This is an Open Thread / Coffee Hour and all topics of conversation are welcome. Today's suggested topic is Burma-Shave.
What is for dinner? How are you doing? What is on your mind. If you are new to Street Prophets please introduce yourself beyond the fold in a comment. This is an Open Thread / Coffee Hour and all topics of conversation are welcome. So what do you think about Burma-Shave.?
Roadside billboards
Burma-Shave sign series first appeared in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1925, and remained a major advertising component until 1963 in most of the contiguous United States. The exceptions were New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada (deemed to have insufficient road traffic), and Massachusetts (eliminated due to that state's high land rentals and roadside foliage). Typically, six consecutive small signs would be posted along the edge of highways, spaced for sequential reading by passing motorists. The last sign was almost always the name of the product. The signs were originally produced in two color combinations: red-and-white and orange-and-black, though the latter was eliminated after a few years. A special white-on-blue set of signs was developed for South Dakota, which restricted the color red on roadside signs to official warning notices. This use of a series of small signs, each of which bore part of a commercial message, was a successful approach to highway advertising during the early years of highway travel, drawing the attention of passing motorists who were curious to learn the punchline. As the Interstate system expanded in the late 1950s and vehicle speeds increased, it became more difficult to attract motorists' attention with small signs. When the company was acquired by Phillip Morris, the signs were discontinued on advice of counsel. From Wikipedia: Burma-Shave
Examples
The complete list of the 600 or so known sets of signs is listed in Sunday Drives and in the last part of The Verse by the Side of the Road. The content of the earliest signs is lost, but it is believed that the first recorded signs, for 1927 and soon after, are close to the originals. The first ones were prosaic advertisements. Generally the signs were printed with all capital letters. The style shown below is for readability: Shave the modern way / No brush / No lather / No rub-in / Big tube 35 cents - Drug stores / Burma-Shave As early as 1928, the writers were displaying a puckish sense of humor: Takes the "H" out of shave / Makes it save / Saves complexion / Saves time and money / No brush - no lather / Burma-Shave In 1929, the prosaic ads began to be replaced by actual verses on four signs, with the fifth sign merely a filler for the sixth: Every shaver / Now can snore / Six more minutes / Than before / By using / Burma-Shave Your shaving brush / Has had its day / So why not / Shave the modern way / With / Burma-Shave Previously there were only two to four sets of signs per year. 1930 saw major growth in the company, and 19 sets of signs were produced. The writers recycled a previous joke. They continued to ridicule the "old" style of shaving. And they began to appeal to the wives as well: Cheer up face / The war is past / The "H" is out / Of shave / At last / Burma-Shave Shaving brushes / You'll soon see 'em / On the shelf / In some / Museum / Burma-Shave Does your husband / Misbehave / Grunt and grumble / Rant and rave / Shoot the brute some / Burma-Shave In 1931, the writers began to reveal a "cringe factor" side to their creativity, which would increase over time: No matter / How you slice it / It's still your face / Be humane / Use / Burma-Shave In 1932, the company recognized the popularity of the signs with a self-referencing gimmick: Free / Illustrated / Jingle book / In every / Package / Burma-Shave A shave / That's real / No cuts to heal / A soothing / Velvet after-feel / Burma-Shave In 1935, the first known appearance of a road safety message appeared, combined with a punning sales pitch: Train approaching / Whistle squealing / Stop / Avoid that run-down feeling / Burma-Shave Keep well / To the right / Of the oncoming car / Get your close shaves / From the half pound jar / Burma-Shave Safety messages began to increase in 1939, as these examples show. (The first of the four is a parody of "Paul Revere's Ride" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.) Hardly a driver / Is now alive / Who passed / On hills / At 75 / Burma-Shave Past / Schoolhouses / Take it slow / Let the little / Shavers grow / Burma-Shave If you dislike / Big traffic fines / Slow down / Till you / Can read these signs / Burma-Shave Don't take / a curve / at 60 per. / We hate to lose / a customer / Burma-Shave In 1939 and subsequent years, demise of the signs was foreshadowed, as busy roadways approaching larger cities featured shortened versions of the slogans on one, two, or three signs — the exact count is not recorded. The puns include a play on the Maxwell House Coffee slogan, standard puns, and yet another reference to the "H" joke: Good to the last strop Covers a multitude of chins Takes the "H" out of shaving The war years found the company recycling a lot of their old signs, with new ones mostly focusing on World War II propaganda: Let's make Hitler / And Hirohito / Feel as bad / as Old Benito / Buy War Bonds / Burma-Shave Slap / The Jap / With / Iron / Scrap / Burma-Shave 1963 was the last year for the signs, most of which were repeats, including the final slogan, which had first appeared in 1953: Our fortune / Is your / Shaven face / It's our best / Advertising space / Burma-Shave Possibly the ultimate in self-referencing signs, leaving out the product name. This one also adorns the cover of the book: If you / Don't know / Whose signs / These are / You can't have / Driven very far From Wikipedia: Burma-Shave