Wednesday’s ad is from 1941, and was for the United States Brewers Foundation, a trade group. Showing two couples bowling with the catchy tagline “Right down their alley … a glass of mellow beer or ale!” Take a look at the guy with the pipe walking by in the background. He looks like he’s checking out the ladies as he’s carrying a pair of beer bottles past their alley.
Tuesday’s ad is for Miller High Life, from 1968. In what looks like another hunting lodge, or at least a rec. room, a group of middle-aged men are playing poker, or maybe bridge or even pinochle. But one of them is leaning against the fireplace, by the dog, as if he’s sitting out a hand, or perhaps already folded. The reason I know they’re middle-aged is because nobody else would have dressed like that in 1968, with slicked-down hair, button-down collars and such subdued colors. I don’t think I even realize they still made flannel shirts in the late sixties, although to be fair that turquoise cardigan is rather flamboyant. Sparkling … Flavorful … Distinctive! Indeed.
Monday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1952. In what looks like a hunting lodge, or at least a rec. room, a younger couple sits on a couch drinking beer out of tall pilsner glasses, while an older gentlemen with a pipe appears to be showing off his red hat. He sure looks like he’s digging that hat, but the blonde couples’ smiles look more polite than sincere.
Friday’s ad is for Rheingold Beer, from 1959, and features Miss Rheingold from that year, Robbin Bain. The ad is set at an amusement park where Miss Rheingold has won a trio of stuffed animals on the Midway. The teddy bear I get, and the doll in the red snowsuit with the weird red elf hat is sort of understandable, but what the hell is that thing in her right hand? Is it Humpty Dumpty in a plaid outfit? Or what?
Thursday’s ad is for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1950. The setting for the ad is the archery range, and features archery champion Larry Hughes. According to a History Of Archery By Tom Brissee, in 1941 Hughes used “aluminum arrows to win the American National Archery Championship.”
Wednesday’s ad is for Budweiser, from 1958. It’s one from Anheuser-Busch’s long-running “Where There’s Like … There’s Bud” series. In this one, a smiling redhead is having her pilsner glass filled, but notice that it’s already full to the brim, but there’s still a stream of beer coming out of the bottle, plus you can see a fair amount of beer still inside the bottle, too. A lot of these ads show this impossible scene of a bottomless beer bottle where despite the fact that glass is full, the bottle that filled it is still likewise full. It’s magic. And check out the length of her painted fingernails. They seem pretty long for 1958. Of course, I was minus one that year, so what do I know?
Tuesday’s ad is for Rheingold Beer, from 1948, and features Miss Rheingold from that year, Pat Quinlan. The ad features Ms. Quinlan in a curious yellow snowsuit (designed by Sophie of Saks Fifth Avenue) in a barren snow-covered wasteland, posing with two large dogs. I’d expect to see a sled nearby, but perhaps it’s just out of the frame.
Monday’s ad is for Schlitz, from 1953. It’s a fairly typical Fifties-era ad for Schlitz, with the illustration showing a woman in a pink dress seated beneath a tree on a grassy knoll as her beau hands her a glass of Schlitz. One of my first dates with my wife was a picnic on Angel Island, but we looked like nothing like this couple. Oh, and I didn’t bring Schlitz.
Friday’s ad is, beginning the second thousand, is a variation on last night’s. This ad was also created by famed Swiss poster artist Peter Birkhäuser, in 1957. It’s another beautiful illustration of a red-gloved hand holding a pilsner glass filled with a golden-colored beer with a white head. Again, simply gorgeous.
Thursday’s ad is, believe it or not, the 1,000th ad featured here, so I wanted to pick a special one to mark the occasion. The ad was created by famed Swiss poster artist Peter Birkhäuser, in 1957. It’s a beautiful illustration of a green-gloved hand holding a pilsner glass filled with a mahogany-colored beer with a tan head. Simply gorgeous.
