On the Flip Side: Deck the Halls...With BB Guns?

This week's Flip Side comes from the back cover of Action Comics #188 (discussed in a recent post), and features the legendary Daisy BB Rifle, endorsed by Red Ryder himself (click on the thumbnail for a larger view)!  Note Red's odd assumption that the BB rifle would be hung "on your Christmas tree".  Because, you know, nothing communicates the peace and love of the Christmas season better than a rifle hanging from a Christmas tree.

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As anyone with a pulse knows, this is a similar pitch to the one immortalized in A Christmas Story (1980), the nostalgic tale of young Ralphie Parker and his desperate quest to score an official Red Ryder BB Rifle for Christmas.

The ad implores eager youngsters to slip their parents the model number of their dream rifle, a bit like the scheming Ralphie himself.  The ad also supplies some great rhetorical ammunition for the kids to use...including the possibility of junior membership in the NRA and an easy shot at nabbing a Boy Scout Marksmanship Merit Badge!  Why, it might even be enough to overcome the formidable "You'll shoot your eye out!" parental dodge technique!

Finally, take a look at the four-panel sequence at the bottom of the ad, specifically the third panel from the left.

Ahhh...the good old days, when dad could sight-in a rifle in the middle of a busy department store, and not immediately get maced by the clerk or tackled by store security.

Oh, and by the way....to answer Red Ryder's original question?  I'll take the No. 111 Famous Daisy 1000-Shot Red Ryder Cowboy Carbine model (which retailed for a whopping $5.95)! 

But please...don't hang it on my Christmas tree.

Comments

[Loren]

"nothing communicates the peace and love of the Christmas season better than a rifle hanging from a Christmas tree."

Okay, you almost owed me a new computer because I almost spat out my soda laughing out loud while reading this line.

Ah, the good-old days...and, remember when you could buy toys that launched little pieces that could be ingested by toddlers or poke their eyes out? What fun!

[Mark Engblom]

LOL! Sorry for almost messing up your computer!

Yeah, I remember those great old (dangerous) toys. Of course, that was also back when our parents didn't bother using the seat belts in our cars and regularly played something called "Lawn Jarts", which involved tossing sharp metal darts and sticking them into the grass. Let's just say those were more "carefree" times and leave it at that, shall we?

I still can't get over that illustration of the dad sighting-in the BB rifle in the store. I think even by those "carefree" standards back in the day, that still might have been pushing it.

[Greg Scott]

I can't help looking at the picture of the guy sighting the rifle in the store without imagining a thought balloon where he's saying "Hmmm...There's the wife in housewears...All it would take is one shot, and the nagging would stop...Just one shot..."

[Mark Engblom]

LOL! Yes, that definitely could have been part of that odd scenario. I also like how the clerk isn't the least bit concerned about dad taking aim at the other customers. He's busy telling junior about the many joys and benefits of owning a Daisy BB rifle!