Crisco

Crisco with food information that may just influence your child's health...because they're not telling you the truth. Okay, that's below the belt, back in 1922 it's doubtful they had a firm understanding of how a high fat diet impacted health and I'm sure they hadn't heard of a trans-fat. No, the main reason I singled this ad out for food of the week is the imagery.

A lot of ads from this era feature warm, homey imagery. It's the kind of honey-coated schlock that could kill a diabetic, lots of beaming mothers, rosy-cheeked infants, and square-jawed young men staring into the middle-distance. But let's take a close look at this particular ad and get inside the coded image of carefree, fat-fueled youth and summer days that seemed to go on forever.

Firstly, haven't any of these kids heard the rule of waiting a half hour after eating before going swimming? I mean come on, Crisco! Are you trying to give the poor little tykes cramps? I'm torn between thinking Proctor and Gamble is irresponsibly encouraging unsafe swimming practices and seeing the art as a cautionary tale. The boys on the shore are looking on helplessly as their companions flail about helplessly in the turbid water below. Only little Billy clings to the safety of a branch, his stomach twisting from lethal combination of food and swimming while he struggles to maintain his grip on the wet limb.

Secondly, let's check out what these rapscallions packed to the old swimming hole. What the heck have they been up to? Did they knock over a bakery before going swimming? I mean what kids pack the following for a swimming outing:

1. Doughnuts
2. White Bread
3. Pie
4. Four Pound Cakes
5. Two Layer Cakes

I mean Olympic swimmers don't consume that many calories during the entirety of the games!

Thirdly, I'm interested in figuring out exactly what the fried volcanoes at the lower right really are. I thought croquettes, but frankly I've never seen one shaped like a pyramid.