Something [KM] posted reminded me of the ads Newport used to run on the subways, which led me to formulate a theory of ‘superliminal advertising’ — basically hard-core porn with some vague ‘real life’ airbrushed onto it. Years ago, I cobbled together a small collection of these things, but there are a few I’m missing; my personal fave was the ‘pie-eating contest,’ which featured a woman standing behind a seated man shoving his cherry-smeared face down into a pie. Here are a few choice examples.
[2026-08-06: JD points me at John Leo’s “Take Me, Hurt Me, Smoke Me,” Spy (July–Aug 1988) issue, pp. 106–109 (pdf pages 109–112: Internet Archive (complete issue) or local copy (cover+story only). The photographer was Joel Meyerowitz?!]
[ADDED 2026-08-24]
