According to Nicholas Rasmussen’s book, On Speed: The Many Lives of Amphetamine, the meth-laced diet pills Obetrol were Andy Warhol’s weight-loss tablet of choice. The medication was produced by a Brooklyn drug manufacturer, but meth’s usage as a diet aid waned during the 1980s. This 1970 ad features an illustration in which a ski instructor mocks a student whose obesity is causing him to sink. The instructor barks: “Either lose 45 pounds or wait for six more inches of snow!” The ad contains the following precautions:
“Use with caution in individuals with anorexia, insomnia, asthma, psychopathic personality, a history of homicidal or suicidal tendencies, or emotionally unstable individuals who are known to be susceptible to drug abuse.”
More Old Print Ads:
- Magic Dutch Rock Garden. (1952)
- Viderm skin treatment. (1949)
- How to trim hair at home. (1947)
- Rubber Party Masks. (1949)
- Slimming Belt for Men. (1952)
- Non-Wilting Jockstraps. (1941)
- Alcohol-Filled Novelty Handgun. (1926)
- Ajeeb, the chess-playing automaton. (Late 1800s)
- Southworth & Hawes Daguerreotype Rooms. (1848)
- Daicy Air Rifles Handbook for Boys. (1948)
- Weltmer Insitute of Magnetic Healing. (1898)
- Cataract Electric Washer. (1920)
- Whiz Bang Pep Pills. (1920s)
- Vacutex Blackhead Face Vacuum. (1952)
- P.T. Barnum’s Greatest Show on Earth. (1876)
- Dr. Hopkins’ Electric Hair Restorer. (1868)
- Showgirl Laxatives. (1901)
- Salem Witch Spoon. (1891)
- Panti-Legs. (1961)