Tuesday’s holiday ad for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1946. IN a scene that looks like it’s after a long day skiing, a couple is relaxing back in the lodge, by the fireplace, as the man is serving mugs of Pabst. “Order it with Confidence … Serve it with Pride.” I’m not sure about the smile on him, it looks a little creepy to me. So maybe they’re not a couple after all, her smile seems a bit forced, so maybe this is a pickup attempt?
Saturday’s holiday ad is for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1941. “Isn’t Christmas Fun?” A frazzled husband responds. “Could Be! If You’d Only Give Me A “33 to 1″ Chance!” Eventually his wife understands, and he enjoys a beer before turning into a decorating demon, prompting her to suggest he may be getting a whole case of PBRs on Christmas Day.
Thursday’s holiday ad is for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1935. According to the ad, during the Yuletide season “It’s time for Pabst.” Happy Holidays!
Sunday’s ad is for Pabst Blue Ribbon, from 1911. I love the outfit on the server, that must be some posh establishment he works for. I love that Pabst is working so hard to position PBR as the classy beer, and especially this sentiment: “Pabst Blue Ribbon is the ultimate choice of all who have a keen faculty of selection.” Priceless. People who who are good at picking things?
Monday’s ad is yet another one for Pabst, again from 1897. The ad shows the Boston Tea Party, with cartons of tea leaves being dumped into the harbor. Another patriotic moment, another reminder how healthful Pabst Malt Extract can be, especially how it can cure so many spring ills. There’s even a list of what it can cure: enervation, fatigue, thin blood, anaemia, exhaustion, lack of vitality, weakness, nervousness, sleeplessness and slow recovery from a winter’s sickness.
Sunday’s ad is still another one for Pabst, also from 1897. The ad shows what is purported to be the “First Inauguration” — it looks like George Washington — yet I’m always amazed that we tend to simply ignore the ten presidents of Congress who preceded Washington under the Articles of Confederation, not to mention the fourteen people who served as president of the continental congress before that. In our collective image of American history, we seemingly just leap from 1776 to Washington’s inauguration thirteen years later, on April 30, 1789, as if that previous decade didn’t even exist. Climbing down off my soapbox, with Pabst Malt Extract, apparently, you won’t have to worry about dyspepsia or indigestion.
Saturday’s ad is another one for Pabst, also from 1897. The ad shows Commodore Perry, the other one — the Hero of Lake Erie — standing in a small rowboat at the end of the battle, and I can only assume he said something like “take up the slack.” I’m not quite sure what “Perry’s Victory” has to do with Pabst Malt Extract, but it’s another in a series of patriotic ads using incidents throughout American history to sell Pabst.
Friday’s ad is another one for Pabst, again from 1897. The ad shows the Old North Church, in Boston, Massachusetts, the one that had as many as two lamps hanging from its steeple, “one if by land, and two if by sea” depending on where the British were coming from, according to the story of Paul Revere. Apparently Pabst Malt Extract, “the best tonic,” will put anyone to sleep, even with those annoying lights streaming through the curtain windows.
Thursday’s ad is another one for Pabst, again from 1897. The ad shows the Mayflower — Happy Thanksgiving — and is using that, I think, to suggest that since Europeans arrived in America, that now, 400+ years later, brewing perfection has been achieved through Pabst Malt Extract. Let’s just say I’m skeptical.
Wednesday’s ad is for Pabst, from 1897. The ad tells the tale, sort of, between a brave Native American warrior and the famed Pocahontas. Apparently he’d been sick, but no more, thanks to Pabst Malt Extract, “The ‘Best’ Tonic.”
