It was no accident that a image of a Sheik was put onto the condom tins of the early 1920's. It was all due to Valentino. Women loved him, men hated him. But soon it was learned that men who used Sheik condoms were playing a little of Valentino. In fact young men of the 1920's who used condoms like this were called Sheik's looking for their Sheba's.The role of the Sheik was the one most identified with Valentino. Women swooned to his love scenes. So here was an average fellows chance to be a little different. Condom sales grew as technology did.
But in the 1920's sex exploded on the scene as it had never done before. Much of this was due to Prohibition, Jazz, short dresses, bath tub gin, relaxed sexual norms and of course the sexiest man around in those days ...Valentino.
Condom sales went up quite fast when his picture was on the product. Although it never mentioned Valentino, everyone knew it was all about him. When he died thousands of women went crazy, two killed themselves.
But for many years after that time, the Sheik condom continued to sell and of course it always had that drawing of the Sheik on horseback, just like the Sheik in all of Valentino's movies.
These days the only place to get Sheik condoms is in Canada. But once upon a time, They were all about sex in the old city.
This was every woman's dream in the 1920's . It was also every man's fantasy to be like Valentino, even though every man hated and was jealous of him. Every man wanted to be a Sheik, at least a Sheik like this.
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