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i am about to explode!
here is another atrocious example of a racist commercial being produced in denmark, today in 2006, again by nybolig, again produced by wibroe, duckert and partners. it has just been released and the name of the film is indianer (indians).
in this scenario, a landowner and his family, who are white, are under siege by indians in a cartoonish western setting, and therefore forced to put their house up for sale. the white real estate agent then shows up, supported by the cavalry representing the real estate company (again, all of them are white) and, through force, they save the landowner and his family, striking a deal with the natives, who are conned into purchasing the land that once was theirs.
during the final shot, the real estate agent, now in traditional business attire, is scalped by an indian.
this commercial appeals to the worst stereotypes and clichés of what the american indians were like. for one, scalping did not originate with the indians - it was a french innovation in which a very limited number of people from the northeastern tribes in the former french colonies in canada were paid by the french as mercenaries - and some of them were told to bring proof of their kills by scalping their victims. it is a terrible assumption that this is normal behaviour for such a large group of people - it is far from it and it never was a reality in the american west - it simply did not happen.
this commercial appeals to the lowest common denominator and is a great disgrace to native americans. and don't say it's not relevant today. it is a hateful campaign, based on the premise that if you make one group of people look ridiculous, you then increase your own standing. it tells us that it is o.k. to stereotype other people, especially if you want to sell a product.
i am married to someone of apache decent who lives in denmark - she will see this commercial and will no doubt feel greatly offended.
what am i supposed to tell her?
boycott this company, please. nybolig, en ordentlig handel. bullshit.
see the film for yourself.
oddset is a company that is majority-owned by the state of denmark, which maintains a monopoly on legalized gambling in denmark.
oddset hired the advertising agency BBDO to produce this campaign in connection with the football world cup, but the campaign has been running in one variation or another for several years. brand recognition of the oddset product has increased as a result of this campaign and, astonishingly, the overall campaign has actually won several prizes.
as it is clear, not only is it racist but also pathetically misogynist.
the tag line at the bottom of the page says "there is so much that women do not understand." der er så meget kvinder ikke forstår.
blackface has never been funny and it never will be.
i have been to several costume parties in denmark where white danes feel comfortable walking around in black face, completely ignorant of the great offence that they are causing. i have known people whom i would think of as friends, such as the well regarded designer henrik vibskov, who has appeared in black face at a party while prancing around on stage - at a party that was otherwise filled with very cool, very open-minded people. you can see him in the film that appears here - he's the only one wearing black face. he used an image of himself in black face for PR material that was distributed at a trade fair in berlin that my wife attended. we know henrik, and we have friends who work with him, but he continues to allow the pictures of himself in blackface to be used and distributed. btw, i have told him how i feel and he shrugged it off.
the use of blackface is pathetic, abusive, and has no place in the society that i want to live in, nor in the denmark that i want to call home. these people do not represent my views.
This undated hosiery ad is a template designed for flexible reuse across newspapers and magazines during the height of the silk-stocking boom. The elegant illustrations, with their elongated silhouettes and fashionable dropped waists, reflect the visual language of the Roaring Twenties, when silk hosiery was both a symbol of modern femininity and a rapidly expanding consumer market.
The layout is intentionally incomplete with open fields awaiting localized typesetting. Manufacturers supplied these stock mats to retailers, who would insert their own store name, ordering instructions, or seasonal promotions.
The ad’s color chart – offering shades such as Gun Metal, Roseblush and Blonde – captures the era’s fascination with subtle tonal variation, a hallmark of 1920s hosiery marketing. As a flexible template, it preserves the behind-the-scenes mechanics of how national brands reached local audiences. Even in its unfinished state, it is an elegant piece of print-shop ephemera.
[Source: Microsoft Copilot]
Boris Artzybasheff (1899-1965) was a Russian-American illustrator renowned for his striking and often surreal designs. Born in Kharkov, Ukraine, he fled to the United States in 1919 following the Russian Revolution. Artzybasheff's work spanned various genres, including science fiction, commercial advertising, and book illustrations. He was particularly known for his ability to blend detailed realism with imaginative surrealism, creating powerful and evocative images.
Artzybasheff’s 10 original, macabre illustrations for Charles Finney’s “The Circus of Dr. Lao” (1935) brought a dark, surrealistic quality to the science fiction genre, moving away from conventional pulp illustrations toward a more refined, psychological, and eerie aesthetic. His signature style—meticulously rendered, anthropomorphic machinery—became a staple of early-to-mid 20th-century tech-fantasy imagery and influenced corporate and industrial design. His art often featured anthropomorphic, uncanny machinery, which prefigured the "cyborg" by blurring the lines between living organisms and complex mechanisms.
Throughout his career, Artzybasheff illustrated over 50 books and created more than 200 covers for prominent magazines like “Time” and “Life.” His unique style, which often depicted mechanized humans and anthropomorphized machines, left a lasting impact on both the science fiction genre and commercial art. His legacy endures through his influential and innovative contributions to the world of illustration.
[Sources: Wikipedia, LusherGallery.com, and “Artzybasheff’s Robots” in Black Gate Magazine (January 16, 2019) at blackgate.com]
“Let’s Go!” Says Major Carl W. Payne, of Columbus, Ohio – AAF fighter pilot. The ad includes a photo of the young 22-year-old Major and a summary of his war experiences – 227 missions flown, five and one-half enemy planes destroyed, 30 times decorated. “Yet neither he nor his plane has ever been scratched!”
“Fly and Fight with the AAF. Greatest Team in the World.”
I can’t imagine another wartime military recruitment poster being aimed this squarely at very young men. “So, if you’re seventeen . . . let’s go!”
In the context of May 1944, with the Normandy invasion just weeks away and the war’s outcome still uncertain, the Army Air Forces were aggressively recruiting to fill the ranks of pilots, navigators, bombardiers, and gunners. Seventeen-year-olds represented a vital pipeline—young enough to be molded, old enough to serve soon. It really is remarkable how precisely this ad zeroes in on that age—old enough to feel the pull of adult heroism, young enough to still be dazzled by the promise of glory.
The ad is a masterclass in wartime persuasion. It blends heroism (Major Payne’s spotless record and 30 decorations), camaraderie (the “greatest team in the world”), and youthful ambition. The football metaphors—quarterback, interference, scoring the hit—are no accident. They speak the language of American boys raised on sports and competition, now invited to play for the highest stakes imaginable.
And the image of Payne himself—a major at 22, untouched by enemy fire despite 227 missions—is almost mythic. The combination of a clean cut, undefeated 22 year old major and that explosive dogfight illustration would have hit like a lightning bolt to a seventeen year old leafing through “The Saturday Evening Post” on a Saturday afternoon. Payne’s framed as the natural next step for any ambitious boy who loves speed, sports, and the idea of proving himself. The copy practically whispers: "You could be him. You could be better." And in 1944, with the cultural drumbeat of duty and destiny everywhere, that message must have felt irresistible.
There’s a poignant tension here too. The ad celebrates youthful invincibility, but we know how many of those seventeen-year-olds never came home. That line—“neither he nor his plane has ever been scratched”—feels like both a promise and a dare. It’s a powerful piece of cultural history, and a fascinating example of how wartime messaging shaped an entire generation’s sense of adulthood and purpose.
From the 7 February 1948 edition of Australian Women's Weekly.
I didn't know Pepsodent used to be sold here in Australia....
“Azaleas by Charleston’s Middleton Garden. Lace Tea Gown by Fontana of Rome.”
While the 1956 Chevrolet (often called the "Sweet One") shared the same basic body shell as the revolutionary 1955 model, it featured several distinct styling updates that made it look longer, lower, and more upscale.
The most significant change for 1956 was the introduction of the 4-door Sport Sedan (a pillarless hardtop), which is the exact model shown in the “Saturday Evening Post” ad. This body style was brand new for 1956; in 1955, "Sport" hardtops were only available as 2-door models.
The 1955 had a “Ferrari-inspired” egg-crate grille that sat between the headlights. For 1956, Chevrolet moved to a full-width grille that stretched all the way across the front, making the car look wider and more important. The 1956 hid the gas filler neck behind the left taillight, the side chrome was completely redesigned, and the rear wheel openings were reshaped to be more flattened or “squat,” contributing to the longer, lower look.
Beyond the looks, the 1956 was "hotter" under the hood. It saw the debut of the high-performance 225-horsepower V8 (the "Super Turbo-Fire") with dual four-barrel carburetors—essentially a Corvette engine in a family sedan. The new 4-door Sport Sedan was a massive sales success that year, proving that people wanted the "breezy" look of a hardtop with the practicality of four doors.
[Source: Google Gemini]
From the 23 December 1939 edition of Melbourne, Australia newspaper The Age.
Interesting that both the film and the ice cream are still popular!
From the 15 August 1918 edition of the The Courier Journal, a Louisville, Kentucky newspaper.
Amazing the stuff you can find in old newspapers...
From the 8 May 1948 edition of Australian Women's Weekly.
Note: Healing was an Australian radio manufacturer. They later also manufactured TV sets.
From the 26 January 1954 edition of Melbourne, Australia newspaper The Age.
Note: This was a West German made car.
Although the Cadillac Cyclone never entered mass production, it remains a fascinating piece of automotive history. It made its debut at the opening of the Daytona International Speedway in 1959. Its design drew inspiration from aviation and rocket aesthetics prevalent in the ‘50s. It had large tailfins, which were later reduced in size to resemble the 1963-64 Cadillac range. The iconic bubble top canopy, coated in silver for UV protection, provided a complete 360-degree view and automatically opened along with the sliding electrically operated doors. The canopy could also be stowed in the rear compartment.
The Cyclone featured a 390 cubic-inch front-mounted engine, a rear-mounted automatic transaxle, and an all-wheel independent suspension. Uniquely, the exhaust was pointed out just ahead of the front wheels. The car incorporated a radar-operated collision avoidance system, with radar sensors mounted in twin “nose cones” on the front.
The Cyclone served as a testbed for futuristic styling and cutting-edge technology. While it never graced showrooms, it became a key part of GM’s Motorama, showcasing both aesthetic and technological ideas.
[Sources: Bing Copilot, Wikipedia, HotCars.com and ChicagoAutoShow.com]
[Note: Motorama was an elaborate auto show held by GM from 1949 to 1961. These extravagant events were designed to whet public appetite and boost automobile sales by showcasing fancy concept cars and other special or halo models. One of the cars showcased at a Motorama was the Chevrolet Corvette. Other showcased cars would still turn heads today!]