Gleaned from thousands of images, this companion set of books offers the best of American print advertising in the age of the Big Idea. At the height of American consumerism magazines were flooded with clever campaigns selling everything from girdles to guns. These optimistic indicators paint a fascinating picture of the colorful capitalism that dominated the spirit of the 1950s and ‘60s, as concerns about the Cold War gave way to the carefree booze-and-cigarettes Mad Men era.

Also included is a wide range of significant advertising campaigns from both eras, giving insight into the zeitgeist of the period. Bursting with fresh, crisp colors, these ads have been digitally mastered to look as bright and new as the day they first hit newsstands.