Saturday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1944. Another magic bottle on the tray, but more curious is the illustration. A bear (cub?) in a band uniform playing a tuba (Sousaphone technically) while sitting on a park bench. What on Earth does that have to do with beer generally, and Schlitz in specific?
Friday’s ad is for Miller High Life, from 1939. “Enjoy Life with Miller High Life.” Tennis … golf … baseball … “Wherever there’s action — wherever people are doing things — you’ll find Miller High Life.” Is there actually ever a time when people aren’t doing things?
Thursday’s ad is another one for Schlitz, this one from 1947. With the tagline “International Agreement,” the ad shows four people of different backgrounds (including possibly the butler from yesterday’s ad) drinking together. But the funniest part of the ads is in the ad copy, where it says “Around a table in some far-off corner of the world …” and yet out the window that clearly looks like the Golden Gate bridge. So that means in 1947, Schlitz’s idea of a “far-off corner of the world” was San Francisco. Hilarious.
Wednesday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1949. It’s from their long-running “I was curious” series. I guess in 1949, just after World War 2, everyone had their own butler so the ad was relatable. It’s also a little funny that the tray sitting there is filled with pilsner glasses, but the butler used a humble tumbler when he tasted it, not wanting to use the fancy glassware for himself, I suppose.
Tuesday’s ad is for Goebel Beer, from 1944. Using the tagline “Nationally famous for good taste,” which seems more optimistic than realistic, the ad features a woman seated at a table with an empty wine glass on it while a man holding a cigarette in his hand stands over her. It’s hard to tell what’s supposed to be going on there. The “treat” referred to is a recipe for “Chicken Louisette” created by the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New York, and is show paired with Goebel Beer. And look, it’s another one of those magic bottles. The pilsner glass is full, but the bottle is only half empty?
Monday’s ad is for Ballantine Beer, from 1954. This must have been ad laying the groundwork for low-calorie diet beer, as light beer was known in those days. In fact, that’s why it flopped initially, because people didn’t like the idea of beer being called “diet,” though it seems to have worked fine for Coke. It’s funny how that brought red belt draws your attention to her waistline but then the dress below fans out so it maker figure look disproportionally hourglass, although I guess that was a thing once, wasn’t it. I also love the tagline captioning the photo. “Brewed to the American taste … to the American figure.” Hilarious.
Sunday’s ad is for Owens-Illinois Glass, 1958. Owens-Illinois is still a going concern, making glass worldwide. It’s a big company. According to Wikipedia, “Approximately one of every two glass containers made worldwide is made by O-I, its affiliates, or its licensees.” In the late 1950s, they were trying to persuade people that “The wife most likely to be kissed … always puts Beer on her shopping list. Especially in “No-Deposit, No-Return Bottles.” Of course, this was also a time when it was “her shopping list” and not just “the shopping list.”
Saturday’s ad is for 3 Hoefijzers Bier, from Breda in the Netherlands. The Three Horseshoes was founded in 1628, although there had been a brewery on the same site since 1538. The copy on the old ad (I’m not sure when it’s from) translates as “the surprise of Breda,” which may refer to a battle there, possibly the Capture of Breda in 1581 or the Capture of Breda in 1590 or it could be another battle entirely. In 1995, after many years of mergers, Interbrew bought the brewery, but in 2007 was razed to build a residential complex.
Friday’s ad is for the malt liquor Colt 45, from 1970. This was at the height of the space race, the year following landing on the moon, so turning the can of malt liquor into a rocket was marketing genius. What’s the only thing better than a six-pack of Colt 45? Why two, of course. Very subtle. Associating the kick of a rocket with the kick of increased alcohol? Genius. “Take Off Time” indeed. “All Systems Are ‘Go'” to get drunk.
Thursday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1941. This ad was presumably from the months before America entered World War 2, when life was still relatively normal. A time when the “thoughtful wife” has Schlitz waiting for her husband when he arrived home from “a day’s hard work.” For some reason she left the icebox door wide open, letting all the cold air out and warming up the beer, not to mention all of the food in there.
