Glossy Time Capsules #32
The Saturday Evening Post
November, 1948
Price: 15 cents
1948 is one of those years that doesn't seem historically significant (interwar peacetime, bor-ing!) but little did the people of 1948 know... while they were going about their mundane daily lives, a bunch of future celebrities were being born! To name a few: Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Guest, Pam Ferris, Jeremy Irons, Rhea Perlman, Nell Carter, Donna Summer, George Wendt, Powers Boothe, Olivia Newton-John, Kathy Bates, Dianne Wiest, John Ritter, and Billy Crystal!
Unfortunately, none of them are in this magazine, but we DO have...
BEAUTIFULLY PAINTED FOOD
Look at the artistry of those pineapples!
Mmmm...
Just in case you have any questions about Elsie, the Borden's cow... here you go.
I WANT IT ALL
Whose idea was it to start using photographs of food instead of paintings in magazines? No photo can look this delicious!
On second thought...
I prefer my bread tractor-free, thanks!
Yesssss.
One thing I love about old magazines is the way they teach me about life back when. Well, on a good day. Usually they teach me very little, and I end up with more questions than when I started. Still, it's always fun to try to figure out...
HOW IT WAS THEN
And it's not going to get better, I'm afraid.
Wow! The whole Your Car Is Trying To Kill You scare tactic has been around since the 40s?
It's a good thing we've conquered disease! Buuuut just in case we haven't and you die, at least your loved ones can mourn you while relaxing on a beach in Cancun.
$7,000? Heck yeah I'll take it. I don't even need carpets.
And to think... Ann M. Martin hadn't even been born yet.
TRAVEL
Yes, come visit Oregon! The "famed Chinook salmon and other fish" will not disappoint!
The older a magazine is, the higher the likelihood that we'll see...
QUAINT OLD THINGS
Ah.... polystyrene rears its head on this blog once again.
"Mommy always says you're safe when you use Johnson & Johnson."
"Whatever gets her money into my cash register, kid. Now scram."
"Oh fiddlesticks, my ulcer's acting up again."
Bell: "Please don't stop using phones, America!"
America: "Oh ho ho, don't worry!"
And I just never know if I'll appreciate the past's
ATTEMPTS AT HUMOR
But on a more serious note...
WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?
Only in Hollywood.
Ernest: "I'm sure we can solve this problem without violating God's laws! Hey, remember the atomic bomb? All those people dying in agony? So... yeah, we could do something like that, maybe? But to, like, feed people instead of nuke em?"
Naturally, I had to google this Ernest guy. I discovered he was born Cletus Herman Polette. He died in 1983 while claiming his luggage at the airport.
"Harvard Men aren't douchebags!" exclaims Harvard douchebag in a passionate Letter To The Editor.
Just kidding. I'm sure Peter Stevenson Hanke III was a swell guy. But of course I googled him and... alas, he's also dead now.
I always love reading about the latest
INNOVATIONS
"Look, honey! 57 buttons! Let's trying pushing them all!"
Yet another edition of HOW WAS THIS NOT ALREADY A THING?!?!?!
But on the other hand...
"Hasn't the light turned green, honey?"
"I don't know, I can't seeeeee!"
See that tiny little ipod nano in the center? Haha, just kidding, that's the best television set that money can buy!
Sure... that your food will pop out of the oven door like the gingerbread man, or...?
I wish Buicks still looked that cool.
At first I was like wow, that's a huge front seat, those two people look miles apart. But now I'm convinced the woman is sitting in the back seat.
And so's this lady...
Mmmm, delicious Shell alcohol!
I didn't post them all, but I do want to mention there were a ton of ads for clocks and watches in this issue. I guess clock ads are to The Saturday Evening Post what cigarette ads are to Family Circle.
Gather around everyone! Grab your opera glasses -- it's Howdy Doody Time!
And then, as always, there's...
NEAT STUFF YOU SHOULD BUY!
or, My Grandma Probably Had Two
Well, thank you, The Forties! You've given me a lot to think about. I'm going to go sit in the back seat of my car and paint some food, now. Until next time...
Merry Christmas! May all your Styron dreams come true!
