The Jock Sock (part one)

Before there were famous sportsmen pitching "fashion" underwear for mainstream audiences in the early 1980s, there was another company that had already established a name for itself for selling sexy men's undies.  If you were a young man in the 1970s who happened to read any number of adult men's publications (including both gay and straight magazines), then there's a good chance you probably saw an advertisement for the Jock Sock.   It was the product of a company called International Male, which was a mail-order specialty retailer that has existed (in one form or another) since the 1970s.  It's reported that the clothing line was originally created by Gene Burkard, a former advertising copywriter at the Milwaukee Journal.  Gene had the very innovative idea to market a unique version of men's under shorts through the mail (called the Jock Sock) back in 1971.  Nearly a decade ahead of the mainstream men's "fashion underwear" blitz, the Jock Sock was marketing genius--even the name sounded athletic and masculine.  And talk about freedom--this underwear had no seat or leg straps and offered a stretch nylon pouch, understanding that men are in various states of arousal throughout the day.  It was available in colors and fish net styles.  And as we'll take a look at in part two, it was popular with both gay and straight men who mailed away for a pair.