Today’s post makes me absolutely weep with nostalgia. I yearn so much to go back to the days when the clothes featured in this ad were not only acceptable but in fact in vogue. Now that you’ve had your monthly dose of sarcasm, I bring you Panatela Slacks.
1973 Levi's Panatela Slacks
Ad Text:
The people who’ve been selling you slacks have been pulling your leg. They would have you believe that a fine pair of slacks always carries a fine price tag. “Fine slacks,” they intone, “show meticulous – and therefore expensive – attention to detail. Pockets lie flat. Patterns match nicely at the seams. Proper stitches are in their proper places. And the rich fabric drapes comfortably on the human form.”
We agree. And we don’t agree. You can certainly tell a fine pair of slacks by how well they’re made. But not by how much they cost! Levi’s Pantela Slacks are priced on a trifle above your average work-around-the-yard pants. Which puts their price six triples below your average work-around-the-office pants.
Yet despite their sensible cost (around $12 to $22, instead of $30 to heaven knows what), the economy of Levi’s Panatela Slacks is noticeable only to your wallet.
Upon close examination, one sees that pockets lie flat; patterns match; stitches are perfect; and the fabric drapes comfortably, naturally and handsomely on your human form. Sometime soon, visit a men’s store and try on a pair of Panatela Slacks. See if you can tell any difference between our Slacks and their $lacks. Other than the $. We’re all but certain that you’ll walk out owning a pair of Panatela Slacks. Because legs were made to be fitted. Not pulled.
Putting aside the absolute atrocity of the product being sold here by today’s standards of fashion, the text of this ad strikes me very favorably. It’s articulate and detailed and fairly convincing. Not to mention, I dig anything that a guy with a mustache like that wants to sell me.
PS: I can’t deny that those slacks with the dollar bills on them really rock my world. I wonder if they come in that king of fabrics, polyester. Wow!
Ha Ha! Okay so these are pretty gawdy but, trust me, we had some cool styles back then…it wasn’t all about polyester and god-awful prints…these are pretty extreme! How funny! Reminds me of the fifth grade in 1970–My school was one of the first in my area to allow girls to wear pants, and I was the first girl to do so–with bright pink and orange flowered hip-hugger bell-bottom jeans! What memories…But the seventies was about far more…the fashions and things are just trademarks of an unforgettable era.
Yeah, you’re right. These fashions are horrible but flower power ruled all. 🙂
Thank you for putting a smile on my face today 🙂
Incredible! First, your meticulous collection and crisp snapshots in words that capture the ads’ moods [I went thro almost all of them posted on the blog, being as much a fan of ads as you, though not a collector]. And, second, the models that were promoting the goods that we were buying, based on their promise of beauty, comfort, luxury, et al! Third, the verbosity! Ads have come a real long way, even in the last forty years as this ad shows. They’ve become sleeker and slicker, though they may not stick around in the mind long after the product itself has become obsolete.
Thank you for visiting my blog and thus making it possible for me to know about yours. I hope to be able to visit often and read more of your other two blogs too.
Amazing blog idea, and such succinct comments on the ads. I enjoyed going through the ads and hope to be able to read your other blogs too. Thank you for visiting mine.
Thanks! I try to keep it short and sweet in here. 🙂