It was a series of ads made for Calvin Klein in the 90s that ended up banned for being too creepy and disturbing lmao.
The man sounds like a creep and perv. I can’t watch it without cringing. No wonder they were banned
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It was a series of ads made for Calvin Klein in the 90s that ended up banned for being too creepy and disturbing lmao.
The man sounds like a creep and perv. I can’t watch it without cringing. No wonder they were banned
by Anonymous | reply 90 | December 19, 2020 6:37 PM |
What's the name of the first male model with the curly hair?
by Anonymous | reply 2 | February 22, 2019 4:23 PM |
It has a 70s or 80s gay porn vibe to it. But very creepy.
Like did any of those models make it out of that room alive?!
by Anonymous | reply 3 | February 22, 2019 4:25 PM |
FFS they were all of legal age and there was no nudity.
More American prudishness.
by Anonymous | reply 4 | February 22, 2019 4:27 PM |
This campaign was shot by Steven Meisel (Vogue, Madonna's Sex book, etc)
by Anonymous | reply 5 | February 22, 2019 4:28 PM |
Oh noes! Adults shirtless or in their underwear!
Get my smelling salts!
by Anonymous | reply 6 | February 22, 2019 4:30 PM |
I don’t think it had to do with shirtless males, that was common, look at the Marky Mark Ck ads from the 90s also. He’s in just underwear.
The issue was the guy doing the interviews. The way he’s soeaking and how creepy he comes off.
You guys are truly DUMB.
by Anonymous | reply 7 | February 22, 2019 4:31 PM |
Can someone fucking tell us who the curly hair model is??
Thank you
by Anonymous | reply 8 | February 22, 2019 4:32 PM |
Kate Moss is also shirtless covering her tits in the CK ad with Marky Mark. No one was outraged.
People just feel this was “creepy” and like porn interviews.
by Anonymous | reply 9 | February 22, 2019 4:32 PM |
I loved Calvin's ads. These were gross. Getting off on kids that look broke and underage. A rare mistake by Calvin's team.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | February 22, 2019 4:33 PM |
I remember someone saying these ads felt like the opening to snuff films.
by Anonymous | reply 11 | February 22, 2019 4:33 PM |
Obviously a tribute to COCO FROM FAME!
by Anonymous | reply 12 | February 22, 2019 4:43 PM |
Bijou Phillips looks like she is about 12 years old in that video. (she's the one with the short hair @2.03)
by Anonymous | reply 13 | February 22, 2019 4:46 PM |
Actually she was 15, just Googled it. And the company was investigated by the FBI over those ads.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | February 22, 2019 4:49 PM |
The creepy interviewer was Lou Maletta, an LGBT activist. According to Bijoux, he conducted the interviews dressed from head to foot in black leather.
by Anonymous | reply 15 | February 22, 2019 5:20 PM |
Yeah. He’s creepy and you can feel that without even seeing him. Omg.
The part with “August” where he makes him rip his shirt off and comments on his body is pure creep.
by Anonymous | reply 16 | February 22, 2019 5:25 PM |
Lou sounds like a Datalounger at that part.
by Anonymous | reply 17 | February 22, 2019 5:29 PM |
Fiona Apple totally stole the look for her criminal video...
by Anonymous | reply 18 | February 22, 2019 5:29 PM |
These were so fucking creepy
by Anonymous | reply 19 | January 25, 2020 3:43 AM |
Brilliant ads. We still remember them 25 years later. Lots of pearl clutchers here.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | January 25, 2020 3:47 AM |
[quote] FFS they were all of legal age
No they weren't. Look at the article at r14--one of them was fifteen.
by Anonymous | reply 21 | January 25, 2020 3:57 AM |
They're creepy but intriguing, they certainly draw you in. I do love R11's comment though.
by Anonymous | reply 22 | January 25, 2020 4:06 AM |
Oh I thought these were genius. And if you know anything about Meisel, something like this isn’t a shock. My favorite editorial of his riffed on airport security, where different models were being strip searched, interrogated, etc, it was SO dramatic and stylized but still reflective of the times.
by Anonymous | reply 23 | January 25, 2020 4:47 AM |
This is how Calvin meets his "boyfriends"
by Anonymous | reply 24 | January 25, 2020 5:17 AM |
At least they didn't have to show their tits!
by Anonymous | reply 25 | January 25, 2020 5:40 AM |
Coco, you had no tits to show. Let's be honest.
by Anonymous | reply 26 | January 25, 2020 6:06 AM |
This was interesting, yes, but creepy.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | January 25, 2020 11:49 AM |
The models were all GREAT, especially that Italian actress... and "August" - yum... but the cringeworthy interviewer was totes gross!
by Anonymous | reply 28 | January 25, 2020 12:41 PM |
I remember hearing about these ads being pulled but this is the first time that I've seen them. I love them! I think they're interesting and funny and I like how they don't shove the products down our throats. I don't find the voiceover guy creepy at all--he just sounds like an average man asking somewhat (but not really) provocative questions. Of course, since it's a man and some of the models are men, America freaks out cuz GAY GAY GAY!
by Anonymous | reply 29 | January 25, 2020 1:53 PM |
No. He sounds creepy. Like a pervert.
by Anonymous | reply 30 | January 25, 2020 2:46 PM |
Who is the Italian actress? I love how she’s like a big ol’ bomb of glamour dropped in the middle of these earthier model types.
by Anonymous | reply 31 | January 25, 2020 2:50 PM |
Those jeans fit real good.....on you.....real good......
by Anonymous | reply 32 | January 25, 2020 3:41 PM |
I agree with the earlier poster...who is the gorgeous curly haired boy in the first commercial
by Anonymous | reply 33 | January 25, 2020 3:49 PM |
R9 Those ads were very controversial back in the day too.
by Anonymous | reply 34 | January 25, 2020 3:51 PM |
Anyone who can't see these ads as creepy and stupidly referring to others as "prudes," clearly memorized the age of consent in every state/country.
by Anonymous | reply 35 | January 25, 2020 3:53 PM |
My sister tore the print ads out of magazines and had them in a collage that covered her entire bedroom wall, along with pics of hot actors and fashion spreads. I was closeted and too scared to do the same to my wall.
by Anonymous | reply 36 | January 25, 2020 3:56 PM |
R36, according to R35, your sister clearly memorized the age of consent in every state/country. Did you know that??
by Anonymous | reply 37 | January 25, 2020 4:16 PM |
R37 I shall tell her!
by Anonymous | reply 38 | January 25, 2020 4:27 PM |
Eat something, bubbalah!
by Anonymous | reply 39 | January 25, 2020 4:30 PM |
There's one boy who isn't hideous. The jeans are ill-fitting and tacky. The vibe is rape-porn. Nothing redeeming.
by Anonymous | reply 40 | January 25, 2020 4:30 PM |
The second one looks and sounds like he's still in high school.
by Anonymous | reply 41 | January 25, 2020 4:32 PM |
These ads got more publicity for Calvin Klein by being banned than if they had been shown, which was the idea.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | January 25, 2020 4:42 PM |
I like the last guy from Brooklyn. He looks like a rock star minus the tats and piercings.
by Anonymous | reply 43 | January 25, 2020 4:52 PM |
I like the curly haired one the best. I kept laughing through the whole thing. The subjects all look like they have no idea how they got there, and the conversations mostly go nowhere.
by Anonymous | reply 44 | January 25, 2020 4:55 PM |
Sex and controversy sold back t hen. It was the era of Madonna pushing boundaries of sexual imagery.
by Anonymous | reply 46 | January 25, 2020 5:25 PM |
Back then the entire cast of [italic]The Brady Bunch[/italic] was still alive, R46.
by Anonymous | reply 47 | January 25, 2020 5:26 PM |
[quote][R36], according to [R35], your sister clearly memorized the age of consent in every state/country. Did you know that??
I'm presuming his sister wasn't over 50 at the time which I don't doubt is the age of the people who don't find it creepy, like you.
by Anonymous | reply 48 | January 25, 2020 5:36 PM |
Oh, and her knowing the age of consent wouldn't be necessary since she would've been around the same age as the people old creeps like you obsess over.
by Anonymous | reply 49 | January 25, 2020 5:38 PM |
R35, don’t bother. The person you’re talking to is prob a Bill Cosby type except without the fame and fortune.
by Anonymous | reply 50 | January 25, 2020 6:08 PM |
No one’s mentioning how schlubby the actual clothes are?
by Anonymous | reply 51 | January 25, 2020 6:12 PM |
"Brilliant ads. We still remember them 25 years later. "
Did they move product?
I bet sales dropped. Because yeah, those ads were incredibly off-putting, like the opening of a porn movie marketed as "BI TEEN RAPE COMPILIATION 2".
by Anonymous | reply 52 | January 25, 2020 6:58 PM |
I stayed up all night one weekend watching Much Music and taping the ads. They were wonderful stoke material for months.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | January 25, 2020 6:59 PM |
The interviewer sounds like a rapist. It makes you feel sorry for the models.
by Anonymous | reply 54 | January 25, 2020 7:28 PM |
These need to make a comeback
by Anonymous | reply 55 | December 12, 2020 2:16 AM |
[quote] These need to make a comeback
Why? Don't confuse pointless with irrelevant.
by Anonymous | reply 56 | December 12, 2020 2:24 AM |
I know CK ads were parodied all over the place, but I'm pretty sure these were too, at some point. SNL? In Living Color? MadTV?
by Anonymous | reply 57 | December 12, 2020 2:27 AM |
It's sexual harassment, r29.
by Anonymous | reply 58 | December 12, 2020 2:29 AM |
The video for the excellent Twin Shadow song "Slow" was an homage to these ads.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | December 12, 2020 2:30 AM |
They were too banned and short-lived to get mainstream parodies.
by Anonymous | reply 60 | December 12, 2020 2:37 AM |
Weren't these what they called "heroin chic" back in the day?
I remember them getting in trouble for glamorizing heroin and statutory rape.
by Anonymous | reply 61 | December 12, 2020 2:37 AM |
[quote] I remember them getting in trouble for glamorizing heroin and statutory rape.
Can you provide a link?
by Anonymous | reply 62 | December 12, 2020 2:39 AM |
[quote] Brilliant ads. We still remember them 25 years later.
Hardly a sign of success.
We all still remember the "Avoid the Noid" ads too.
by Anonymous | reply 63 | December 12, 2020 2:40 AM |
This is like Seinfeld’s Kramer underwear ad episode right? Didn’t they have a greasy insinuatiing overly friendly voice for the interviewer? Not like Calvin Klein wasn’t called out for this. I’m sure Tipper Gore would’ve had something bogus to say...
by Anonymous | reply 64 | December 12, 2020 2:44 AM |
Sooooo funny!! They used to be able to go down to st marks and get ANYBODY to do ANYTHING by telling them they would be a Calvin Klein model and they would fucking do it!!!
by Anonymous | reply 65 | December 12, 2020 2:48 AM |
"Brilliant ads."
There's nothing "brilliant" about using sex to sell a product. you dumb cluck. It's the most unoriginal thing in the world.
by Anonymous | reply 66 | December 12, 2020 2:59 AM |
For the poster asking about the first curly haired guy...
by Anonymous | reply 67 | December 12, 2020 3:02 AM |
Maybe Vincent Gallo's photos for Calvin Klein were the ones accused of "heroin chic."
But the OP's ads look the same and use Kate Moss, too.
by Anonymous | reply 68 | December 12, 2020 3:07 AM |
R68 Moss promoted CK underwear with Marky Mark. These are CK jeans ads.
by Anonymous | reply 69 | December 12, 2020 3:10 AM |
As mentioned above, the creepiest of all CK spots
by Anonymous | reply 70 | December 12, 2020 3:11 AM |
What's so creepy is the guys look like homely gay porn actors in the 70s.
by Anonymous | reply 71 | December 12, 2020 3:27 AM |
These ads were based on the Old Reliable porn. I cant be the only one who remembers them . Thats why it was so controversial .
by Anonymous | reply 72 | December 12, 2020 4:13 AM |
Lou was a great guy and a true perv. He was just who his voice suggests he would be. He used to host orgies in his video studio on Union Square East and 16th Street. I could NOT believe that they hired him to do those voice overs.
In the early 80's, Lou hosted a show on Manhattan Cable called Men in Films on Channel J, the public access channel. Every gay man in Manhattan instantly recognized Lou's voice in those Calvin Klein commercials. Who ever knew to pair his voice with that wood paneling understood sleaze on essential level.
by Anonymous | reply 73 | December 12, 2020 4:33 AM |
[quote]There's nothing "brilliant" about using sex to sell a product. you dumb cluck. It's the most unoriginal thing in the world.
But it used daily, globally and it most certainly does sell. Brilliantly.
by Anonymous | reply 74 | December 12, 2020 4:37 AM |
[quote] Lou hosted a show on Manhattan Cable called Men in Films on Channel J, the public access channel.
That was him ?
by Anonymous | reply 76 | December 12, 2020 5:20 AM |
"But it used daily, globally and it most certainly does sell. Brilliantly."
Oh, it sells alright. But there's nothing "brilliant" about using tits and ass to shill for something. It's the oldest trick out there.
by Anonymous | reply 77 | December 12, 2020 5:52 PM |
Calvin Klein is like Apple. Great marketing and very modern in its approach.
They recently had the #MyCalvins campaign which tricked millions of dumb wannabe models into giving CK free advertising on social media in promise of offering modeling contracts.
by Anonymous | reply 78 | December 18, 2020 6:03 PM |
R15's Lou Maletta. I know he used to have sex parties on the west side in the late 90's and 2000's, but I swear I think he also had a place in the late 80's / early 90's in the East Village.
I think like E. 6th street between B and C. I remember he had an ad in the paper for rooms for rent - and they were CHEAP. Like $400 or $500 a month. I went to visit and it was really grubby and something felt very off.
Apparently downstairs there was his 'art club' as he called it. He said that some of the guys that lived there helped pay the rent by working in the club. A different friend of mine had said the art club was basically a sex club with young guys in slings taking on all-comers. So - a whore house is really what it was.
It stayed with me for a long time - and that guy looks just like the guy who owned the place. So fucking creepy.
by Anonymous | reply 79 | December 18, 2020 6:20 PM |
So over-hyped. I'm sure they LOVED that they were "banned". More publicity for everyone!
by Anonymous | reply 80 | December 18, 2020 6:31 PM |
Holy SHIT those ads at OP's link were skeevy! I'd never seen them before, but damn -- they make my skin crawl. Definitely a pervy kiddie-porn vibe.
by Anonymous | reply 81 | December 18, 2020 6:55 PM |
CK jeans were sold on filthy illicit guilt inducing sex. You had underage Brooke Shields, white trash thug Mark Wahlberg and anorexic childlike Kate Moss. And these perverted snuff film style ads.
Abercrombie and Fitch had catalogs and ads of male jailbait.
by Anonymous | reply 82 | December 18, 2020 10:47 PM |
The curly-haired model Brandon Ralph passed away.
by Anonymous | reply 83 | December 18, 2020 11:23 PM |
Who is that sexy long haired guy at the end?
by Anonymous | reply 84 | December 19, 2020 1:40 AM |
Sasha Mitchell in Calvin Klein. He was the main reason I watched Step By Step too.
by Anonymous | reply 86 | December 19, 2020 2:04 AM |
This guy is really hot. But can't find his name either.
by Anonymous | reply 87 | December 19, 2020 2:49 AM |
No more pornographic than Kardashian photo shoots and outfits, the WAP video, and everything else we're not allowed to criticize today.
by Anonymous | reply 88 | December 19, 2020 4:48 AM |
[quote] No more pornographic than Kardashian photo shoots and outfits, the WAP video, and everything else we're not allowed to criticize today.
I agree. While these ads have a provocative and twisted appearance to them. They still hold aesthetic value. They was a vision behind it.
by Anonymous | reply 89 | December 19, 2020 6:36 PM |
*There
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