Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Beer In Ads #2450: A Guinness Page For Coronation Year

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Saturday’s ad is for Guinness, from 1953. While the best known Guinness ads were undoubtedly the ones created by John Gilroy, Guinness had other creative ads throughout the same period and afterward, too, which are often overlooked. In this ad, for Elizabeth II’s coronation year, the page is divided into nine sections. One has the title, “A Guinness Page For Coronation Year,” another shows a Guinness bottle from before 1850 and a current one and a third shows a contemporary advertisement. The other six each contain historical anecdotes, most of which reference Guinness in some way. In 1953, if you liked the ad you could send away for a poster of it. I wonder if anybody did?

Guinness-1953-coronation

Beer In Ads #2449: Lovely Day For An Ostrich

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Friday’s ad is for Guinness, from 1954. While the best known Guinness ads were undoubtedly the ones created by John Gilroy, Guinness had other creative ads throughout the same period and afterward, too, which are often overlooked. In this ad, a man and his Ostrich look suspiciously similar, so I guess it’s along the lines of the idea that people resemble their pets. Or in this case, their drinking buddies, although the ostrich does have a ping glass stuck in his throat, so he may be done for the night. The artist’s initials are again “E.H.,” but I don’t know who that might be.

Guinness-1954-ostrich

Beer In Ads #2448: Lovely Day For A Koala

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Thursday’s ad is for Guinness, from 1954. While the best known Guinness ads were undoubtedly the ones created by John Gilroy, Guinness had other creative ads throughout the same period and afterward, too, which are often overlooked. In this ad, a man and his koala bear look suspiciously similar, so I guess it’s along the lines of the idea that people resemble their pets. Or in this case, their drinking buddies. The artist’s initials are “E.H.,” but I don’t know who that might be.

Guinness-1954-koala

Beer In Ads #2447: A Guinness A Day

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Wednesday’s ad is for Guinness, from 1953. While the best known Guinness ads were undoubtedly the ones created by John Gilroy, Guinness had other creative ads throughout the same period and afterward, too, which are often overlooked. In this ad, a man is shown through seven stages of drinking a Guinness each day of the week to help you through it. You need one during the weekdays to make it to the weekend, so you can have some more Guinness. An early version of “a can a week, that’s all we ask,” except daily.

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Beer In Ads #2446: The Costume Party

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Tuesday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1940. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, a woman is at a costume party — Halloween perhaps — while someone in ruffled sleeves pours her a bottle of Schlitz. Unfortunately the best image of the ad I could find cuts of the text a bit, but there’s something about a “happy little chuckle.” Happy Halloween.

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Beer In Ads #2445: Bear Detective

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Monday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1943. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, another of the curious bear ads, in which the Sherlock Holmes of bears is on the case, and has found what he’s looking for: Schlitz beer.

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Beer In Ads #2444: The Masterpiece

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Sunday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1941. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, a woman has painted a work of art, which you’ll not be surprised to learn is a bottle of Schlitz beer. Curiously, she also painted the words “No bitterness” at the top of the canvas which ruins of the painting for me, at least.

Schlitz-1941-masterpiece

And here’s a second ad that used the same art.

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Beer In Ads #2443: The Highest Note In Beer

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Saturday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1942. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, a woman with an orchid in her hair is singing into a microphone, apparently “singing the praises of America’s most distinguished beer.” Or maybe that’s what gave her the courage to step up to the mic in the first place, who knows?

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Beer In Ads #2442: The World Looks Brighter

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Friday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1942. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, a woman holds a clear glass of beer to show just how clear it is as you can see the Schlitz globe easily through the beer. That certainly proves it’s “America’s most distinguished beer.”

Schlitz-Beer-advertisement-1942

Beer In Ads #2441: For Gracious Living

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Thursday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1946. “Just the Kiss of the Hops” was a popular slogan used by Schlitz for several decades. It’s meant to express that their beer had no bitterness, but they definitely had some fun with it over the years. In this ad, a number of people are sitting at outdoor tables, perhaps a restaurant or cafe, or even some impossibly rich backyard (there is someone dressed more like a maid than a waitress in the background). I’m starting to lean toward the latter explanation since that would indeed be the more gracious living scenario. And maybe it’s just me, but the woman with black hair front and center looks like she could be Betty Page, or at least has a Better Page-haircut.

Schlitz-1946-for-gracious-living