Fin de Siècle (translation: end of the century) — Merriam-Webster has one heck of another definition for it:
“of, relating to, or characteristic of the close of the 19th century and especially its literary and artistic climate of sophistication, world-weariness, and fashionable despair”
Fashionable despair.
Fashionable despair and beef tea.
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Pear’s Soap has several claims to fame.
It was the world’s first transparent soap.
It is the world’s oldest continuous brand.
And as chairman of the company, Thomas J. Barratt is known to some as the father of modern advertising.
Would you like to learn more about saponification? Of course you would! (You don’t.)
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Ever see The Wicker Man movie? The one with Edward Woodward, not the iffy remake with Nicolas Cage. Oh, no reason.
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Joseph A. Campbell III: “We need the perfect word that’ll really get these beans flying off the shelves!”
Tommy Thompson: “How about… ‘digestible’?”
Campbell: “Thompson, my boy, I see a VP title in your future!”
It’s a lucky day when you’re flipping through an old comic book and happen upon one of the first, if not THE first, ad for General Mills Lucky Charms!
Fun facts: “The cereal was created by product developer John Holahan. He developed the original prototype based on Cheerios cereal pieces and chopped up pieces of his favorite candy – Circus Peanuts.”
Circus peanuts!?!? Noooooooooo!
“The marshmallow pieces in Lucky Charms are called ‘marbits.’”
Marbits!?!? Nooooooooo!
More Lucky Charms history can be found here.
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What a way to celebrate America’s Bicentennial.
Fun fact: Billboard’s #1 song on the Hot 100 around the time of this ad?
Starland Vocal Band’s “Afternoon Delight”.
Another fun fact: Radio Shack sold blank 8-track tapes until 1990.
