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The clear craze was a marketing fad from the late 1980s to early 2000s, often equating transparency with purity. Inspired by
Since the introduction of
''The New York Times'', April 13, 1992 featuring no preservatives or caffeine, although the existing
The End of Marketing as We Know It
Harper-Collins, 1999.
File:Crystal Pepsi 20oz.jpg, Crystal Pepsi.
File:IMac G3 Indigo.jpg, A translucent indigo iMac G3.
File:N64-Console-Orange.jpg, A translucent orange Nintendo 64.
Clear, and cashing in
''
The clear craze was a marketing fad from the late 1980s to early 2000s, often equating transparency with purity. Inspired by Ivory
Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals i ...
's "99 and 44/100 percent pure" campaign for bath soap, and by low-calorie or "light
Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 te ...
" beverages, sodas were redesigned in the 1980s and 1990s as being free of artificial dyes, such as the caffeine-free and preservative-free Crystal Pepsi. Personal hygiene products were then relaunched as clear dye-free gels, and many electronics had transparent cases.
History
Since the introduction of Plexiglas
Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) belongs to a group of materials called engineering plastics. It is a transparent thermoplastic. PMMA is also known as acrylic, acrylic glass, as well as by the trade names and brands Crylux, Plexiglas, Acrylite ...
in the late 1930s, devices have been made with clear shells to expose the electromechanical components inside. At the 1939 New York World's Fair, a 139 Pontiac Deluxe Six engine with a clear Plexiglas body was on display. Peaking in the 1960s and 1970s, transparent-shelled devices fell out of fashion until the clear craze in the late 1980s. Following the breakup of the Bell System in the mid 1980s, a surge of manufacturers began creating phones, many of them transparent and having flashing neon lights when the phone rings.
A trend of "light" beer with fewer calories started in the 1960s. Then, color was identified in the marketing industry as a "tool for visual persuasion" toward a product's purity and health consciousness. Ivory soap was adapted from its classic milky solution and its slogan of "99 and 44/100 percent pure". This led up the clear craze starting in the 1980s. To showcase the reduction of calories or artificial flavors, many companies released clear versions of their products. The clear cola market was entered by Crystal Pepsi on April 13, 1992"Business Digest"''The New York Times'', April 13, 1992 featuring no preservatives or caffeine, although the existing
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961.
History
Pepsi wa ...
also did not have preservatives, and a caffeine-free version was already available.Zyman, SergioThe End of Marketing as We Know It
Harper-Collins, 1999.
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlant ...
soon responded with Tab Clear. In August 1992, Coors announced Zima
Zima may refer to:
* Zima (drink), an alcoholic beverage
* Zima (town), a town in Russia
* Zima (surname)
* '' Zima Blue and Other Stories'', a collection of short works by Alastair Reynolds
* Zima, a character in the anime series ''Chobits
...
, a clear, carbonated malt beer and in 1993, Miller
A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalent ...
released Miller Clear to mixed reviews.
Gillette released versions of its existing deodorants and shaving creams in a clear gel form, which have continued indefinitely.
Through the 1990s, the clear trend included transparent watches, staplers, calculators, handheld gaming devices such as the Nintendo Game Boy
The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same tea ...
, and computers such as Apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ' ...
's iMac G3
The iMac G3, originally released as the iMac, is a series of Macintosh personal computers sold by Apple Computer from 1998 to 2003. The iMac was the first major new product release for Apple under Steve Jobs, Apple's interim CEO and cofounder ...
.
See also
*Retrofuturism
Retrofuturism (adjective ''retrofuturistic'' or ''retrofuture'') is a movement in the creative arts showing the influence of depictions of the future produced in an earlier era. If futurism is sometimes called a "science" bent on anticipatin ...
References
External links
Clear, and cashing in
''
Newsweek
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...
'', February 2, 1993
{{portal bar, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s
Product management
1980s fads and trends
1990s fads and trends
2000s fads and trends