See a second ad in this series, "Are they hard to put in?"
See a very early Tampax ad (1936) - a very early Tampax box and contents - more early commercial tampons
See more Tampax items: American ad from August 1965 - nudity in an ad: May 1992 (United Kingdom) - a sign advertising Tampax during World War II - the original patent - an instruction sheet from the 1930s
The influential Dickinson Report (1945) - Early commercial tampons
Ad Aug 1965 - actress Susan Dey ad, 1970 - gymnast Mary Lou Retton ad, 1986 - ad "Are you sure I'll still be a virgin?" Feb. 1990 - ad (British, nude) 1992 - Tampax sign (World War II) - ad, British, 1994 (the thong advantage)
Australian douche ad (ca. 1900) - Fresca douche (date ?) - Kotique douche 1974 ad - Liasan (1) ad - Liasan (2) ad - Lysol 1928 ad - Lysol 1948 ad - Marvel 1926 ad - Midol 1938 ad - Midol 1959 booklet - o.b. German (papyrus tampons) - Pristeen 1969 ad - o.b. German (nude) - Sterizol 1926 ad - Vionell spray 1970 ad (Germany) - the odor page

A British Tampax ad using nudity (1992) - And see other ads directed at teenagers.

See a Modess True or False? ad in The American Girl magazine, January 1947, and actress Carol Lynley in "How Shall I Tell My Daughter" booklet ad (1955) - Modess . . . . because ads (many dates).
CONTRIBUTE to Humor, Words and expressions about menstruation and Would you stop menstruating if you could?
No, the tampon can't lostSome MUM site links:
homepage | MUM address & What does MUM mean? | e-mail the museum | privacy on this site | who runs this museum?? |
Amazing women! | the art of menstruation | artists (non-menstrual) | asbestos | belts | bidets | founder bio | Bly, Nellie | MUM board | books: menstruation and menopause (and reviews) | cats | company booklets for girls (mostly) directory | contraception and religion | costumes | menstrual cups | cup usage | dispensers | douches, pain, sprays | essay directory | extraction | facts-of-life booklets for girls | famous women in menstrual hygiene ads | FAQ | founder/director biography | gynecological topics by Dr. Soucasaux | humor | huts | links | masturbation | media coverage of MUM | menarche booklets for girls and parents | miscellaneous | museum future | Norwegian menstruation exhibit | odor | olor | pad directory | patent medicine | poetry directory | products, current | puberty booklets for girls and parents | religion | Religión y menstruación | your remedies for menstrual discomfort | menstrual products safety | science | Seguridad de productos para la menstruación | shame | slapping, menstrual | sponges | synchrony | tampon directory | early tampons | teen ads directory | tour of the former museum (video) | underpants & panties directory | videos, films directory | Words and expressions about menstruation | Would you stop menstruating if you could? | What did women do about menstruation in the past? | washable pads
Leer la versión en español de los siguientes temas: Anticoncepción y religión, Breve reseña - Olor - Religión y menstruación - Seguridad de productos para la menstruación.

See the original Museum of Menstruation, a cartoon visit,
the museum's future, and reaction to it and this site.

"Are you sure I'll still be a virgin?" (Tampax ad, February 1990, magazine unknown, U.S.A.)
Yes, you'll still be a virgin. No, we won't laugh at questions like that.
(Tampax ad, May 1991, Seventeen magazine, U.S.A.)

Six months after the caller asked the question in the top ad a smug-looking Tampax lady answered in the second one. No, I'm sure she answered right away. This was–is–a big deal.

Right from the beginning, in 1936, the second Tampax tampon producers that became Tambrands worried about the reluctance of unmarried women - at that date most unmarried women were thought to be virgins - to use tampons, which, of course, penetrated the vagina, possibly opening the hymen wider than was decent. Did that make them no longer a virgin? Were they fallen women? No company wanted to be responsible for the mass deflowering of American women!

Religious authorities and doctors chimed in with similar concerns. Tampax responded to these in bulletins in the early Fifties.

In 1945, the Dickinson Report gave a boost to the tampon industry, which by then had expanded to many companies besides Tampax. (See more early tampons from the U.S.A.)

The top ad below is one of the latest to discuss this concern, which I'm sure is still on the minds of many girls, especially in America and Latin countries, where unmarried women still prefer menstrual pads.

See other ads in this series, "Are they hard to put in?" and "I hate pads - they're like wearing diapers."
See a letter a mother wrote to her daughter's doctor about tampons and hymens.
Below: The ad measures 8 x 10 3/4" (20.3 x 27.3 cm). Another Tampax ad had the same format with a different message: "I hate pads - they're like wearing diapers."
Below: The ad measures 8 x 10 3/4" (20.3 x 27.3 cm).  This woman seems to appear in a similar ad headed, "No, the tampon can't get lost. All you can lose is those diapers."

See a second ad in this series, "Are they hard to put in?" - American ad from August 1965 - nudity in an ad: May 1992 (United Kingdom) -
a sign advertising Tampax
during World War II - the original patent - an instruction sheet from the 1930s

© 1998, 2016 Harry Finley. It is illegal to reproduce or distribute any of the work on this Web site in any manner or medium
without written permission of the author. Please report suspected violations to hfinley@mum.org