The 1972 Sears Wishbook – Fun Bags should not be marketed to kids.

I was looking around wishbookweb.com, which I love to do a disturbing amount, and decided to flip through the 1972 Sears Wishbook. Here’s some of the things I found:

All I can think of when I see this picture is that she really needs help with her OCD.

Get your footie pajamas with button up polo shirt and pullover hot pink dress right here! If your house catches on fire and you escape to the lawn, the neighbors will wonder how you got dressed so fast!
She laughs! She turns her head! She cries! She kills your whole family! Tender Lovin’ Ax sold separately.
Are they conjoined twins? What the hell is going on here?

28 thoughts on “The 1972 Sears Wishbook – Fun Bags should not be marketed to kids.”

  1. I don’t even know where to begin. First of all, the silverware in that second picture is about the size of her head. Second, what’s with the Princess Leia hair with pajama girl (I guess that’s the least of her problems, considering the get-up she’s in.) And that doll has scared me for life.

    In other words, this was awesome.

  2. How on earth did those pajama/dress/polo things never catch on? Tragic.

    I can’t remember when they sold lesbians in the catalog. Must have been a slow year.

    And what’s with the sexually suggestive kids products? No wonder we are all so fubar’d. Kid of the 70’s right here, folks. Exhibit A.

    (Now . . . Imma gonna check the “Notify me of followup comments” button. But I know damn well it’s for naught).

  3. I had no idea that footie pajamas were ever such a popular item for anyone over the age of 1!

    Also I feel like the “Pillow Talkin’ Phone” must exist to train young children for future careers in the lucrative 900-number service sector.

  4. Dear God. I had no idea such a website existed, but now I will probably never leave it. I just looked through the 1983 Sears Wish Book, I swear I remember it. It’s how I used to make my Christmas lists.

    Great post!!

  5. Ah, this was awesome! I used to LOVE the Wish Book from Spiegel’s & Sears. I’d get it in November and then go through it, page by page, thoughtfully marketing all the things I wanted for Christmas.

    I particularly love the pajamas bit. Awesome.

  6. I maintained my innocence for a while. I didn’t get into “fun bags” until I was about 15, then, they’re all i wanted to play with. Wait, we’re talking about sears things?

  7. On the one hand… I completely love this with all my heart. I mean, you only THOUGHT the hot pink dress / blue polo combo was horrible bedtime attire until you got to the flannel footies versus the brushed nylon tricot.

    On the other hand… I’m now completely addicted to wishbookweb.com so, that’s unfortunate.

  8. Also, should you make your way to the 1980 Christmas book, check out the series of awkwardly posed models starting on page 72 and culminating on page 81 with a series of poses I like to call…
    C) The Fake Monocle
    D) The Champ
    E) The “Oh Ho Hoooo”,
    G) The Painfully Feigned Enthusiasm
    F) The “I Think My Head’s On Backwards”

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