This week’s work of art is by a portrait of Arthur Guinness, the founder of the Guinness beer empire, whose birthday may have been yesterday in 1724 or 25, no one is precisely sure. It’s been used by the brewery for some time, was most likely painted in the 18th century, though who painted it is not revealed.
Our 86th Guinness is from 1952, though it’s not strictly an ad. It was the cover for Guinness’ internal newsletter, Guinness Time. Apparently the man dressed like a butler or private driver had a bottle of Guinness — the one on the fence — and was able to just carry the large family, boat and all, the ocean for some recreational fun.
Friday’s ad is from 1971 and is for the malt liquor Colt 45. Introduced in 1963 by National Brewing of Baltimore, Maryland, today the brand is under the umbrella of Pabst. In the bright, primary colors of the 1970s, it’s a simple ad, with a blue background showing the beer glass upside down and the common toast, “Bottom’s Up” as a tagline, also upside down.
While I don’t put any stock in astrology, in 1980 Guinness put out a calendar with each month representing one of the zodiac signs, and I thought it would be fun to share these throughout the year.
Libra, the scales, is from September 23-October 23. To learn more, see:
Thursday’s ad is from 1968 and is for Budweiser. The ad copy claims that there were 332 beer brands being sold in 1968. Now that’s “brands,” not breweries, because there weren’t nearly that many different breweries in operation then. According to USBA figures, there were 197 U.S. breweries in 1965, but only 154 in 1970, just five years later. So the number in 1968 would have been somewhere in between that period of time when 43 breweries closed. The ad itself shows quite a number of Budweiser’s competitors at the time, claiming — naturally — that only their beer was “beechwood aged.” I recognize many of the labels shown, though a few — like Dawson and Van Dyke — I’ve never heard of before. Still, you’ve got to be pretty confident in your market share to show your competitors’ labels in your own ad.
Wednesday’s ad is from 1939 and is for Pabst. The slogan claims that “Pabst gets The Call for Keener Refreshment” at the celebrated “21.” But even though everyone is dressed to the nines, the place looks like a dump, celebrated or not. With cheesy Italian tablecloths, bowls of snacks on the tables and rec-room wood paneling — there’s certainly nothing wrong with a bar like that — but tuxedos and fur coats just seem somewhat out of place.
Tuesday’s ad is from 1944 and is for Schlitz. Showing a man wooing a woman by romantically rowing her in a canoe, presumably by moonlight, however there’s no beer in the scene. Wouldn’t he have better luck giving her some Schlitz? Now that’s a social lubricant.
Monday’s ad is from 1964 and is for a Guinness product, their Harp Lager. It uses a curious slogan, “If it’s just something cold and wet you want, drink water.” Since I can’t help but think of Harp as not much more flavorful than water, it doesn’t exactly make me want to rush out and buy some of their beer. But I do love the photograph of the beer beautifully posed on rolling sands.
This week’s work of art is by a Scottish artist, George Harvey, who painted Hop-Picking around 1839. The setting of the painting is believed to be in the Kentish area of England.
You can read a short biography of Harvey at Wikipedia and find links to more of his work at ArtCyclopedia. You can also see a few more of Harvey’s works at the Web Gallery.
Our 85th Guinness is yet another simple one, though it looks slightly more modern. With a pint of Guinness next to four oysters, the tagline reads “Guinness Brings the Oysters out of their Shell,” followed by the more common “Guinness id good for you.”
