Saturday’s ad is entitled Mother’s Night Off, and the illustration was done in 1953 by Douglass Crockwell. It’s #77 in a series entitled “Home Life in America,” also known as the Beer Belongs series of ads that the United States Brewers Foundation ran from 1945 to 1956. In this ad, Mom didn’t have to cook one evening after working nonstop since got married fifty years ago. Instead, Dad and his son appear to have cooked, while sister (or possible daughter-in-law) lights the candles. She probably set the table and poured the beer, too. There’s a whole lot of smiling going on. Even Mom is smirking.
But if that’s a bowl of spaghetti – where’s the “Dago Red” ? Continues to amaze me how overdressed people were in home situaion ads back then. The towel on son-server’s left wrist is hilarious! All I can figure is that these ads were pitched at the upper crust – average working stiffs either never wore such clothes (except on special occasions/going to church). Those in “white collar”/salesman jobs in dept/shoe stores more likely got comfy when they got home & ditched the monkey suits. I was 4 in 1953 – never saw anything remotely close!