1. 1986 Hardees Training Video – On the surface this is a pretty pedestrian video as far as 1980s training films go – there’s no music video, no stylized effects, no imaginary flights of fancy. Upon deeper inspection there’s some good stuff here, though, and a pretty good snapshot of 1986 life.
While there’s not a lot of fanciness to this video, the company apparently goosed the graphics budget and got some “memorable” art out of it. I spy both a Timid Futures logo and a graphic from the first edition of distant friends here:
The artwork has its misses, as well. Here’s their depiction of the “what not to do” restaurant, Dinkos:
The video’s basically a crash course in how to talk to the customer – there are no tips here about how to cook food or clean grills, just how to deal with customers. All types of customers. Including very young children who seem to be in the restaurant by themselves.
There’s a point in the video where they advise you on how to place beverages in a bag for to-go orders. Really? People wanted cups full of liquid in a bag?
On the whole the video is a barrage of one tip after another and it’s pretty tough to keep track, even for a guy who’s just watching this video on the internet and has no financial stake in retaining this information. Imagine how this guy felt.
A few tips recapped on the Chyron…
This is probably pretty good advice:
And we end the thirty-minute film with a happy, confident employee. Seriously, this guy’s the best part of the whole thing.
Here’s the full video. I’m not sure if I recommend watching it or not – this sort of thing scratches a really specific itch. If you do dive in, enjoy the great music and fashion.
2. Horizons Unlimited – Here’s a recruitment pamphlet from the 1950s for the Air Force, aimed at women. There’s a lot of great layout stuff happening here that’s pretty inspiring.
An expected appeal to fashion…
…and a pleasant focus on education.
3. 1983 RCA Video Monitors Showcase – This video was aimed at retailers, attempting to convince them to both stock up on RCA Video Monitors and feature them prominently in their showrooms. Pretty interesting – they definitely did their homework, and then smeared on a layer of ’80s glitz. The notion of multiple video inputs being a novel concept really shows how far we’ve come with this tech. This graphic caught my eye, too. It looks like a Nitzer Ebb album cover.
4. Super Scope Six – A commercial for Nintendo’s followup to the Zapper, the Super Scope for the Super NES. A freakin’ rocket launcher.
5. Boys’ Life Thanksgiving Cover – Here’s a 1927 cover for Boys’ Life celebrating Thanksgiving. I simultaneously love and hate it.
-ds