Ads You’ll Never See Again: The Way We Ate

Continuing our tribute to vintage ads, we look this week at food advertising.

To judge from this sampling, food ads often focused less on the products themselves and more on happy family members. Advertisers appealed to the consumer — a (presumably) female homemaker — through images of well-fed kids and gratified husbands.

And some of these ads … well, we can’t even imagine what the advertiser was thinking.

 

Stuffed

Judging from this ad, mothers of 1914 didn’t worry too much about childhood obesity.

 

Orange Juice

Drink even more orange juice, advised the Florida Citrus Commission. “Turn those small old-fashioned juice glasses out to pasture.”

 

Fully Nutritious

Americans began using margarine during World War II, when rationing reduced the availability of butter. However, margarine in its natural state had a white, lard-like color. Dairy farmers succeeded in getting laws passed that prohibited margarine makers from dyeing their product an appetizing, buttery yellow. Eventually, these laws were set aside, and margarine makers could promote their product in a natural “sunny color.”

 

My Feet

Cute baby photos were popular among advertisers in the 1950s. They appeared in ads for all sorts of products, including cigarettes. While the photo in this ad was the work of “the one and only Constance Bannister, America’s foremost baby photographer,” it’s hard to see how it sold “skinless” hot dogs.

 

Wife Beaters

“Women everywhere are cheerfully admitting that Campbell’s beat them at soup making.” Why? What did you think they meant?

 

“Got a good man? Keep him happy.”

The small print in the upper corner explained that the very ’60s-looking “wife pleasing” cup and saucer were sold at Acme, back in the days when supermarkets competed by selling place settings, cookware, and encyclopedias.

 

No Time To Be Frail

Lastly, we offer this wartime bulletin to homemakers: “The dainty days are done for the duration.” Whether you were a housewife or a riveter, World War II was “no time to go easy on such basic food as bread,” according to the makers of Fleischmann’s Yeast. Just three slices would give you enough energy to do an hour’s housework. Four slices would power 30 minutes of wood chopping. Bread would help us win the war.

Coming Soon from The Saturday Evening Post: Ads You’ll Never See Again

A special collector’s edition of The Saturday Evening Post filled with ads from the past that will delight, entertain — and sometimes shock — with images and concepts that are thoroughly inappropriate today. You’ll cringe when you see babies wrapped in then-brand-new cellophane. You’ll laugh out loud at Santa promoting a cigarette brand. You’ll wince at an ad that threatens housewives with a spanking for failing to complete their domestic chores. More than just an entertainment, the special issue offers a snapshot of attitudes about gender, childrearing, and marketing in an era that most readers will remember all too well.

It’s too early to order, but if you might be interested in purchasing this product, please click here and we’ll send you a notice when the special issue is available.