See other o.b. ads: French (ooo.ooo.b., 1989) - German (early 1950s) - German (1970s) - German nude (1970s) - French (1989) - German ("Egyptian," 1970s)

A British Tampax ad using nudity (1992) - And see other ads directed at teenagers.

See a Modess True or False? ad in The American Girl magazine, January 1947, and actress Carol Lynley in "How Shall I Tell My Daughter" booklet ad (1955) - Modess . . . . because ads (many dates).
CONTRIBUTE to Humor, Words and expressions about menstruation and Would you stop menstruating if you could?
Some MUM site links:
homepageMUM address & What does MUM mean? | e-mail the museum | privacy on this site | who runs this museum?? |
Amazing women! | the art of menstruation | artists (non-menstrual) | asbestos | belts | bidets | founder bio | Bly, Nellie | MUM board | books: menstruation and menopause (and reviews) | cats | company booklets for girls (mostly) directory | contraception and religion | costumes | menstrual cups | cup usage | dispensers | douches, pain, sprays | essay directory | extraction | facts-of-life booklets for girls | famous women in menstrual hygiene ads | FAQ | founder/director biography | gynecological topics by Dr. Soucasaux | humor | huts | links | masturbation | media coverage of MUM | menarche booklets for girls and parents | miscellaneous | museum future | Norwegian menstruation exhibit | odor | olor | pad directory | patent medicine | poetry directory | products, current | puberty booklets for girls and parents | religion | Religión y menstruación | your remedies for menstrual discomfort | menstrual products safety | science | Seguridad de productos para la menstruación | shame | slapping, menstrual | sponges | synchrony | tampon directory | early tampons | teen ads directory | tour of the former museum (video) | underpants & panties directory | videos, films directory | Words and expressions about menstruation | Would you stop menstruating if you could? | What did women do about menstruation in the past? | washable pads
Leer la versión en español de los siguientes temas: Anticoncepción y religión, Breve reseña - Olor - Religión y menstruación - Seguridad de productos para la menstruación.

Daring German o.b. menstrual tampon magazine ads
for teenage girls
Werbung in deutsche Zeitschriften für Tampons

These two German ads for o.b. tampon appeared when the German company Dr. Carl Hahn GmbH still owned o.b., before the American firm Johnson & Johnson took over (1974). The upper ad is from a German women's magazine, the lower from a magazine for teenagers.

Both indicate the era: the sexual revolution was underway, and the place: Germany, which is more tolerant of nudity than America.

The lower ad advertises a kit for girls about to have their menarche - their first period - and contains a booklet of full-frontal nude photographs, among other photos, of pubescent boys and girls, taken by David Hamilton, one of whose books was recently (1998) the subject of a court action against the Barnes & Noble bookstore in the U.S.A. That book also shows nude girls, probably under 18 years old, a subject usually prohibited in America.

For some ads at the other end of the nudity and "decorum" spectrum, see the Modess, because . . . advertisements of the 1940s through the 1960s in the U.S.A.

The letters o.b., by the way, stand for ohne Binde [here's proof!], which mean without a menstrual pad, in German. The abbreviation itself indicates the size of the product, an effect undoubtedly the company intends.

See other o.b. ads: French (ooo.ooo.b., 1989) - German (early 1950s) - German (1970s) - German nude (1970s) - French (1989) - German ("Egyptian," 1970s)
A British Tampax ad using nudity (1992) - And see other ads directed at teenagers.

Translations of the ad text sit beneath the ads.
Below: From a German women's magazine, 1978

 

My translation of the text:
o.b. is the right tampon for the nights of your days [days - Tage - can mean and does mean here menstrual period. Clever writing.]
When your nightgown shouldn't show that you're menstruating we recommend o.b. Then you can be completely certain that no one sees anything when you go to bed. And nothing happens when you get up the next morning. An o.b. tampon absorbs the blood right from the interior of your vagina. The strongly absorbent material takes care that not one drop of blood backs up.because an o.b. tampon works like a sponge. And that doesn't dam blood up but absorbs everything into it.
So the blood can't pool over night in the vagina and then suddenly flow out when get up with your usual verve. An o.b. tampon completely suffices to absorb everything. And if you want to be completely certain use the next bigger size of o.b.
o.b.
Natural and secure.
Below: From a German magazine for teens, 1981. See part of the booklet this ad advertises.
The translation lies below the ad.

 

My translation of the text:
What's the name of the menstrual protection that doesn't leave young girls alone with their questions?
Naturally o.b.
Girls in puberty have a lot of questions.
But sometimes they don't trust themselves to ask because they don't know where to begin. Because they've never talked about it. Their girlfriend doesn't know either. And Mom can't find the right words to answer with. Therefore we have for all girls an o.b. kit. It contains the o.b. booklet "Menstruation." It explains the differences between boys and girls. What menstruation is and how it works. The signs that indicate that one is about to start her period. Why one feels often different than usual. And why even virgins can use tampons. Millions of girls have read this booklet. It's helped them to adjust better. If you'd like to have this booklet, write us. We'll send it to you together with o.b. mini and normal tampons so you can get acquainted.

See other o.b. ads: French (ooo.ooo.b., 1989) - German (early 1950s) - German (1970s) -
German nude (1970s) - French (1989) - German ("Egyptian," 1970s)
A British Tampax ad using nudity (1992) - And see other ads directed at teenagers.

© 2007 Harry Finley. It is illegal to reproduce or distribute any of the work on this Web
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