Many young people are surprised that sex in advertising has been around the block once or twice. Reflecting the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 70s, advertising followed suit with commercials on network television that would make today’s audiences blush. Thanks to YouTube, some of advertising’s hidden gems are once again available for viewing.Surfing YouTube, I was surprised to discover that Farrah Fawcett was a sex-in-advertising icon in the 1970s. Famous from her role in the 1977 hit television series “Charlie’s Angels,” Fawcett's debut role was not as an angel. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, she appeared in several commercials which are now vintage sex in advertising.
Examples of such spots include Noxema, Ultra Brite, and Mercury—all available for YouTube viewing. Two ads for Noxema are excellent examples of sexual double entendre and innuendo. In one spot, Fawcett sings the jingle, “Great balls of com… fort.” Another features Joe Nameth playfully lamenting, “I’m going to get creamed,” as Fawcett lathers his face with Noxema shaving cream. "You've got a great pair of hands."
Spots for Lincoln-Mercury and Ultra Brita utilize Fawcett’s physical attractiveness. Mercury takes it a step further, however, in its subtle comparison between Fawcett and a cougar.
Thanks to YouTube and other video sites, ads featuring Fawcett and other sex symbols can be viewed and remembered by all.
--Posted by Michelle Weidner
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