28 Slightly Embarrassing Celebrity Endorsements from the Good Old Days

Once upon a time, celebrity endorsements were pure chaos. Before brand deals were crafted by PR teams and "authentic partnerships" meant a caption written by five marketing interns, stars were out here promoting literally anything.

These 28 vintage ads are proof that the rules didn't exist. We've got boxing legends selling roach traps (Muhammad Ali, never forget), jazz icons pushing Alka-Seltzer for "holiday relief," sitcom royalty convincing you cigarettes are good for your throat, and a certain fast-running football star telling you to rent from Hertz. It's a time capsule of marketing gone gloriously rogue.

There's something magical about how unfiltered it all was. No irony, no subtlety - just pure enthusiasm. "You'll love this bug trap! My face is on the box!" was an actual campaign. Celebrities looked straight into the camera with total confidence, unaware that decades later we'd be looking back, equal parts nostalgic and horrified.

But that's the charm of it. It was the golden age of sincerity, when fame met commerce and common sense took a vacation. Scroll through and enjoy the weird, wonderful world of celebrity endorsements before the age of influencers - when selling out was still an art form.

Author image for John Summers John Summers
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1990s 90s memes retro nostalgia 80s music Nostalgia Overload 80s 90s kids 90s memory lane nostalgia memes millennial-nostalgia 1980s
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