http://yesterdaysclues.com Ads from the past and the stories they tell. Tue, 14 Apr 2009 00:19:11 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Product: Admiral Radio-Phonographs Date: 1948 Right? Am I right? Smart never goes out of date. And when television comes to town, you'll be ready. In the meantime, you've got a nice spot for that 16-volume encyclopedia bound in white leatherette. We all know you'll always need that. Click to enlarge. [tags]vintage advertising, false promises, ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/because-new-is-forever-when-you-call-it-smart/ Product: Carry Phone Date: 1967 You're out on a deserted beach with your favorite girl, nobody around for miles, nothing but sand, sun and sea -- and suddenly your phone rings! Groovy, man. It's 1967 and the Carry Phone is the latest in portable technology. Weighing "only" 10 pounds and priced at just ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/imagine-a-phone-you-can-take-anywhere/ Product: various Date: 1913 Billboards cluttering up the highway. Stories-tall advertising destroying the beauty of the countryside. It's a modern problem, born of the car culture that rose to prominence in 1950s America. That's all true, at least in North America. But billboards -- and vocal opposition to their intrusion on a city ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/marketers-visually-polluting-your-countryside-since-1913/ Product: Gayla Bobby Pins Date: 1950 Ever wanted to look like you were headed to a fancy evening soiree when, in fact, all you were doing was playing tennis? Now you can. All it takes is...wait for it...bobby pins! Yes, magical bobby pins can transform you from sweaty athlete to coiffed princess in ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/have-a-party-hair-do-a-yabba-dair-do/ Product: Listerine Date: 1962 As the lady in the diner says after Meg Ryan's famous O performance in When Harry Met Sally, "I'll have what she's having." Honestly, who knew that gargling Listerine could be such a dreamy experience? Click to enlarge. [tags]vintage advertisement, Listerine, mouthwash, gargle[/tags] http://yesterdaysclues.com/ill-have-what-shes-having/ Product:The Lad's Car Date: 1912 One look at this ad from 1912 and you've got to think that maybe the Lad's Car had a little something to do with implementing a minimum driving age. The Lad's Car was a fully functioning, five-horsepower, gasoline-powered miniature car that could reach speeds of 20 miles per ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/get-out-of-my-dreams-and-into-my-mini-car/ Product: Lysol Disinfectant Date: 1931 Marketers know that few things work better than a scare tactic or two when it comes to compelling people to buy a product. Witness this 1931 ad from Lysol that uses the Bubonic Plague as its central image. The text tells you that those silly people in ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/a-plague-upon-youunless-you-use-lysol/ Product: Foot's Chair-Couch Date: 1911 La-Z-Boy ain't got nothing on this bad boy. In fact, years before La-Z-Boy came on the scene, there was already a deluxe recliner called the Burlington. Check it out: The back goes up and down at the press of a button The arms swing out for make getting in ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/pimp-my-chair/ Product: Royal Gelatin Date: 1933 Do you ever stop to think what gelatin is made from? Many people think horse's hooves. It's a common misconception, but no, gelatin cannot be made from hooves. What it does contain is not actually any more palatable: cattle and pork bones, pig skins, and cattle hides. These ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/your-gel-it-smell/ Product: h.i.s. Post-Grad Slacks Date: 1969 Oh my my my. There's so much you could say about this ad, and yet it's almost better to let it speak for itself. Published in a Playboy magazine at the tail end of the '60s, it was intended to epitomize all that was cool. [tags]vintage advertising, ... http://yesterdaysclues.com/the-revolution-will-be-plaid/