December 12, 2012

MAIL ORDER MYSTERY: 88 POSTERS FOR 65 CENTS


I just spotted this ad in a horror comic from the 1970s, and as it turns out, the product already resides in my own collection of stuff. This would have been an easy entry in Mail-Order Mysteries, but oh, well. So here goes...

What We Imagined: The ad itself challenges us to imagine owning a set of 88 full color posters, however the next sentence clearly reveals the "miniature reproduction" detail.

What They Sent: A satisfying stack of very cool "mini posters" with adhesive backs and black light responsive ink. Offering the surplus of display decals as a stand-alone product was an ingenious idea. Kids without the funding or the wall space could still enjoy psychedelia at it's finest.

Customer Satisfaction: Day-Glowing.


(How did I get these? I ordered them years ago from a catalog called Don and Chris' Old Stuff which is now a web site. Although they only have one design left.)

11 comments:

Brian Barnes said...

This reminds me of a set of cards that I managed to secretly order from one of the many gag gift catalogs. These were nudie cards, and I was just in my early teens (you have to remember in the 70s we didn't have the internet, or even VCRs, we either had to know somebody with magazines or stumble upon them.)

What you'd expected was a full sized card deck. What you got -- and I'm sure the description mentioned this and I promptly ignored it -- was a deck of 1 x 1 1/2 cards, with mostly pictures from 50s men magazines.

I cherished it. I'd blog about it if I felt I could actually take good photos of them!

It properly was responsible for my life-long fascination with (what now looks very innocent, PG-13 stuff) 50s/60s porn.

Jeremy said...

It is often an ordeal for me to read those old ads in old comics and magazines. I often kick myself for not jumping at the chance to take advantage of those offers when I had the chance. But that is the risk I take when I read back issues of Reader's Digest.

Stefan Jones said...

I've always wondered what outfits like "Honor House" or "G&K Sales" were like. A rented office crammed with boxes, with a ratty desk in one corner where some old guy licked stamps and filled out address labels?

leftylimbo said...

So awesome. The illo of the kids on the bottom is classic. Be the talk of the town with these cool (mini) posters!

Can't get more '70s than zodiac signs, motorcycles, peace and love. That about nails it right there! What would've they said about the '80s? Video games, BMX bikes, Rubiks Cubes and Sandinistas?

In the meantime, can anyone decipher what that hand is holding in the "Your Tax Dollars At Work" poster? Is it some kinda hydraulic tool? A weapon? I want that poster!

I wonder what their FREE 32 page catalog had?

Major Pepperidge said...

I absolutely would have been satisfied with these day-glo mini posters. Do you have the complete set of 88?

Kirk D. said...

Brian- you were a brave kid to order those cards through the mail. I would have been terrified that they would be intercepted! The tiny size was both a plus (for concealment) and a minus.

Jeremy- I know the feeling. I often head straight to ebay after a good comic book reading session.

Stefan- My friend Eddie of Houseoftheunusual.com visited Honor House when it was still operational. It sounds like it was a pretty standard office-type operation in New York. They stayed in the same building for many years and they still occupied it after changing into a pharmaceutical company. I always imagined a more shady type place too. They said a number of folks visited hoping to find old stock.

LeftyLimbo- I agree, that's perfect the way the girls are literally flocking to the kid because of the mini-posters, or is that the catalog?

Yes, that's a gun in the tax dollars poster. I've actually seen the full size one on ebay before, though the vintage ones usually sell for more than I want to pay. I too would like to know about the catalog but so far I haven't tracked it down.

Major Pepperidge- I only have a couple dozen, some of them doubles. They were sold in random bunches when I bought them. I wonder if there were more than 88 designs. Always wondering, I am.

Kirk D. said...

Leftylimbo- Just checked and that poster is for sale on ebay right now for 149.99!

Unknown said...

Nice blod dude, lots of good reading. iv just wasted the last hour going through everything. keep up the good work :)

kyot0 said...

Those mini posters look really cool! :P They actually look as though they should be on the back of an iPhone, as a rubber case :P

David said...

Are these considered antique? You could sell them on Ebay for good money, right?

littlemissart7 said...

Wow these seem really interesting!