I kept looking at those four spoof beer labels that I posted earlier today for Hoppy Halloween because they reminded me of something, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Then it hit me: Wacky Packages, those weird parody stickers that Topps debuted in 1967. Like most eight-year olds at the time, they were quite popular with me and my friends. What I didn’t realize is that they’ve continued to make them almost ever since. The Wacky Packages Website has a complete listing of all the Wacky Packages put out over the years and Topps even continues to maintain a new “official” Wacky Packages website. Not surprisingly, there have been several beer spoofs done, the first one being the very first year. It was a spoof of Schlitz, then one of the most popular beer brands.
Later ones included most of the other popular national beer brands and a few originals, like Long Line Beer, from 1981. A search of the website revealed nine different beer brands, with some variations of Pabst and a few additional beer-related ones for other products.
Below is a slideshow of all of the beer-themed Wacky Packages I found, including one of port wine just because I liked it and a few that are only beer-related.
But the Schmutz one was never issued back in the day. A couple months ago I blogged about a book that has the first seven series of Wacky Packages (1973-74). Even though there were 19 cigarette/cigar parodies, the only beer one in those first batches was the Pabst parody (Blast Blew Ribbon).
I wouldn’t be surprised if fear of MADD and other Just-Say-No agitators would keep them from doing any beer/liquor ones nowadays.