You often hear people saying that, back in the day, people were just cooler. Now, of course, part of that is the rose-tinted glasses that we use when remembering the past, especially if we lived through those times. But there is a certain level of truth to it; without social media, people were less incentivized to look cool 24/7.
As such, we’ve collected some images from around the internet showing people being effortlessly cool. They are posing for their pictures, sure, and yet they do it with a freshness somewhat lacking in today’s people. Join us and enjoy this blast from the past.
r/TheWayWeWereWhen A Bike Makes You Cool
Posing with a motorbike will always make you look cool, no matter what the rest of your outfit looks like. Of course, the attitude needs to be right as well.
r/TheWayWeWereIt’s Cooler
This gentleman certainly knew how to be cooler than any of us. We promise this is the only ‘cool’ pun you’ll find here.
r/TheWayWeWereGrease Gang
Black jeans and a white shirt were all you needed to be part of the cool kids back then, and we couldn’t agree more.
r/TheWayWeWereWhen That Mustache Was Cool
No one wants to be associated with the legacy this mustache ended up with, so we subconsciously only allow people from before that time to use it without prejudice.
r/TheWayWeWereCool Teens
There’s something about the grainy state of this photo that adds to its cool factor, like a story never told but fondly remembered.
r/TheWayWeWereJacket
A leather jacket can make anyone look cool, but when you already had the looks and the attitude, it multiplies what you were already bringing.
r/TheWayWeWereCar Pose
People really enjoyed posing with their cars back in the day, and with reason; even the most mundane of cars looked like a collector’s piece.
r/TheWayWeWereDouble Exposure
Doing this today is a simple matter of editing two pictures with photoshop in two minutes, or telling an AI to do it. The fact that it was done in the 80s is what makes this picture cool.
r/TheWayWeWereShades On
The best cool poses are the ones that are deliberately casual, where it seems like you can’t help but look cool. This guy here nailed it.
r/TheWayWeWereHairspray
These kids turned picnic tables into additional sitting arrangements, but all we can focus on is the incredible hairstyles being shown by these young ladies.
r/TheWayWeWereHarlem Suits
Just because you’re going out with the boys doesn’t mean that you can’t look good while you’re doing it. Who knows who else might be watching?
r/TheWayWeWereHappy To Be Here
Cool isn’t restricted to looking emotionless or like you don’t have a care in the world. Someone that is happy to be alive at any given moment can have their own style of cool.
r/TheWayWeWereTeaching The Kids
A good way to show your offspring how to continue a legacy of cool, is to guide by setting an example. Leather jackets and bikes will always be cool, a lesson well learned.
r/TheWayWeWereStrike A Pose
Just sitting on top of a cool looking car isn’t enough, you also need to bring some form of sway into the mix. This woman knows how to look cool and it shows.
r/TheWayWeWereUrban Cool
Not every jacket needs to be made of leather for it to add to your cool factor. This lady here clearly knows how to be incredibly cool without needing one.
