Your Shopping Cart

Your shopping cart is empty!

Discover our bestsellers
Subtotal0 Items0
Go to Shopping Cart

All-American Ads of the 50s

40Edition: Multilingual (English, French, German, Spanish)Availability: In Stock
A plethora of 1950s ads covering just about anything the dollar could buy, from Las Vegas vacations to cigarettes as healthy mood enhancers. More than a record of bygone products and campaigns, these colorful ads provide an evocative record of everyday American life when McCarthyism was rife and capitalism was king.
Hardcover8.2 x 10.4 in.4.77 lb640 pages
“A rose-tinted trip back to the golden age of advertising.”
ShortList
“Anyone who approaches with questions about how people lived, ate, felt and consumed in earlier decades will find the TASCHEN ad books an excellent investment.”
The Toronto Star
All-American Ads of the 50s

All-American Ads of the 50s

40

Advertising in the Atomic Age

From “The World’s Finest Automatic Washer” to the Cadillac which “Gives a Man a New Outlook”

As McCarthyism swept across the United States and capitalism was king, white America enjoyed a feeling of pride and security that was reflected in advertising. Carelessly flooding society with dangerous misinformation, companies in the 50s promoted everything from vacations in Las Vegas, where guests could watch atomic bombs detonate, to cigarettes as healthy mood-enhancers, promoted by a baby who claims his mother feels better after she smokes a Marlboro.

From “The World’s Finest Automatic Washer” to the Cadillac which “Gives a Man a New Outlook,” you’ll find a colorful plethora of ads for just about anything the dollar could buy. Oh, and “Have you noticed how many of your neighbors are using Herman Miller furniture these days?” If only you could really travel back in time and pick up a few chairs for your collection...
The editor

Jim Heimann is the Executive Editor for TASCHEN. A cultural anthropologist, historian, and an avid collector, he has authored numerous titles on architecture, pop culture, and the history of Los Angeles and Hollywood, including TASCHEN’s Surfing, Los Angeles. Portrait of a City, California Crazy, and the All-American Ads series.

All-American Ads of the 50s
Hardcover20.8 x 26.3 cm2.16 kg640 pages

ISBN 978-3-8365-5132-8

Edition: Multilingual (English, French, German, Spanish)
Download product images here

5

/5

3 Ratings

All-American Ads takes you to another time

Steven,November 3, 2021
Beautifully illustrated collection of advertisements. Nostalgia 2.0. Takes you back to another time.

Thought provoking

Lars,October 27, 2021
It´s often sentimental to look back, reminding you of the past. The same applies to this book. However, looking back gives you also a perspective - comparing now and then. In the ads from the fifties there is no danger in smoking - on the contrary and there are hardly any ads with coloured people except as servants and even those are few.

Ilan R.,February 17, 2024
Amazing product. Beautiful book and photos. SUPER WELL wrapped and protected!