JF Ptak Science Books
Retroist excursions like this into the land of social propriety from not so long ago is a bittersweet thing--its concerns can remind of of how far away from something we seem to be, when in reality that distance in time and space just isn't very far away at all; it is just slightly different, renamed and repackaged. For example, this advertisement from LIFE magazine for Trushay hand softener (1954) delivers pretty much the same message as most similar products today, except for the change in packaging and less obvious message. The message may seem outdated but I think only in so far as the images and clumsiness of the delivery is concerned. Products like this have increased by orders of magnitude, the target audiences age seems to have dropped considerably, and most of the time the pursuit of this 1954 end-result stays pretty much the same. Exercises like this are peculiar, and can show us that the people who we are laughing at may very well be us.
The reconstructed ad is below.
Annie here is in her 20s so she'd fit into the modern demographic just fine. The laundry scene is telling - it was common for young women of her time to use a laundry service for everything but underwear. She needs moisturizer, of course, because it's silk and would snag in rough hands.
Posted by: Frozenredhead | 14 September 2010 at 05:10 PM
Ladies - pay mo attention to the people at Trushay. There's not a man alive who gives a damn how soft your hands are, especially if you dress like Annie does just to "tub your undies".
Posted by: Chris Hunt | 15 September 2010 at 11:09 AM
Classy chassis. I'd play some backseat bingo in my cherry with her. I love "tubbed her undies." Too bad, though. I think she's married. Would a single girl have that many dishes to do?
Posted by: Jeff Donlan | 15 September 2010 at 06:39 PM