Follies of the Mad Men #40

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[From Life magazine for May 18 1962.]

There's nothing oddball about this ad--except its incredible lameness! Look at those stupid birds that dominate three-quarters of the page. What do they tell the reader about the product? Absolutely nothing! This full-page ad could have run as a tiny spot with the same text at the back of the magazine for a fraction of the cost. And it would have achieved the same results.

Imagine the malicious glee at the ad agency that created this: "We just grossed a hundred K for two blotches of paint!"
     Posted By: Paul - Mon Oct 27, 2008
     Category: Animals | Business | Advertising | 1960s





Comments
MSRP is only $68 or the Lettra 22!
Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 10/27/08 at 10:43 AM
Editing the above!

MSRP is only $68 for the Lettera 22!
Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 10/27/08 at 10:44 AM
And here's what the online Inflation Calculator tells us:

What cost $68.00 in 1962 would cost $461.43 in 2007.

Yikes!
Posted by Paul on 10/27/08 at 10:48 AM
$461.43 for a TYPEWRITER?? Does it at least come with a spare ribbon?
Posted by BikerPuppy on 10/27/08 at 11:23 AM
BikerPuppy--technology used to be much more expensive. We're lucky that way at least, nowadays.
Posted by Paul on 10/27/08 at 11:43 AM
Well sure typewriters used to be more expensive, they used to not be obsolete too. I'll bet tape players are real cheap these days too.
Posted by Jules in Connecticut on 10/27/08 at 12:09 PM
Ah, nostalgia for the days when careerward and collegeward were considered two different directions and a high school diploma was the modern-day equivalent of a bachelor's degree.
Posted by Caffeinated Katie in Atlanta, GA on 10/27/08 at 12:22 PM
Jules - not just tape players.... what about 8-tracks???
Posted by KW in Dallas, TX on 10/27/08 at 03:51 PM
I've still got an old Zenith consol stereo with a phonograph, radio and an 8-track. No, I don't use it anymore, I just didn't want to toss it out yet.
Posted by Madd Maxx on 10/27/08 at 04:01 PM
At some point these things cross the threshold and become antique's - when that happens the price jumps right back up. I think an 8-track might be approaching that status 😊
Posted by Jules in Connecticut on 10/27/08 at 04:04 PM
Do you think that will happen? Maybe I'll be able to sell my Zenith one day. Funny thing is I also have an 8-track that my family and I recorded singing on. My dad does his (poor) rendition of 'Earth Angel' and I do 'The Bear Went Over the Mountain'. A little bit of family history that I should check into putting on CD.
Posted by Madd Maxx on 10/27/08 at 04:12 PM
Dammit Maxx! Now "The Bear Went Over the Mountain" is stuck in my head!!
Posted by BikerPuppy on 10/27/08 at 06:52 PM
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