When Socks Mattered
Socks are something that are sorely neglected today. I don’t mean “today” literally. It is obviously the middle of summer so a lot of you are not wearing socks everyday. I meant, in general. Flashback to 1947, where hosiery ads (a.k.a. sock ads) were evenly sprinkled throughout the March 1947 Fairchild Men’s Wear Magazine (A trade publication to the industry). The argyle numbers, above, were being touted for the outdoors inspiration in their patterns and colors. They were retailing at $2.00 per pair. Sounds pretty reasonable for fine Australian wool, right?
Adjusted for inflation, men expected to pay approximately $21.03 for a pair if you converted into today’s money. A lot of you would say that was quite pricey, when you can make your way over to the mall and buy some for $1.99 on the clearance rack and scoff at how the $9.00 socks are the result of price gouging. The fact of the matter is, socks were just made a heck of a lot better. In fact, people used to repair their socks. When proper ladies and gentleman want to swear, but are not angry enough to forget their matters, they say “Darn It,” to this very day. So it is actually a very positive statement versus merely being a euphemisn for something far less polite.
Even though socks were more cared for back then, apparently they were still a cause for unrest. This ad from Westminster Ltd. was a little puzzling. The slogan was “You’re Asking for a Good Sock…”
The message is simple enough. What is a little puzzling is the whole scene that is playing out in the restaurant.
We have a waiter that is looking either a little peeved that the gentleman left a rotten tip or is a little snooty. The man looks really angry or embarrassed about something. The young lady appears to be looking at you, maybe to motion over to you to intervene, or to sort of apologize for what has just happened? What does this have to do with socks? Maybe I have it all wrong, and the waiter can’t believe the man lights up a cigar in this white table-clothed establishment. However, the man is so uncomfortable because he is wearing socks are too tight, and his toes are poling through the holes, that he can’t help but act on it.
This ad was directed towards the “industry:” clothing stores and boutiques, manufacturers, and others in the trade. Therefore, I am wondering if I am missing the joke or the reference, not being a post-war textile manufacturer, or perhaps this is something that will make perfect sense when I have a eureka moment at 2 A.M.
Sometimes I just think too much…
Until Next Time….
