Vintage advertisements shared online often evoke nostalgia, but not all are as they seem. While some turn out to be entirely fabricated, those that are real are often controversial by today's standards.
For instance, a genuine 1950s ad for Chase & Sanborn coffee depicted a man spanking a woman over the quality of her coffee. The caption read: "If your husband ever finds out you're not 'store-testing' for fresher coffee …" Another example, a promotional pamphlet from the 1940s, recommended mixing the soft drink 7-Up with milk for a special taste treat.
Shifting in tone, a 1969 advertisement for a body shaving razor featured the suggestive line, "Give your wife an extra head for Christmas," referring to an additional razor head, while a real Camel cigarette ad, shocking by modern standards, featured a doctor in a white coat alongside the claim: "More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette." Finally, a 1990s advertisement accurately predicted that in 30 years, a burger and fries would cost $16, a vacation $12,500 and a basic car $64,000.
However, many viral "vintage" ads were actually modern fabrications. For example, a supposed ad for "poop juice" as a constipation remedy never existed, nor did a vintage Heineken ad showing a baby drinking beer or a 1950s spread called "Dickman's Horsefat." Another vintage advertisement allegedly featuring a young boy eating a stick of butter was actually a digitally edited stock photo of a boy eating a salad. Additionally, a supposed vintage advertisement for "Nico-Time Cigarettes" showing a pregnant woman smoking and featuring the caption, "The smooth taste expectant mothers crave," was not a real ad and originated from a video game series.
Here are 10 examples of viral vintage ads investigated by Snopes — five that are real, and five that were completely fabricated.
