iMac - 30 years ago
Tue, 7 August 2007
Well, not exactly an iMac, but it was the sign of things to come. On the eve of (possible) release of the 4th generation iMac, it’s nice to go back 30 years and see this 1977 ad for Apple II.
Image source macmothership.com
One couldn’t fail to notice that apple picture on the kitchen wall, and of course ‘apples and oranges’ in the fruit basket on the kitchen bench.
By the way, is that Shelley Long from “Cheers” ?
Related posts
Stumble it!- New Apple TV ads
- AppleCare for Apple Displays Now Available
- Future of DRM - is Apple buying EMI?
- Three more reasons to get a Mac
- Apple recalls 15″ MacBook Pro batteries
Web hosting - UNLIMITED space and transfer - $ 6.95 per month
Posted in 
Luigi said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:26
Great! But are You sure that the computer-keyboard shown is not a Commodore? ;-)
‘Bye,
Luigi
Sorcerer Mickey said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:38
The Apple II - so simple to operate that you can use it with your left hand alone. Perhaps if Wifey look at him extra-adoringly, he’ll let her keep recipes on it!
steve mcfarland said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:39
Great find! Steve referenced this exact ad in his interview with Bill Gates at the WSJ D Conference - my curiosity was piqued, and now has been satisfied!
mattymatt said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:39
Even then, their ads very cleverly had the users in mind, and not just business users:
Businesspeople identify with Hot Steve Jobs and think, “ah, now I can work in the comfort of home.” And homemakers will identify with Shelley Long and think, “now that my SO can work from home, I’ll have their company while I’m puttering around in the kitchen.”
It’s interesting that she’s looking at him, and he’s looking at the computer. The computer, in turn, seems to be staring straight out at the reader.
Earl Holliman said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:58
I think she looks more like Shelley Duvall: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001167/
Dan Someone said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 04:58
I don’t know if that woman is Shelley Long, but the guy looks a lot like Bobby Flay.
Tim said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:04
It looks more like Shelley Duvall…
Violet said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:04
It looks more like a bleached out Shelly Duvall, which is frankly more frightening.
someone said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:05
Anyone notice he doesn’t have a wedding ring on?
Ray said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:05
She looks more like Shelley Duvall from The Shining.
Violet said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:05
jinx
Michael said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:20
Dan Someone, you low-life-You beat me to that! :-)
Bobby is obviously cataloging all of his recipes and charting calories.
Rick said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 05:26
This is a great period piece, not just for the Apple, but the era. Besides the turtleneck and nifty blose, look at the kitchen. The succesful couple has state of the rt formice counters and dark wooden cabinets. The in wall mounted oven has analog dials to set the heat, and there is no microwave or coffemaker in sight. The heavy green curtains and the coffe cup scream mid 1970s to thosae of us who were there. Ah, memories. Curious about the lack of a ring
LinkMan said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 06:24
One thing never changes: the design of the KitchenAid stand mixer:
http://www.kitchencontraptions.com/images/B00006L58I.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
EmptySet said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 08:32
Maybe this ad isn’t for the United States. Left-handed wedding rings are not universal.
Michel said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 09:00
‘77 and no LED / LCD watch ??
abejr said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 09:45
The photo clearly depicts a 70’s Palo Alto backyard ;)
Louis Road said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 11:27
The beam in the ceiling, the kitchen layout and the oven signal a Palo Alto Eichler to go with the Palo Alto backyard
maura said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 11:29
HA! wow, this is great! i like the apple poster in the background…. and, also kinda cool (but in a different way), the design for the Kitchen Aid mixer hasn’t aged a bit!
driveby commentator said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 13:12
Just what size is THAT triangle, or, god forbid, is the fridge down the line some? Quelle horreur!
And the stove — praise be Apple, it’s not harvest gold, burnt orange, coffee brown, or avocado green — it’s white, which begs the question: was Apple already looking years ahead to the iPod, shunning la mode du jour, or was Apple painfully behind the times, still stuck on Kubrick’s stark sci-fi white? ;)
P.S. Anyone know if there was a nice, glossy black spherical PC ever made? Or how to hook me up with a Death Star or Dark Helmet mod?
Mark said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 14:22
Dude, have you ever seen your site on a Windows machine? The fonts are, well, not pretty. Take a look at this capture:
imgnation dot net/images/ncwb.jpg
bud said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 16:15
That is my 1985 -87 set up, except I put the TV above the Apple II somehow, rather than to the side. And mine was mere steps from the kitchen as well. Odd, the Apple II was almost always steps from the kitchen, even when I moved on to 3 floor condos from one bedroom apartments.
I wore a T-shirt rather than turtleneck though
eve said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 18:06
Thanks for the MailPlane invite. I started using it the second I got that invite in the email and I love it!
Strangemind said: Wed, 8 August 2007 at 22:46
Did anyone notice the strange green giant thing peeping over the fence? Just my strange imagination, I know, but still …
cfpresley said: Thu, 9 August 2007 at 09:38
Wow, Apple marketing before they started pandering to smug self congratulatory hipster art types that cared more about form rather than function. They guy with the turtleneck could easily have grown up to be John Hodgeman’s middle aged businessman caricature.
I loved my Apple II, It was tricked out with dual 5.25″ floppy’s and a paddle wheel. I used to play lemonade stand for hours on that thing. Of course, I was 10, and that was before the NES came out.
Webomatica said: Thu, 9 August 2007 at 15:49
Cool - yeah I like looking back on what Apple computers used to look like - makes me a whole lot more impressed at how far we’ve come. Even the thinness of the new keyboard compared to the old is impressive!
anogynous coward said: Thu, 9 August 2007 at 23:14
Mark: that’s because you messed up your default system / browser fonts maybe?
This website looks OK here.
Mike said: Thu, 9 August 2007 at 23:42
Mark: I have tested the website on Windows (2000, XP, Vista), Mac OS X and Ubuntu, then in different browsers (IE5,6,7, FF1.5, 2.0, Safari 2,3, NN, Opera, Camino) and it looks alright in all cases. As anogynous coward above mentioned - it might be something with your default fonts, check if your Lucida Grande font is OK . Cheers - Mike
the deadman said: Mon, 28 April 2008 at 11:36
Wow. Im not sure if it was the vile real-world colours, or the oversaturation/lack of colour correction that gives yesteryear an ugly tint…
i wonder how much turtleneck paid for that huge calculator….? $2000 maybe?