11 February 2013

BOAC: Cartoonists' (Air) Field Day


1965: British airline BOAC used the leggiest blonde in town to promote extra legroom on it's VC-10 aircraft.



Jerry Plucer-Sarna photographed Dietrich reclining with a good book (Rebecca) on one of the airline's seats -- but the ad campaign was grounded in Germany when a focus group there "associated Marlene Dietrich with a hatred of Germany", according to BOAC's German reps. Besides, they said, it was thought uncouth for a granny (glam or non) to show so much leg. Bemused bowler hats in London thought the "idea of Miss Dietrich's legs becoming an international incident is ridiculous. They are above politics."






By 1969, when the ad was being run in Los Angeles, someone seems to have changed Marlene's shoes to something more matronly:

11 comments:

  1. Joseph11 February, 2013 10:05

    Indeed, those look like loafers in the L.A. print ad! I wonder--did MD do T.V. commercials as well as print ads for BOAC? I've only seen the latter.

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  2. karine11 February, 2013 10:35

    pretty hilarious, love the drawings.

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  3. Anonymous11 February, 2013 23:41

    She does look gorgeous in this ad,cannot imagine why they chose to alter the shoes and hair,had fashions changed that much?I never saw any TV ads,didn't see this ad at the time in England,only ever saw it as a 3-sheet in Life and Time magazines.Paul

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    Replies
    1. Joseph12 February, 2013 17:22

      Ha! I didn't notice that MD's hair has more volume, nor did I notice her shortened skirt. If the graphics folks swapped Rebecca with The House on the Strand, I wouldn't be surprised.

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    2. Missladiva12 February, 2013 17:35

      Paul, Joseph

      It's a pity Marlene never stooped to doing TV spots!

      If those ad agency boys were really brave they would have replaced "Rebecca" with a Pan Am brochure.

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    3. Missladiva12 February, 2013 17:41

      By the way, there's an unfixed photo of this shoot -- the airline seat is precariously balanced on what looks like telephone books, with a makeshift white background.

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    4. Anonymous13 February, 2013 01:56

      Do you have it?I would love to see that!Paul

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    5. Anonymous15 August, 2014 06:41

      In the early seventies Marlene did a whole translation audio show for PanAm,,,,on long haul flights to Europe you could listen to a program of Marlene translating English words into German!

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  4. Fabrice12 February, 2013 11:40

    Thanks for sharing the drawings, I discover them and they are funny.

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  5. Anonymous12 February, 2013 12:22

    It's like one of those spot the difference games in the papers.Can't believe I have only just noticed that they shortened the skirt as well in 1969!Paul

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  6. Anonymous21 June, 2024 20:28

    Die langen und welgeformten Beine von Dietrich, warum nicht ?
    (vvs)

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