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The enormous popularity of the television program "Mad Men," about a Madison Avenue advertising agency in the early 1960s, has spawned renewed interest in the etymologies and etiologies of famous slogans and commercial campaigns. As very little so-called information on the Internet is trustworthy, this blog offers (as a public service), a reliable digest of backstories about some of the most noteworthy tag-lines in the culture.
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Sara Lee Dials it Down
When the makers of America's favorite frozen cheesecake were first coming to market with their signature product, a forward-thinking young exec., fresh from Princeton, hit upon an idea that was radical, even revolutionary, for its time: be edgy. (Today, of course, even advertising for adult undergarments is "edgy," so the pendulum has definitely swung). When the idea was first proposed, the board of directors was scandalized, but decided, nonetheless, to give the young lad's slogan a shot.
"Everybody has a pole up their ass about something, but nobody has a pole up their ass about Sara Lee," lasted as a national campaign for exactly 48 hours before it was yanked and replaced with the now familiar pablum. The company went on to international superstardom. The young executive, meanwhile, was fired and, in fact, blacklisted from the industry. He died bitter and penniless.
Camel Cigarettes -- A Line Up In Smoke
The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, makers of Camel Cigarettes, had a very similar conundrum to that of Sara Lee when it launched its brand in 1913: How to make it instantly recognizable and unforgettable. A wag in accounting, who fancied himself an apprentice copyrighter, hit upon what he thought was an irresistible play on words. But because the country was much more puritanical then than it is now, "I'd walk a mile for a Camel" won out over "I'd hump a Camel." The latter did enjoy some mild success in a few foreign markets, but, bucking the common wisdom in the industry that "sex sells," Reynolds' "mile" version has gone the distance and stood the test of time.
We're in a Hell of a Jam
Sometimes, slogans are transferred from one company to the next for a whole host of reasons. Ernie and Ernesta Smuckers were a husband and wife team from Cleveland who invented what they thought was a sure-fire formula for a new 20th century soft drink: vinegar, honey, and lemon juice mixed with carbonated water. Even their clever title: "With a name like Smuckers... it has to be good" could not save their awful concoction. The company soon folded, but not before it sold its only valuable asset, its tag-line, to John and Mary Smith who had just started a jam company that they wished to distinguish.
Nuts to You
Another example of what advertisers call the "Transference Principle" occurred when American psychiatry was still in its infancy and unsure of its future. The American Psychiatric Association, stung by criticism that its members were pushing wildly divergent theories about the nature of sanity and mental illnesses, and confusing an already confused and skeptical public, was casting about for a feel-good saying that would allow the association to poke gentle fun at its own foibles and demonstrate to lay people that doctors were only human after all. But very few people were amused when the APA went with: "Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't." The slogan fell into disuse until the 1970s when it was sold to the Peter Paul Company, maker of the Almond Joy candy bar, where it lives to this very day.
The Old Meaning Was Dropped
Sometimes, slogans stay with the product, but the meaning evolves. When hot coffee was first invented, it was sold regularly in glass bowls with no handles. An eagle-eyed employee of the Folger's corporation noticed that most customers could not hold on to the product for long periods of time, and, in fact, frequently dropped the bowls. This was back in the lawless age of scant regulation, long before coffee companies began printing warning labels on plastic lids to dissuade otherwise unsuspecting souls from pouring scalding hot liquid into their laps. Thus, "Good to the last drop" was merely a reference to the annoying habit of dropping the coffee bowl onto the ground after it became too hot to handle. It was not until the ever-enterprising Folgers began promoting the use of mugs that the slogan became associated with the meaning we recognize today.
Break Fast of Champions
Similarly, Wheaties used to be sold as a specialty product only. It was marketed as a complete meal for the breaking of the Yom Kippur fast. "Break Fast of Champions" referred originally to persons who made it through the 25-hour fast without cheating. But because this particular specialty market is so small (and Yom Kippur comes but once a year), General Mills determined, early in the game, to switch to appeal to a broader audience. The company pitched the product as a breakfast cereal, and now champions referred, not to super fasters, but to super athletes and sports stars, like Mo Berg, Sandy Koufax, Red Auerbach, Sasha Cohen, and Mark Spitz.
That's All Folks
Warner Bros. uses this famous valediction at the close of its Looney Tunes cartoon and so do I here without permission. See ya, Doc.
Be sure to visit our sponsors.
And tell them "Grouchy" sent you.
Sara Lee Dials it Down
When the makers of America's favorite frozen cheesecake were first coming to market with their signature product, a forward-thinking young exec., fresh from Princeton, hit upon an idea that was radical, even revolutionary, for its time: be edgy. (Today, of course, even advertising for adult undergarments is "edgy," so the pendulum has definitely swung). When the idea was first proposed, the board of directors was scandalized, but decided, nonetheless, to give the young lad's slogan a shot.
"Everybody has a pole up their ass about something, but nobody has a pole up their ass about Sara Lee," lasted as a national campaign for exactly 48 hours before it was yanked and replaced with the now familiar pablum. The company went on to international superstardom. The young executive, meanwhile, was fired and, in fact, blacklisted from the industry. He died bitter and penniless.
Camel Cigarettes -- A Line Up In Smoke
The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, makers of Camel Cigarettes, had a very similar conundrum to that of Sara Lee when it launched its brand in 1913: How to make it instantly recognizable and unforgettable. A wag in accounting, who fancied himself an apprentice copyrighter, hit upon what he thought was an irresistible play on words. But because the country was much more puritanical then than it is now, "I'd walk a mile for a Camel" won out over "I'd hump a Camel." The latter did enjoy some mild success in a few foreign markets, but, bucking the common wisdom in the industry that "sex sells," Reynolds' "mile" version has gone the distance and stood the test of time.
We're in a Hell of a Jam
Sometimes, slogans are transferred from one company to the next for a whole host of reasons. Ernie and Ernesta Smuckers were a husband and wife team from Cleveland who invented what they thought was a sure-fire formula for a new 20th century soft drink: vinegar, honey, and lemon juice mixed with carbonated water. Even their clever title: "With a name like Smuckers... it has to be good" could not save their awful concoction. The company soon folded, but not before it sold its only valuable asset, its tag-line, to John and Mary Smith who had just started a jam company that they wished to distinguish.
Nuts to You
Another example of what advertisers call the "Transference Principle" occurred when American psychiatry was still in its infancy and unsure of its future. The American Psychiatric Association, stung by criticism that its members were pushing wildly divergent theories about the nature of sanity and mental illnesses, and confusing an already confused and skeptical public, was casting about for a feel-good saying that would allow the association to poke gentle fun at its own foibles and demonstrate to lay people that doctors were only human after all. But very few people were amused when the APA went with: "Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't." The slogan fell into disuse until the 1970s when it was sold to the Peter Paul Company, maker of the Almond Joy candy bar, where it lives to this very day.
The Old Meaning Was Dropped
Sometimes, slogans stay with the product, but the meaning evolves. When hot coffee was first invented, it was sold regularly in glass bowls with no handles. An eagle-eyed employee of the Folger's corporation noticed that most customers could not hold on to the product for long periods of time, and, in fact, frequently dropped the bowls. This was back in the lawless age of scant regulation, long before coffee companies began printing warning labels on plastic lids to dissuade otherwise unsuspecting souls from pouring scalding hot liquid into their laps. Thus, "Good to the last drop" was merely a reference to the annoying habit of dropping the coffee bowl onto the ground after it became too hot to handle. It was not until the ever-enterprising Folgers began promoting the use of mugs that the slogan became associated with the meaning we recognize today.
Break Fast of Champions
Similarly, Wheaties used to be sold as a specialty product only. It was marketed as a complete meal for the breaking of the Yom Kippur fast. "Break Fast of Champions" referred originally to persons who made it through the 25-hour fast without cheating. But because this particular specialty market is so small (and Yom Kippur comes but once a year), General Mills determined, early in the game, to switch to appeal to a broader audience. The company pitched the product as a breakfast cereal, and now champions referred, not to super fasters, but to super athletes and sports stars, like Mo Berg, Sandy Koufax, Red Auerbach, Sasha Cohen, and Mark Spitz.
That's All Folks
Warner Bros. uses this famous valediction at the close of its Looney Tunes cartoon and so do I here without permission. See ya, Doc.
Some words Some phrases Some slogan it s very quite impression more than nowsadays.
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