1942
Vintage adverts Page 64
c.1980
The above image and text were used for the brochure for the World Trade Center in New York throughout the 1980s.
c.1950
Superman's heart appears to be in the right place (unlike Doctor Who's) but why doesn't he condemn homophobic abuse? I suppose the reason is that, when this ad was published, gay sex was deemed 'a crime against nature' in all 48 states. Can you believe it? It wouldn't be until 1962 that Illinois became the first US state to decriminalise homosexuality and it would be a further six years before England and Wales followed suit. Scotland decriminalised it in 1980 and Northern Ireland in 1982.
Why was it ever illegal? Oh, I remember - the Bible, but let's not go there.
Instead, let's go back to the mid-20th century and remember that even in those dark days for the gay community, things were at least beginning to change
The Mattachine Society, Inc. of New York was founded in New York City in 1955 for the purpose of educating the public about homosexuality, assisting individual gay men in coping with problems related to their orientation and obtaining full civil and social rights for the gay community.
The MSNY was one of several offshoots of the Mattachine Society founded in Los Angeles in 1950. During the 1960s, its most active period, it was a leader in the struggle to promote the cause of gay rights through education and other peaceful means, deliberately avoiding the more aggressive tactics adopted by the gay liberation movement during the 1970s. The MSNY maintained a referral and counselling service for gay men, sponsored discussion groups, canvassed candidates for public office and employers on their attitudes towards gays, and published its own magazine and newsletter. It lobbied for the repeal of laws discriminating against gays in housing, employment and assembly, and the suppression of police harassment and entrapment. With other civic action groups, it agitated successfully for a civilian complaint review board to monitor allegations of police misconduct.
Way to go, Mattachine!
Quote: alison blunderland @ 12th May 2023, 7:31 PMc.1950
Superman's heart appears to be in the right place (unlike Doctor Who's) but why doesn't he condemn homophobic abuse? I suppose the reason is that, when this ad was published, gay sex was deemed 'a crime against nature' in all 48 states. Can you believe it? It wouldn't be until 1962 that Illinois became the first US state to decriminalise homosexuality and it would be a further six years before England and Wales followed suit. Scotland decriminalised it in 1980 and Northern Ireland in 1982.
Why was it ever illegal? Oh, I remember - the Bible, but let's not go there.Way to go, Mattachine!
Where on earth do you get tat bollocks from?
1979
1941
Binaca [an anagram of bianca (white)] toothpaste was launched in 1941 by CIBA - a Swiss company based in Basel - and is still available today.
The artwork is by the renowned Swiss artist Niklaus Stoecklin.
Bacardi Rum 1983
A rare photo of the company founder, Ron Bacardi.
Quote: alison blunderland @ 15th May 2023, 1:21 PMBacardi Rum 1983
An ad right up my street, remember that era very fondly, seemed everyone drank Bacardi & coke in the 70s & 80s. I wasn't legally allowed to drink it until '84 but I was trying it way before that ad. That era was wonderfully relaxed about underaged well everything. Great times much missed.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ 15th May 2023, 1:49 PMAn ad right up my street, remember that era very fondly, seemed everyone drank Bacardi & coke in the 70s & 80s. I wasn't legally allowed to drink it until '84 but I was trying it way before that ad. That era was wonderfully relaxed about underaged well everything.
My first Bacardi and Coke (and my second, third, fourth, etc.) was at a disco in Medellin, Colombia in 1978. I was 14 years old, and my 9th-grade Spanish class was on a trip to Colombia. My hosts forgot to pick me up, so I spent a few hours sleeping on the sidewalk after they shut down at 4 AM. What an experience - we even saw an early cartel hit. Point blank, right in the center of his forehead. Can't believe my parents let me go on that trip.
1958
Today
Bock Beer 1898
Bock beer is a dark German lager originally brewed in the northern town of Einbeck in the 14th century.
When the beer was brought south to Munich in the 17th century, the slight differences in language meant that Bavarians misheard 'Einbeck' as 'ein bock' (a buck) - which to Germans means a billy goat, a ram or, colloquially, a man who's very active with the ladies.
The name stuck and so did the image of the animal, which you'll find on many bock labels to this day.
Some fascinating Ads there Alison
Thanks for posting them
Quote: Steve Sunshine @ 16th May 2023, 10:53 PMSome fascinating Ads there Alison
Thanks for posting them
Merci beaucoup, Steve. (I'm talking French cos the next ad is from France) xx
Clément Cycles 1898
Clément-Bayard was a keen cycle racer in France who, in 1876 at the age of 21, set up his own one-man business repairing bikes.
A couple of years later, he began manufacturing bikes from scratch and by 1880 he was employing 150 people in his bike-building business.
By 1890, 'Clément' was France's leading cycle brand.
Cadbury's chocolate biscuits
In 1891, brothers George and Richard Cadbury patented a design for a layered and coated chocolate biscuit. Yippee!
The original patent drawing depicts a 'rectangle tablet' which is 'half an inch thick, two inches wide, and three inches and a half long'. It was composed of two cocoa-flavoured biscuits sandwiched together and enrobed in Cadbury chocolate.
I bet it was delicious but, sadly, Cadbury's marketing didn't match its innovation. The biscuits went on sale in April 1891 but instead of being called something catchy and enticing, they were rather drearily named "1d" and "2d". In Cadbury's catalogue of more than 1,000 products, they were listed as 983rd and 985th. No wonder by 1902 the biscuit accounted for only 2 per cent of production. Sales were poor and so this pioneering biscuit ceased to be manufactured.
Luckily for the public, however, in the 1930s Cadburys decided to have another go at making chocolate biscuits and the rest, as they say, is history.
1934
1953
1956
Yum! Yum!