1956 DeSoto Ad, "Drive a DeSoto Before you Decide"
Add to SetSummary
The automobile is a paradox -- a practical tool that plays host to both human needs and fantasies. Like car consumers, automotive ads seem to land somewhere between fantasy and reality, emotions and rationality. Many ads incorporate apparent opposites: fantasy can sell practicality, and vice versa. Sometimes the car has disappeared completely -- an emotional appeal prompts us to complete the ad.
The automobile is a paradox -- a practical tool that plays host to both human needs and fantasies. Like car consumers, automotive ads seem to land somewhere between fantasy and reality, emotions and rationality. Many ads incorporate apparent opposites: fantasy can sell practicality, and vice versa. Sometimes the car has disappeared completely -- an emotional appeal prompts us to complete the ad.
Artifact
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Date Made
April 1956
Subject Date
April 1956
Collection Title
On Exhibit
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
91.303.532
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Henry Austin Clark, Jr.
Material
Paper (Fiber product)
Color
Multicolored
Dimensions
Height: 11.125 in
Width: 8.188 in
Inscriptions
Printed at top of page: Want a car that takes off like a torpedo? / ... / Want a car that rides like a dream? / ... / Want the smartest car on the road? / DRIVE A DE SOTO BEFORE YOU DECIDE / Printed center, above image: Push-button drive controls at your fingertips to / the left. Positive mechanical control. Absolutely / foolproof. So easy , so natural. Try it today. At bottom under image: PRICE a De Soto before you decide! ... / DESOTO-- OFFICIAL PACE CAR 1956 INDIANAPOLIS 500-MILE RACE. De Soto Dealers present Groucho Marx in "You Bet Your Life" on NBC Radio and TV
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