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75 Fascinating Vintage Products That Were The Jam Back In The Day, But Now Look Odd
How often do you wish you could travel back in time to the 1900s, Pandas? Perhaps time travel is not something we can offer, but we can share a time capsule that reflects the 20th-century lifestyle quite well. Bored Panda came across a pretty fascinating page that shares advertisements, posters, and products from that era.
While scrolling through the content from the "Archaic Ads" page, you'll get a whiff of what it was like to live in that era: what products people had advertised to them, how the adverts were worded, and what (sometimes insane) visuals accompanied them. So, get into the shoes of a 20th-century consumer, Pandas, and see what the world had to offer!
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#1
This 1957 Power Mower Of The Future Was Equipped With A Plastic Dome, Air Foam Cushion Seat, Electric Generator, Running Lights, Radio, And Air Conditioning
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#2
"Wow Jug, Now Everyone And Their Brother Will Want Our Delicious Wieners In Their Mouth!" Jughead Doesn't Care, But Veronica Looks Ready To Dig In!
Marie 1 day ago
They knew. You don't make that many dirty ads without knowing.
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Lee451 Henderson 17 hours ago
It appears that Veronica is wearing a bullet bra. Betty must have grabbed a hotdog and taken off with it.
Jeanbore Dilford 1 day ago
Yes they probably knew according to AI info : The slang sense referring to a p***s emerged soon after, around 1906 or by 1911 with the variant wienie, due to the sausage's phallic shape. This pejorative connotation tied directly to its visual resemblance, spreading colloquially in early 20th-century U.S. slang.
#3
This Guy Seems A Little Too Happy About It
Fat Harry (Oi / You) 1 day ago
Sometimes I feel life might be easier if I woke up gay in the morning.
How many of these products were real, and how many could have been just jokes? Let's go through some of the most interesting ones and see the stories behind them!
Let's start with the "Lazy Man's Power Mower." This might seem like something out of a humor magazine, but that was something a company thought it could make. The contraption was featured on the cover of the do-it-yourself magazine Mechanix Illustrated in 1958.
Internet sources claim it never went into production and was more of a gimmick or a concept that some wild DIYer would attempt as a dare. Although lawnmowers have certainly become fancier since the '50s, manufacturers still haven't figured out how to install an air conditioner in them. For one, they could first figure out how to make mowers quieter!
#4
It's Hard To Believe Air Travel Was Ever Like This, Because Flying Today Is A Lot Like Riding A Bus
In 1966, American Airlines ordered several Boeing 747 Astroliners; the biggest commercial airplanes at the time. But by the time American received the new aircraft in 1970, the economy was in a recession and there was too much capacity in the industry to justify 303-seat jumbos. So American pulled 50 seats off each 747 and used the free space to create a passenger lounge. They even installed a Wurlitzer piano in each lounge. Unfortunately, ticket sales didn't justify the added expense and the piano-lounge-in-the-sky era ended quickly.
#5
In The Early Half Of The 20th Century, Asbestos Was Widely Used As Christmas Decor Because Of Its White, Fluffy Appearance
But that was before it was recognized as a major risk factor for an aggressive form of cancer known as mesothelioma. There is a scene in the 1939 classic, “The Wizard of Oz” where asbestos snow falls on Dorothy and her friends, awakening them from a spell cast by the Wicked Witch of the West.
Fat Harry (Oi / You) 1 day ago
Fun fact: It's a Wonderful Life was the first film to use "proper" artificial snow. Prior to that, either asbestos was used, or cornflakes were painted white because they floated in a snow-like way. The problem with that was that they were so noisy (particularly when trodden on) that the audio had to be dubbed in afterwards!
#6
All Of Them? Watch Yourselves, Ladies! American Soldiers Are Std-Riddled Whores!
The Niagara Wave and Rocking Bath might look gimmicky as hell, too. However, that was a real product that proved to be quite useful during the Victorian era. The ridiculous invention wasn't just for fun; it was a form of hydrotherapy. This form of therapy was very trendy in the 1800s, and one company found a way to make it accessible at home.
The idea of this invention was that it could reproduce the feeling of being in the sea. Victorian doctors believed that water had magical healing properties, and this allowed people to enjoy the benefits of the sea without having to leave their homes.
#7
The Niagara Wave & Rocking Bath (1890s) Was An Early Form Of Hydrotherapy. The Manufacturer Promised An Accurate Simulation Of The "Seaside" & Good Health Through Improved Circulation
#8
American Inventor Stanley Hiller, Jr Designed This All-Metal Squirt Gun In The Late 1940s
#9
In The 1950s, Students Who Were Constantly Fidgeting Were Suffering From "Harsh Toilet Paper." Now We Attribute The Fidgeting To Adhd And Dose Kids With Adderall
UnclePanda 23 hours ago (edited)
Anybody remember the short-lived Texas Toilet Paper? It failed in the marketplace because it "don't take shitt off of nobody."
The rocking bath's mechanism was described in a 1981 issue of Lloyd's Weekly in the UK: "Only three pails of cold or hot water are required, and there is no splashing in the room to be apprehended. By placing a wedge under the curve of the back the bath can be made to serve the ordinary purposes of the tub."
#10
"...used By Many To Reduce The Waist Line." Now You Can Melt Those Pounds Away As You Golf Or Paint!
#11
Genuine Ocd Toy Gas Masks -- For Genuine Ocd Kids! Is It Really A "Toy" Or Is It "Genuine War Surplus?
#12
"It's Leap Year Girls! Catch Your Man With Taste-Tempting Donuts." If You Really Think Marriage Is A Trap, Why Bother With A Ball And Chain? Just Put The Donuts In A Bear Trap
The inflatable sauna shorts were the sauna suits and body wraps of the 1900s. The idea behind the poofy shorts and similar modern solutions is that they trap heat and help people lose fat. In reality, they only help with temporary water weight loss and have no effect whatsoever on long-term fat loss.
#13
"I Wish I'd Never Married!"
Morton's trademark catchphrase, "When it rains, it pours" was created to illustrate the point that Morton Salt was free flowing even in rainy weather after the company began adding magnesium carbonate as an absorbing agent to its table salt in 1911 to ensure that it poured freely.
#14
Actually, Body Odor Is Caused By Bacteria Breaking Down Sweat
#15
Who Was Sitting Around One Day And Thought What People Were Missing In Their Lives Was A Rug That Would “Stroke As You Stroke?”
Today, some people use sauna suits to work out, hoping that they burn more calories that way. But the water weight comes back as soon as the person hydrates. Research also shows that training or heating one body part doesn't melt fat off that one area.
One study found that men who wore sauna suits while exercising lost 23 more calories and oxidized slightly more fat during a 60-minute workout. But it still was not meaningful enough for visible results.
#16
And Not Racist At All. Oh No!
#17
The Mosely Folding Bath Company Advertised This Folding Bath In The 1895 Montgomery Ward Catalog
This tub, disguised as a mirrored wardrobe, folded down and out of its wood casing into the room, revealing the water heater above. Since most folks still didn't have indoor plumbing, bathing required filling tubs with water, bucket by bucket
#18
Advertisement In The Sears Roebuck Catalog For Laudanum. Opium’s Toxicity For Infants Was Common Knowledge Since Antiquity, And Yet In The Late 19th Century It Was Still In Widespread Use
Which other products on this list caught your attention, Pandas? Was it the American Airlines "new" coach lounge with a piano? Or perhaps the fake snow made out of asbestos? Let us know your favorites from this list in the comments! If you're in the mood for more culture shock from the 1990s, check out these vintage ads that show us how cultural norms have changed throughout the years.
#19
"Easy On The Sugar -- You're Reducing!" Why Don't You Shut The Hell Up Instead! And Why Is She Reducing? Was That His Idea?
#20
The “Multiple Electric Vibrator” Uses 480 Little Nubs To Rub Your Scalp, Stimulating Blood Flow And Supposedly Ridding You Of Dandruff And Loose Hair
#21
The Perfect Christmas Gift!
#22
Claiming To Cure A ‘Torpid Liver’ And Beautify The Complexion, Crane’s Little Bon-Bon Pills Were Most Likely A Laxative Or Mild Diuretic
#23
If All You Have Is This Radiation Survival Kit, You'll Be Envying Those Who Were Vaporized At Ground Zero
#24
"Made From Heavy Awing Cloth In Bright,gaudy, Horrible Stripes." What The Well-Dressed Sleazeball Wears To Lunch
#25
The Electric Banana Stereo Phono Was Inspired By An Andy Warhol Painting Of A Banana For A 1967 Album By Velvet Underground
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
I was around in those days of yore and don't remember this at all. Of course the price would have been outrageous at the time.
#26
The Committee For A Better America Was Formed In The 1920s For, "The Suppression Of Radicalism, Class Legislation And All Else Inimical To The Welfare Of The Nation."
#27
"Including Sanitary Equipment" -- A Bucket
#28
The Evans Vacuum Cap ("A Scientific Method Of Growing Hair") Was Advertised Widely Just Before The Food & Drug Act Of 1906, But Not So Much Afterwards
#29
Yes Friends, You Too Can Be An "Electronic Man" Made Out Of Cardboard
#30
Even The Squirrel Thinks Its Fun! But This Guy's Wife Immediately Threw It In The Trash
Sally Moen 1 day ago
Taxidermy is a steady business, though I think it's moved into preserving treasured pets rather than hunting trophies
#31
Sears Travelknit Fourpiece. When You Can Only Afford One Suit, Make Sure It's An Ugly Green Doubleknit
#32
These Girls Are Lovely And Exotic, And Yet They Are Also Lonely And Eager To Meet Me. Sounds Legit!
#33
"Real Hair! Actually Trimmed From Davy, Peter, Micky & Mike" But It Doesn't Say From Their Heads
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
Oh my goodness! Good thing I never saw this at the time. It must not have been in Tiger Beat magazine. I would have bought as much of Peter Tork's hair as I could have.
#34
In 1981, Electronic Mail Was Still An Exciting Innovation, But The First Email Spam Had Already Been Sent Three Years Earlier
#35
"Never Before A Woman Like This" In The 1950s, Pepsi Claimed Its Soft Drink Would Make Women Slimmer, Healthier And More Attractive
#36
"Many Times The Child Who Has Uncontrollable Flatulence Needs A Diet Correction -- Not A Spanking! Ah, The Good Old Days. Apparently, In The 1940s It Was Normal To Spank A Kid For Farting
#37
"What Man Wouldn't Enjoy Spending A Night With Raquel Welch?" Well, Forget That, But You Can Buy This "Rugged Vinyl" Pillow To Serve As Your "Headrest."
#38
Whaaat? We're Not Gay! We're Just Two Adult Men Goofing Around In Our Boxers
#39
Cadillac Was Founded In 1902 By Henry Leland, Who Named The Company After Antoine De La Mothe Cadillac, The Founder Of Detroit
In 1908, when this ad was posted, Cadillac had brought the idea of interchangeable parts to the automotive industry and laid the ground work for the modern mass production of automobiles.
#40
In The 1890s, Sharpening Pencils (Or Other Writing Implements) Involved Sandpaper, Knives, And Files And This Kind Of Activity Was Not Appropriate For Women
#41
"I've Robbed The Rainbow To Make You Gay -- Jester Wools For Gayer Garments" This Guy Didn't Need To Rob Anything To Bring The Gay
#42
Why Not Reduce Your Weight And Be Comfortable?" The Advertising For Weight Loss Products Has Never Been Subtle
#43
The Daddy Saddle. Now You Can Humiliate Your Dad -- Texas Style! Yee Haw!
Purple Gurl 21 hours ago
I have no words. I need to change my reading genres, because all I can imagine is NSFW jokes
#44
In The 1940s, Englander Mattress Boosted Sales By Convincing Women That Their Husband Would Be Much Nicer To Them If They Could Only Get A Good Night's Sleep
#45
For The "Newest Nowest Style!"
#46
What Does It Mean To "Throw Like A Girl" In This Ww2-Era Poster? It's Meant As A Put-Down, But It Reveals How Stereotypes Become Self-Fulfilling Prophecies
Bored Sailor 1 day ago
Oh come on people like a lot of these they are made up, just good comic relief. Enjoy the laugh.
#47
Weird-Vintage-Posters-Products
#48
Shell Brags About Increasing Crop Yields
Shell brags about increasing crop yields with "nitrogation" which Shell defines as taking "hydrogen from petroleum gas" and combining it with "nitrogen from the air" to make a "potent food for hungry roots." In fact, the process fertilizes the soil by the addition of anhydrous ammonia from pressure tanks into the irrigation water.
#49
Mom Is Wired On Benzedrine!
#50
“Balls Is The New Candy Sensation That Lets You Conquer The World. Just Pop A Few Balls In Your Mouth And You’ll Be Ready For Everything."
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
I never saw this in any magazine *I* ever read. This must have been for magazines for those with a more "cosmopolitan" taste than I ever had . . . . .
#51
If Your Newborn Baby Arrives Wrapped In Cellophane, He May Need More Than A Smack On The Butt
#52
"It's A Salad! It's A Dessert" It's A Dessert Topping...and A Floor Wax! (Saturday Night Live, 1976 -- 'New Shimmer', The Floor Wax That's Also A Dessert Topping)
#53
Before There Were Cans, All Soda And Beer Came In Bottles That Required A Deposit So That The Empties Could Be Returned, Cleaned And Reused
Sally Moen 1 day ago
That looks like a steel can. If so, you would need a "church key" can opener, it put a neat triangle opening in the top of your can so liquid contents could flow out. These cans were much heavier than the current soda cans of aluminum
#54
Austin Powers: "So, Shall We Shag Now, Or Shall We Shag Later?"
Sally Moen 1 day ago
That's quite a hairy chest. Wasn't Magnum PI actor Tom Selleck known for the chest hair showing shirts?
#55
The First Foils For Cooking Were Made Out Of Tin In The Late 19th Century. Aluminum Foil Was First Manufactured In Switzerland In 1910
#56
The Big Selling Point For Crosley Shelvador? Shelves In The Door. Get It? "Shel-Va-Dor"
Bonnie Blue Bird 1 day ago
Those old fridges were so much nicer than modern ones. Would love one
#57
In 1933, The American Can Company Produced The First Workable Beer Can
The first cans were made out of steel with a tin lining, so that the beer wouldn't take on a metallic taste. The cans were heavy and could only be opened with a "church key."
Sally Moen 1 day ago
Oops, there's a post about the church key can openers I commented on earlier. One thing not noted is that they were alot heavier cans than today's aluminum cans. The best way to enjoy target practice of your favorite slingshot was to line up your dad's empty beer cans on a fence
#58
What Does Ben-Hur Have To Do With Flour, You Ask? Nothing, Really
#59
This Poster Was Produced At Oak Ridge National Laboratory In 1947 To Remind Personnel Of Radiation Safety Practices
#60
"All The Fun You Can Have With Him"... But What Fun Can You Have With A Dead Alligator? Actually, I Don't Want To Know
#61
Sylvania Convertible TV -- It's A Console And A Back Injury!
#62
The Speedy Weeny Debuted In 1947. It Cooked Hot Dogs In Seconds, Using Microwave Technology Developed For Radar In World War II
#63
The Word "Colored" Was First Used To Describe Black People In The Us In 1807, And Didn't End Until The Mid 1960s
#64
Is She Really "Pleased" Or Is She Plotting To Get Even While You Sleep?
#65
Chug-A-Lug Grandpa! You Too, Little Missy
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
I believe this is how beer manufacturers had to market their product during Prohibition.
#66
"Get A Real Tan -- Not A Fake Orange Tan"...like The Orangutan-Colored Donald Trump!
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
Who could ever believe that in this day and age anyone would resort to a phony freakish orange tan?
#67
TV Was Already Doing An Excellent Job Of Hypnotizing Viewers By The Time This Ad Appeared
Roxy222uk 1 day ago
Oooh, lovely. Planning to have séx with a woman that is too out of it to give consent, what a nice way to spend an evening. I realise that it isn’t going to work, but it just fed the general conceit that trying to get séx any which way was just a cheeky chappie kind of thing that men couldn’t help themselves but do. No harm in trying, apparently.
#68
The "Modern World" Of 1954 Apparently Had A Lot Of Women Pushing Lawn Mowers
Bill Swallow 20 hours ago
Nah, I'm holding out for a walk-behind mower powered by a Mack Diesel.
#69
In 1970, Ohio Art Invented A Toy Phonograph And Promoted It As The "World's Smallest Record Player." It Also Had The World's Worst Sound
#70
"Roger Put Me Into A Street Van. And I'm Not Coming Out." Why Not? Are You Being Held Hostage?
#71
The Johnny Astro Space Vehicle -- "The Most Exciting Toy Ever" -- Was Actually A Balloon That Used A Fan For "Lift-Off" And Controlled Flight
Bonnie Blue Bird 1 day ago
Not sure why they're knocking it. Looks pretty high tech for 1968, especially with the space race happening
#72
The Faultless Rubber Company Promoted Its Faultless Sanitary Sealed Package For Delivering "Clean Balloons, Untouched From The Factory To Your Child."
#73
The Black Dragon Fighting Society Was Created By Hairdresser, Criminal, Pornographer, And Egomaniac John “Count Dante” Keehan To Separate Paper Route Money From Comic Book Reading Young Boys
#74
"For Men Only! . . . Brand New Man-Talking, Power-Packed Patterns That Tell Her It's A Man's World . . . And Make Her So Happy It Is."
#75
Jell-O Brand Powder First Hit The Market In 1897
Over the years their advertising featured many recipes. In this ad from 1959, readers are told that the gelatin protein that is produced when animal bones, connective tissues and other similar meat by-products are boiled makes a delicious soft drink.
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What do you think ?
Janissary35680 1 day ago (edited)
At least a few of these are spoofs that were originally created for National Lampoon and the like.
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
But the majority of them were actual ads. I remember a lot of them or have seen them over the years on other vintage ads sites.
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StumblingThroughLife 1 day ago (edited)
It was the same in the 60s/early 70s (at least in the UK schools). It had the texture of Baking Paper - but shiny. Ugh.
MondoLogo 1 day ago
Some of this smells like AI (not all). And some of this is that terms like "gay", etc changed over the years. 2080 will not be any kinder to us.
Rick Murray 22 hours ago
Don't need to go that far back. Not so long ago, burger flingers used to include horrible plastic things as the children's "toy", instant landfill. Everything was packed in styrofoam, and pretty much the 70s to about the last few years can be put down as "the age of plastic". Oh, and the number of films and TV programmes that featured prominent smoking seen in a positive light - like Hannibal and his legendary cigars when a plan came together.
Load More Replies... Janissary35680 1 day ago (edited)
At least a few of these are spoofs that were originally created for National Lampoon and the like.
Multa Nocte 1 day ago
But the majority of them were actual ads. I remember a lot of them or have seen them over the years on other vintage ads sites.
Load More Replies... StumblingThroughLife 1 day ago (edited)
It was the same in the 60s/early 70s (at least in the UK schools). It had the texture of Baking Paper - but shiny. Ugh.
MondoLogo 1 day ago
Some of this smells like AI (not all). And some of this is that terms like "gay", etc changed over the years. 2080 will not be any kinder to us.
Rick Murray 22 hours ago
Don't need to go that far back. Not so long ago, burger flingers used to include horrible plastic things as the children's "toy", instant landfill. Everything was packed in styrofoam, and pretty much the 70s to about the last few years can be put down as "the age of plastic". Oh, and the number of films and TV programmes that featured prominent smoking seen in a positive light - like Hannibal and his legendary cigars when a plan came together.
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