Alex Balk, Smoker
Carol Diehl, Art Critic
Matthew Gallaway , Novelist
Megan Lubaszka, Architect
Angela Serratore, Historian
Tim Siedell, Ad Man
Natasha Simons, Writer
Christina Perry & Derrick Gee, Designers
Dave Wilkie, Ad Man
Color schemes of 1965 — so daring! Look at those swatches. Could you imagine the orange/brown/green pattern spread out over a colonial revival home? That blue and yellow is already pretty ballsy.
Look at the little ornaments on the sidetable. Chinoiserie influenced?
My curiosity about this Jay Poole guy is aroused.
Of course, the best part about this ad: Blanche’s hair.
What else will they come up with nowadays?
“Research has created a lot of advertising techinicians who know all the rules. They can tell you that babies and dogs will attract more readers. They can tell you that body copy should be broken you for easier reading…
They can tell you all the right things, and give you fact after fact. They’re the scientists of advertising …
It is simply not enough to say the right thing. Things have to be said that motivate people. The difference is art.”
—Robert Gage, copy writer for Doyle Dane Bernbach
(ads via)
“I told the team that I wanted the car to appeal to women, but I wanted men to desire it, too.”
-Joe Oros, Ford Product Design
* * *
If ever there was a car that inspired raw desire, it was 1964’s Ford Mustang. Ford’s most successful product since the Model T, the Mustang created the “pony car” class of American automobile — sports car-like coupes with long hoods and short rear decks designed to appeal to the Man in every American male.
Unlike the Volkswagen Beetle, the Mustang came prepared to sell itself—it’s debut at the World’s Fair was followed by a print campaign in which bright-eyed, bushy-tailed young couples got as close as was decent and eyed the car’s sleek body and lush interior.
The price was low (starting at $2368, the Mustang was almost a thousand bucks cheaper than the 1964 average, making it especially attractive to teenagers and young men), his grip on her was tight, and there was nary a child in sight—the Mustang was decidedly not a family car, though it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that more than a few families were started in the Mustang’s backseat.
That’s not to say Ford’s product design and marketing teams weren’t interested in Draper-style tactics—consider this anecdote, from Gary L. Witzeburg’s Mustang: The Complete History of America’s Pioneer Pony Car:
“Among the many accolades heaped upon the first Mustang, including the prestigious Industrial designer’s Institute Award, perhaps the most cherished by Henry Ford II was the Tiffany Gold Medal Award, bestowed by the famed diamond merchant “For Excellence in American Design.” Walter Hoving, Tiffany & Company chairman, presented the medal to Mr. Ford during the April 13th World’s fair press introduction ceremonies, and it marked the first time this prestigious honor had been awarded to an automobile.
Actually, according to then Mustang product planner Hal Sperlich, it had happened because Ford PR people had approached Tiffany, instead of the other way around. “Somebody said, ‘You know, the car really ought to win an award; it ought to be an award-winning car,’ but there wasn’t anything suitable,” Sperlich recalls. “So somebody was dispatched to see Walter Hoving, and Walter agreed …provided he could look the car over to make sure it was suitable, and the deal was struck.”
The Mustang’s popularity continued to rise throughout the 60s, and it’s starring role as Steve McQueen’s ride in 1968’s Bullit cemented it’s status as the ultimate symbol of American vehicular virility.
For more of McQueen Mustang-d Manliness check out the divine Selvedge Yard.
Footnote by Angela Serratore
Look at this thinking man! Is he a screenwriter? A novelist? A commercial director? Or just a guy whose job requires him to have eyes burning with intensity and sophisticated lighting equipment arranged around him?
July can’t come soon enough!
“I’ve never seen one that game!” Sal says to Don about particularly gregarious stewardess?
“Really?” Don replies with a knowing glance.
Behold!
“The six of us rented a hosue together out there. The pilots called us the ‘sexy six.’ They always looked at you in a sexual way. You know, you’d walk into the cockpit on your first day and they’d say, “This is a test to find out if you’re a virgin,” and they’d have a gyro and they’d make it spin, and then they’d say “Aha, you’re not a virgin.”“
These skies are prettttyyy friendly, fellas.
(via ”The Fifties: A Women’s Oral History.” Brett Harvey. Harper Collins. 1977. New York)
Grin and Bare It: Performers love party food!
The Utz television campaign that featured the trash talking comedian Jimmy Barrett as the spokesman was likely inspired by the Lay’s and Cracker Jack ads.
Young & Rubicam built a campaign for Lay’s around beloved comedian Bert Lahr a.k.a. the Cowardly Lion from the wizard of Oz. Lahr appears on a soundstage when the devil (Bahr dressed up in a Halloween-y red costume) says to him‘: Betcha can’t eat just one.’ Bahr tells Beelzebub not to be absurd and then crunch, crunch, crunch, Bahr can’t stop digging into the bag. The voiceover says “You can eat a million of them. But nobody can eat just one.” The campaign was a big success and carried on for years.
Doyle Dane Bernach’s most popular commercials featured Broadway actor Jack Gifford doing inspired bits nonsense bits that won the affection of kids and adults. In possibly the most famous spot, Gifford is a priggish school teacher who admonishes his student for eating Cracker Jacks in class and snatches the candied corn away from him. Moments later, Gifford is palming the snack into his mouth. “When it comes to Cracker Jacks,” the voice over says, “some kids never grow up.” Their comic appeal combined with sturdy production of gave the spots an endearing quality rather than a patronizing one.
Though Utz didn’t use comedians in any television campaigns, their logo of a plump cheeked girl smiling while elbow deep in bag of potato chips has the same effect: child like indulgence in snack food. Who care if it’s bad for you! It’s fun! In both these ads the performer doesn’t sacrifice his identity for the product: Gifford and Bahr’s whimsical personas enhanced the appeal of the product.
If Marlboros are for Cowboys then Lucky Strike is For Magical Men.
Leo Burnett, creator of the Marlboro man, was once asked why he smoked Marlboro cigarettes. Burnett responded: “ I guess my feeling is pretty well summed up in the remarks of the vice-president of a competitive agency. When asked why he was smoking a not-too-popular brand of cigarette: ‘In my book there is no taste or aroma quite like bread and butter.’ “
This ad is from the 1936 Lucky Strike print campaign.
“Bras are for men. Women want to see themselves the way men see them.” — Paul Kinsey
Looks like Maidenform went ahead and took Paul’s campaign! After all, it wasn’t doing much good wasting away in Playtex’s archives. The (real) 1960s ad on left bears a striking resemblance to the Jackie/Marilyn dynamic theme from the episode “Maidenform”.
Paul’s brilliant campaign resulted in a bit of a downer for Pegs — she realized she’s not a Jackie or a Marilyn. Someone meanly snickers she’s more of a Gertrude Stein, and Don compares her to Irene Dunne, but really what the girl is, is Katharine Hepburn. You know?
The Jackie/Marilyn (Madonna/whore) dichotomy has been around for much longer than the two women. I don’t know how Paul came up with such a thing (it’s Paul for God’s sake) but it plays very deeply into a part of the female psyche that has struggled with these two perceptions ever since we began talking about sex openly.
• footnote - by Natasha Simons
