Wednesday, April 13, 2016

KOOKS!

It's possibly unintentional, but maybe, juuuust maybe Montgomery Ward had a more playful model and photography edge than most other catalogs of decades gone by. This 1980 xmas catalog I've been highlighting so far all month is a perfect example of "cute", everyday looking kids modeling merchandise and obviously having tons of fun doing it, or sometimes very little fun (see the bummed girl with the juicer), and in some cases even acting like a flat-out obnoxious KOOK! In fact, as you are about to see-- the kookier looking / acting the better! To other larger and less adventurous rival department store catalogs, many of these photos would have most certainly been considered unusable outtakes and wound up on the cutting room floor. Some of these pictures might even seem downright creepy to you ridiculous over reactive types that get easily scared by non-scary things like clowns or tuna aspics. While scanning this post, I could almost hear the catalog editor's ghost still screaming from beyond the dead (retail) grave of no return, "Is this REALLY the best photo we have of this girl with the toy juicer??!! ARGHHH!!!"






































UPDATED!!!

"Clowning Around"
by Mr. Cavin

5 comments:

Mr. Cavin said...

That kid with the gas station playset looks like a scheming mastermind.

Mr. Karswell said...

A young Michael Aquino (notice the eyebrows)

Tom said...

I love the old school photoshop job on the kid bouncing on the inner tube thing. It looks like they just had him sit on the floor with his arms and legs out and had him act excited.

Craftypants Carol said...

i'm scared of the kid on the bouncy horse - he or she looks like an old lady with a teeny body!!!

man some of these kids must have been promised buckets of candy in exchange for these pics judging by the way they're smiling like maniacs. everyone except the juicer girl. she only gets to keep the juice :'(

and man those kids having the tea party are hilarious!

Mr. Cavin said...

The kid on the inner tube thing looks like he's falling into a tiger pit. It's fun for a second!