form Corsets from around 1901, I think.

Uhhuhuhuhuhuhuh… “Erect” Uhhuhuhuhuhuhuh…

“…the implement of detestable coquetry which not only betrays a frivolous bent but forecasts the decline of humanity.” – Napoleon Bonaparte on corsets

Would you like to know more about corsets?

Of corset you would! Here ya go! This too. And how about this?

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Polly want a Packard?

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Packard magazine ad found in the July 2, 1927 issue of The Literary Digest
Packard magazine ad found in the July 2, 1927 issue of The Literary Digest

According to this ad, Packard had a Board of Color who would decide on the car color schemes. Just imagine the fights.

Some quasi-random knowledge:

Having your car the same colors as a harlequin macaw would certainly get noticed.

Macaws can live for 50-100 years.

In 1930 (three years after this ad), the average life of a new car was 6.75 years.

The average lifespan of a modern car is not quite 12 years.

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“Are you still using the wearying, old-fashioned, unclean method?”

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"I'm fine."
“I’m fine.”
Magazine ad for Torrington Cleaners / National Sweeper Co. found in the May 1917 issue of The Designer
Magazine ad for Torrington Cleaners /  National Sweeper Co. found in the May 1917 issue of The Designer

Fun facts:

Some of Torrington’s other carpet sweeper model names were Utility, Paragon and Peerless. And under the National name, the Royal Duchess!

Torrington, Connecticut, was once a major part of the Underground Railroad.

I’m still working on what the heck they mean by “laying the dust” but I think it has something to do with sprinkling water on stuff so dust doesn’t get in the air.

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ZWEE THONK

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Comic book ad for Hostess Twinkies - Spider-Man! in The Spider-Man and the Fly!
I forgot to write down the comic book year and info when I canned this a while back, but I’ll guess the 1970s.

I guess the more dialogue you have, the less you have to draw.

Fun facts:

The first Twinkie was made in 1930. They’re probably stale by now.

Spider-Man plays a key part in Alt Text 19: Witness Protection.

Got a spare million or two? Then check out the ten rarest, most expensive Spider-Man comic books.

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Girdles and napkins and belts, oh my!

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“Daaaaaaamn, girl! You lookin’ fine.”
Circa 1947 magazine ad for Kotex Sanitary Napkins
Circa 1947 magazine ad for Kotex Sanitary Napkins

“A short beau in tow is worth ten highboys on the loose.” Forties lingo is killer diller!

Fun facts:

Curious what a smooth and comfortable Kotex Wonderform Belt looks like? Of course you are. [scroll when at link]

Four tips for being a great bellhop from a site that sells shoes so you can probably guess one of the tips.

Wanna learn a bit o’ slang from the 1940s? You’ll recognize some, but not all. Here’s some more.

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You down with DDT?

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Yeah, you know me.

"Hey Mom! Can you spray my oatmeal with some more of that dee-licious DDT?" "Sure, Sweetie! Say when!" [spritz spritz spritz spritz...]
“Hey Mom! Can you spray my oatmeal with some more of that dee-licious DDT?” “Sure, Sweetie! Say when!” [spritz spritz spritz spritz…]
Du Pont (DuPont) magazine ad for DDT and other happy fun chemicals — Found in the April 1947 issue of Better Homes and Gardens.
Du Pont (DuPont) magazine ad for DDT and other happy fun chemicals — Found in the April 1947 issue of Better Homes and Gardens.

Fun facts:

DDT stands for dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro-ethane (also Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane). And now you know why they called it DDT instead.

In 1955 alone, 500 million pounds of DTT was produced.

Some houseflies turned out to be resistant to DDT.

DDT got a dude a Nobel Prize.

And then there’s the whole thing about DDT and raptors and shell thinning and OMG they’re still fighting about that so I’m not going to link to anything about it.

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