Christmas commercials have long been a beloved part of the holiday season, evoking nostalgia and excitement. But some ads from the past would never see the light of day in today’s more socially conscious world. Whether due to outdated gender roles, stereotyping, or questionable humor, these commercials captured the spirit of their time but would spark outrage now.
1. Overtly Gendered Toys
Classic commercials like the ones for Barbie and G.I. Joe reinforced strict gender roles, showing girls dreaming of dolls and tea sets while boys played soldier or built action sets. Today, the push for gender-neutral marketing would make these ads a point of controversy.
2. Santa’s Cigarette Break
A 1970s Christmas ad for a well-known cigar brand featured Santa lighting up after a long night of delivering presents. It played into the era’s casual attitude toward smoking, even portraying it as festive. Today, such an ad would be unthinkable, especially with Santa as the face of it.
3. Hard Sell for Housewives
Household appliance commercials from the 1950s through the ’70s often featured husbands giving their wives vacuums, ovens, or irons as the “perfect” Christmas gift. While these ads were common, today they’d be seen as reductive and tone-deaf, ignoring the individuality of women.
4. “Diet for the Holidays” Messages
Some ’80s and ’90s diet product ads marketed holiday indulgence as a “problem” to fix, often targeting women. A memorable one featured a slim Santa suggesting he’d used a meal replacement shake to fit down chimneys. The body-shaming undertones wouldn’t fly today.
5. Racial Stereotypes in Toy Ads
Certain toy commercials from the ’70s and ’80s leaned on racial stereotypes, like depicting children of certain ethnicities playing with toys associated with specific cultural traits. These ads wouldn’t pass today’s stricter standards for representation and inclusivity.
6. Beer Ads with a Holiday Twist
Beer companies often dressed up their mascots or spokespeople as Santa in the 1980s, sometimes in situations that felt a little too raucous for the family-friendly vibe of the holidays. The image of Santa holding a pint would be quickly criticized now.
7. Over-the-Top Consumerism
In the late ’80s, one electronics company ran a Christmas commercial featuring children abandoning their families mid-gift-opening to rush to stores for even bigger sales. While humorous, it played into a materialistic mindset that feels uncomfortable in today’s focus on meaningful giving.
8. Insensitive Disability Tropes
One Christmas ad from the ’70s told the story of a child with a disability whose only wish was for a doll that walked. While it was likely heartfelt for the time, today it would face criticism for oversimplifying and commodifying the child’s experience.
9. The “Perfect Wife” Commercial
One notorious jewelry ad from the ’90s depicted a husband placing a necklace on his sleeping wife as the ultimate way to “win Christmas.” The message reinforced outdated expectations that men needed to spend big to be loved, sparking debates about materialism and gender dynamics.
10. Slimy Fast Food Mascots
Some 1980s Christmas ad featured fast-food mascots encouraging kids to skip home-cooked meals and head straight for greasy holiday-themed offerings. Given today’s focus on health and wellness, this wouldn’t be received warmly by parents.
These commercials are reminders of how much cultural norms have shifted over the years. What seemed acceptable or even endearing decades ago often doesn’t align with today’s values. Still, they offer a window into the past—a reflection of the changing tides of humor, marketing, and holiday traditions.
