Friday, December 18, 2015

Reader's Digest Condensed - 1976 Christmas Ad Edition



Who knew Vitalis was an early pioneer of the clear product movement that swept the late 80's and early '90's.


Year after year, Santa must prove himself time and again he's the real Santa. Oh, the year they all wanted Tickle Me Elmos.  He nearly had a nervous breakdown.

Yes, they also tell a person, "I couldn't think of what to give you, so I went with a watch."


When I first looked at the caption under the second photo, the "L" and the "I" separation wasn't evident.  I thought they were really angry they got a normal shot.


Lipton Cup-a-Soup: an even weaker attempt at soup than Ramen.



Despite the lack of skin in this ad, it's still very provocative.


Can you really call philately "playing".  Hey, I said "philately".  Look it up.

 Polaroid successfully sued Kodak and their EK6 for patent infringement.

Looking through these ads, if you're starting your Christmas shopping here, it's already too late.



When I was a child, I was beaten up a lot.

Seriously, what movie was that scary in the '70's?  They can only be watching "The Excorcist".  I love how Panasonic promotes their family night of television viewing with the promise, "Blood is bloodier".

Yes, son.  Some time around 1980, I will pass down my hot lather machine to you and you will shave like a man.  I'm sorry, there's something in my eye.

My sister had that Cricket world map lighter.  I still remember the smell of evaporating butane.

"We never used a chain saw before today."  We also never lost any fingers before today.





My first car was a Volare.  Oh... Yeah...

True story.  My son tried to make a toasted cheese sandwich this way, but used a regular toaster.  I had to throw it out.

Kmart was ahead of the curve on this one.  Farrah hair was nigh upon us.


$45.88 in 1976 is nearly $200 today.




Why the giant ball on the hat.  What purpose does it serve.  And why do they have to match?!

Because it's a real turnoff when your teeth fall out during an intimate encounter.

The possibility that his freckles could move just provides an additional element of creepiness to this ginger muffin.

The wonders of modern science.  Now you just need to push a button when you get up to change the channel.

7 comments:

  1. Fun trip back in time. The ham looks ... not so good. The chair the kid is sitting in I thought was gift-wrapped. And that final pic is a beautiful piece of art!

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    1. >And that final pic is a beautiful piece of art!
      Yeah, Reader's Digest did have some nice painted covers. I tried to do the full spread from cover to back, but those thick bindings just won't allow it.

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  2. oooh, that Shower Massage Santa... i have moustache envy.

    the chex party mix recipe is ALMOST the original one. corn chex came out after 1953, so that's the only difference i think. LOVE the original chex mix!

    they are clearly watching either The Exorcist or The Shining. nothing else comes to mind. maybe the 70s Body Snatchers?

    we have a local radio personality who goes by "Dr. J" and it drives me crazy. there's only ONE Orange Julius, and that's the Erving one!

    i remember your Volaré!

    true story: i have that red 8-track downstairs in our basement right now. i keep thinking i'll gut it and put something cool inside it, but i haven't done it yet.

    riding a 10-speed in the snow is a sure recipe for a broken leg.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. >the chex party mix recipe is ALMOST the original one.
      I never knew there was an original recipe. How far back does Chex Mix go anyway?
      > i have that red 8-track downstairs in our basement right now.
      If you must gut it, it would make an awesome mp3 player.

      Delete
    2. the original ran in 1952, and didn't have pretzels, either, i'm now finding. http://graphic-design.tjs-labs.com/show-picture?id=1073661144&size=FULL

      yeah, an MP3 player was my intent. maybe some day!

      Delete
  3. My dad had a '77 Volare wagon. Holy hell was that thing a lemon from day one. It almost seemed like a miracle when the engine would finally turn over.

    Surprisingly, my local police department had a fleet of Volare sedans. How they were able to go out on patrols and chase criminals in cars that refused to start is beyond me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had a '78 Volare tudor sedan. There was a sharp corner on my way to work. Every time I went around that corner, the engine would die. I learned to throw the car in neutral and start it again while in the turn without missing a beat. When I would shut it off, it would diesel for maybe 10 to 15 seconds and end with a bang like Uncle Buck's car. Kids these days have no idea...

      Delete

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