The Droodles man and other seductions

The other day I showed a photographic comic strip called a fumetti, starring humorist Roger Price. In the early '50s Price created the hugely popular Droodles. There was even a television show based on them. I found an article in a 1960 issue of Good Housekeeping by Price on the subject of Droodles.

I've been going through old magazines for a family friend. She had several boxes of them in her garage, kept by her mother. She'd like me to sell them on eBay for her and we'll split whatever money they earn. I'm reluctant to get involved with eBay again. I wasted enough of my life on the eBay merry-go-round, but for a favor, I guess I'll help out, and may even make a few bucks. But before I sell the magazines I'm going through them carefully, making scans of things I like. I've been surprised what I've found in women's magazines.

The Maidenform Bra ad is from a 1957 issue of Good Housekeeping. It's fairly stunning. That campaign ("I dreamed I (fill in the blank) in my Maidenform Bra") was really famous at the time. My initial impression of the ad is that her bra is glowing as some sort of fog lamp.

Good Housekeeping used some cartoons and cartoonists of the day, but they didn't have Chas Addams. It didn't stop them from publishing a half-page piece on him, also in 1957. I like the images created in my head reading about his old house, and driving to it in his Mercedes-Benz.

When I see the name Alex Ross I think of a contemporary artist who does paintings about comic characters like Superman and Batman.

There was apparently an earlier artist named Alex Ross, who did this spectacular illustration for the November, 1957 issue of Good Housekeeping. It's another thing I like about these old magazines—illustrations for stories by the top artists of the day.

Finally, in 2008 I had a posting about subliminal sex in advertising.

When I looked at this ad from a 1960 issue of Good Housekeeping I was startled to see that it looked like a joke picture of a woman simulating a urinating man. She's holding the phallic nozzle close to her crotch, then there's the water in a stream of which any man would be proud. Am I just seeing things or was this photo carefully composed to remind the reader of this act? If you were the author of the book Subliminal Seduction you'd say it's no accident.