1955: The Ford Instrument Company presents: Cold War Deadly Weapons Doll Theatre.

(click ads, from 1955 issues of Scientific American, via) Ford, a division of the Sperry Corporation, touted their advanced weapons systems with a truly bizarre series of ads featuring two reoccurring dolls: a smiling soldier and a beret-sporting bear (apparently not meant to represent the red menace of the U.S.S.R.). There is nary a mention of the insane visuals in the straightforward copy. I can't believe these helped Ford secure very many government contracts.
Previous Cold War ads: a retro nuclear bombvertising roundup.