Eerie Pre-9/11 Advertising

With the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in NYC and Washington D.C. fast approaching, here's an overview of eerie, strange and just plain weird advertising that pre-dates 9/11 and creepily resembles visions of the tragic event.

I came across several of these print ads published years before the attacks.

Print Ad for Pakistan International Airlines, 1979.

Of the ads pre-dating 9/11, I found this one to be the oldest - and the creepiest.

Print Ad for Asbestos Corporation Ltd, 1981.
(Click image to read body copy)

Oddly enough, this ad - for asbestos of all things, is not only strange given the events of 9/11 which would occur 20 years later, but also the medical hazard that asbestos was later identified as. Note the tagline.

World Trade Center Brochure Ad, 1984.
Original Source

An auspicious headline for a World Trade Center brochure ad.

Print Ad for The Steel Institute of New York, early '90's.

An unfortunate ad (with a very amateurish layout) and a body copy line that reads:

"Structures built with steel can dramatically withstand the 

unusual dynamic forces generated by a catastrophic event 

-- whether from an earthquake, a hurricane, or even an explosion."

Print Ad for Cordant Technologies, 2001 (before 9/11)

Appearing in Business Week just months before 9/11, this ad for Cordant Technologies' jet engine division for new airfoil technology has a disturbing vision of foretelling.


Later this week, I'll look at advertising over the last decade which exploited the 9/11 tragedy.