Barbie fraternized with some questionable dudes in the 1970s

Hat tip to We Are the Mutants for making me aware of this far-out Barbie set. Sources indicate it's from the 1976 Sears wish book, of which Rolf Potts writes this in a long, wonderful essay on his website: "Even though I could scarcely read in 1976, I paged through the holiday catalog’s 620 glossy pages as if they amounted to an intoxicating graphic novel of desire, rich with abundance and possibility."

Turning back to this particular advertisement, I think Barbie's "date" looks a little like a young Michael Gross, before he settled down with Meredith Baxter Birney to raise a family in 1980s suburbia. And that's just the start of the quips. Here are some of the others (not mine) I've gathered from Facebook and other corners of the internet, for your giggling pleasure and for posterity.

• Cocaine not included.
• The Mr. Goodbar playset.
• STDs sold separately.
• DEAR GOD. All that's missing is a mirror and rolled up dollar bill.
• That's Paul Rudd from Anchorman.

Here are the "specs" for this play set. I'm a little disturbed by the line: "When dolls are tired, fold discoteque into colorful carry-along radio."

Did I say Michael Gross? I meant John Cazale.