Sunday, April 27, 2014- ‘Jeep’ The 2-Car Cars Ad Campaign

The concept of the jeep as a dual purpose vehicle was an idea and a selling point to Willys-Overland right from the very beginning of the first CJ. But it wasn’t an idea that truly took off for the company until the 1960’s when Americans started using these rough little brutes in a big way for not only work, but play. Meanwhile the ad men at work selling the jeep realized this dual nature as well starting right back at the old station wagon ‘Two City’ ad campaign of the late 1940’s and early 50’s when they emphasized the appeal of the jeep worldwide showing the wagon at home from Montreal to Miami, from Johannesburg to Jacksonville. I liked those ads and then more ads with the message of dualities in the jeep appeared in what I presented last week with the ‘Twice The Fun, Twice The Safety’ ads. These came along just two to three years before these ads today of 1969. I think that they cleverly pointed out that one jeep in your household would fulfill two purposes for the burgeoning American market that wanted something practical and something fun to use with the growing free time that the middle class had. Another thing that I love about these particular ads is that they list in their margins the magazines that would be running them. Check them all out here.

These ads were once again found at the wonderful auto enthusiasts website, a “web magazine/blog” Lov2xlr8. I’ve been cleaning up the site for the last few weeks. Its a big chore! Please let me know if you find any broken links or something that could use a refresher or fixing. I’m now about 3/4 of the way through the work that I’m completing after the big loss of data back last fall. I’ve been happy with the way things are shaping up. What do you think? Shoot me an email about anything you’d like atthisoldjeepdotcom@gmail.com. 

I’ve also been wanting to promote the idea of showcasing a reader’s builds and/or stories. I’ve always been fascinated with how other people got into their love affair with the jeep and what they drive and work on and why. I’d love to have you on these pages with your jeeps. Like to chat for a bit? Email at the address above and you could be gracing the pages of This-Old-Jeep.com. Come back next week for lots more of the best of the jeep since 1940!

Get Twice The Fun And Twice The Safety In These Ads

Hello again everyone! First off, Happy Easter and/or Passover time to you! We’re going to have just a quick update today as its a holiday and today is going to be super busy for me. Not only is it going to finally be a beautiful Sunday weather wise, but I have a bunch of things to do around the house today. My two sons got their first two wheel bicycles so I have some bikes to assemble and training wheels to put on, then I have to change the oil in my wife’s jeep and get some spring cleaning done all before dinner tonight. Going to be a fun, but a long day!

So today we have some quick ads for the Gladiator and the Wagoneer, which I’ve nicknamed the Twice The Fun, Twice The Safety ads for the message. It got across to the American audience that these new 1960’s models were not only could a four wheel drive vehicle be safe, but fun too, an increasingly important sales theme at this time of the early SUV era. These ads were all collected at the auto enthusiasts website, a “web magazine/blog” Lov2xlr8. Unfortunately, the resolution of them were all pretty low, so they aren’t the best of scans, but you’ll get the idea of these classic ad designs and their beauty. Check them all out here.

Come back next week for more of the best of the jeep since 1940 and have a great week!

1965 Gladiator Pickup Brochure

Today we’re getting another look at brochures that I’ve found via the auto enthusiasts website, a “web magazine/blog” Lov2xlr8. There are literally years and years worth of vintage brochures and ads here. Today, we’re going to continue to plow through them with a short, but sweet look at the 1965 Jeep Gladiator pickup.

The Gladiator was a refreshing look at Willys long in the tooth, but still in production pickup truck. The Gladiator was a successful attempt by Kaiser to freshen up their offerings. Introduced in 1963 alongside the revolutionary Wagoneer, arguably the grandfather of modern SUVs, it was a tough and good looking pickup.  It was powered by the same offering as the Wagoneer, the also brand new 230 OHC Tornado. By 1965 it was offered with an optional V-8, the Vigilante 327 that gave it a horsepower bump and a big jump in torque.

The Glad was available as the J-200, a 120 inch wheelbase one ton pickup in a standard pickup and bed combo (the ‘Townside’) and many variations such as a step side ‘Thriftside,’ a stripped down chassis only, stakeside and flatbed options. It was also offered as the J-300, a 126 inch wheelbase with the possibility of a dually rear.

Any way you ordered it was and continues to be a great looking truck. I had the distinct honor of test driving a ’69 a few years back with the Dauntless V-8 350 and it was a beast! This brochure is a beaut as well and one that was sent out to a German speaking audience. And in case you were wondering... the tagline “Gladiator ist Ansehnlich und Ausdauernd!” translates to “good looking and rugged!” Yep!

Come back next week when I plan on continuing the look into the Lov2xlr8 brochures. In the meanwhile if you like the look of these trucks check out my latest t-shirt designs now for sale in our online store.

Sunday, April 6, 2014- Website Finds- Jalopy Journal And The H.A.M.B.

I’m glad to finally be back with a regular Sunday update! Sorry about last week, but thanks for understanding. I don’t usually get sick too easily or often, but my wife, two sons and I were laid low last week with this bug that was going around. We’re all on the mend now. I give my thanks to Robitussin and antibiotics.

Today I wanted to cover another website find. I think that it has gone around the usual channels a few times of the random and previously undiscovered vintage jeep photos that can be found at the Jalopy Journal. The Jalopy Journal is a website dedicated to “spreading the gospel of traditional hot rods and customs to hoodlums worldwide.” I love it. I’ve always had a soft spot for hot rods and old builds and ironically enough their forum which is called the H.A.M.B. (short for the Hokey Ass Message Board!) has been a source for oft overlooked jeep photos. A good example is the thumb at the top, a random CJ spotted on an Atlanta street corner.

The source of these finds has been one thread in particular which among online forums has lived an epic life- the “Vintage Shots From Days Gone By” thread that began back in December of 2009, nearly five years ago now compiling an astounding number of  submitted and found photos, including alot of jeep shots. I’ve been combing through this thread for months now and its always interesting, shots from the turn of the century to the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s and up. You just don’t know what you’re going to find next. And at some 4,500 pages as of this morning, well, it’ll take you awhile to get through! Check out what I’ve found thus far in the Website Finds album here and some of my favorites below. I’m not sure what I’ll be up to next week, but come on back for more of the best of the jeep since 1940!