532. Brand Stories: VICKS INHALER, Richardson-Vicks, 1941

Movie idol JAIME DELA ROSA for VICKS INHALER, 1959

Pharmacist Lunsford Richard founded  Richardson-Vicks out of a family emergency. His young son, Smith Richardson suffered from a serious case of croup. Lunsford combined unique ingredients into a salve that when heated by the body, would release soothing vapors.

The boy found relief and the homemade croup and pneumonia salve was soon being sold as a legitimate product in 1894, after Lunsford took over his brother-in-law Dr. John Vick’s drugstore business,  Thus began the Vicks Family Remedies Company (later, Vicks Chemical Company) in 1898.

In 1911, the salve was renamed as VapoRub by the now-grown up Smith,  the very boy who inspired its creation and now a the helm of the business. The soothing vapors became the unique advantage of the product, such that in 1941, that effective production action was used in the development of Vicks Cough Drops, that provided instant, portable relief. The cough drops were an immense success.

Matinee Idol LUIS GONZALES for VICKS INHALER, 1956

The Vicks “vapors” line was extended in 1941 with the launch of the VICKS INHALER. This unique products brings the soothing vapors of Vicks in your pocket, just by inhaling the vapors from a plastic tube which are released from an absorbent material (like a cotton wick) that has been saturated with a blend of ingredients formulated by the company. Again, the reception to this innovation was met with widespread approval.

Singer-actress JEAN LOPEZ for VICKS INHALER, 1960

By the 1950s, VICKS INHALER  was available in the Philippines, and its early local advertising in the late 1950s featured popular movie stars, shown on this page. Despite the rise of Thai and Chinese made inhalers, VICKS INHALER—now also available in the key chain type, continues to be a favorite among local users, as the brand is now owned and managed by Procter & Gamble, a trusted maker of products that make Filipino lives easier.

527. A Free Christmas Gift from PURICO--BEAUTIFUL 3-DIMENSION BELEN! Promo Ad, 1953

PURICO was the very first product manufactured by Philippine Manufacturing Company (PMC), which was later bought by Procter & Gamble. Purico , a cooking-frying-baking lard, came out in 1919 and was promoted extensively though field marketing, advertising and sales promotions.

For Christmas 1953, Purico offered a full-color 3-dimensional cardboard Belen (nativity scene)  that one can have by presenting a boxtop flap plus 10 centavos. The pop-out belen set features cut-out figures and scenery-- "amazingly lifelike!", as the ad proclaimed.

An actual example of the giveaway Nativity set is shown below, plus he complete advertising copy that details the mechancis on how to get the Christmas cardboard Belen free.

YOUR FREE XMAS GIFT FROM PURICO!

BEAUTIFUL 3-DIMENSION BELEN—IN BRILLIANT Full COLOR

 Perfect Christmas touch in your home! Heavy cardboard BELEN with cut-out figures and scenery. Just open and spread up. Amazingly life-like! But remember, only requests by mail will be answered.

For each Belen you want, send One (1) boxtop with flap from any size Purico carton and 10 centavos.. You will get you Belen by return mail. Send for as many as you like but be sure to enclose 1 Purico box-top with flap AND 10 centavos for EACH Belen you want.

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If the coupon in this advertisement is already usedm  just print your name, aand address on the Purico box-top you send. Add the name of this magazine and the date at the top of the page. Send 10 c with each box-top for each Belen you want.

Don’t delay! Offer ends December 15!

511. The Milk Formula Trusted For Infants: PELARGON from Nestle, 1957-1971 Ads

PELARGON MODERN MILK, 1968 Print Ad

Before the advent of infant formula powdered milk like S-26 and NAN, there was PELARGON, a full-milk powder formula for babies, developed by Nestlé in 1934. It became a favored alternative to breastmilk as it was enriched with lactic acid bacteria for easier infant digestibility.  PELARGON gained popularity after World War II, as mothers made a switch from breastfeeding to bottle-feeding.

LACTOGEN ACIDIFIED POWDERED MILK, 1957 Print Ad

In fact, many mothers and children in the 60s and 70s recall PELARGON as their ideal firstborn formula. PELARGON was pure, full cream pasteurized cow’s milk, acidified with lactic acid for improved assimilation, then fortified by the addition of dextrins—maltose, sucrose, starch, vitamins A&D, thiamine, niacin, ascorbic acid and iron citrate.

PELARGON’s protein content and fat globules are similar to breastmilk. It forms soft, easily digestible gastric curds, and provides a formula adequate in all nutrients known to be essential for the regular feeding of normal, premature or weak infants.

IMPROVED FORMULA PELARGON, 1971 Print Ad

Filipro  Inc. introduced PELARGON to the Philippines only in the late 1950s after the war curtailed their importation activities, and things began to improve. The brand was promoted through advertising, using America-made ads featuring Caucasian babies and parents from the 60s thru the 70s.

PELARGON still exists today, no longer in the Philippines, but in South Africa, where it is known as NAN-PELARGON, as NAN and PELARGON were once individual brands owned by Nestle.

488. Got Ink? Parker QUINK , Various Ads 1935-1965

An indispensable office and school staple for students and workers in the 1930s is Parker QUINK INK. Back in those days, before the advent of ballpoint pens, fountain pens were used for office and classroom writings.

Unlike disposable ballpens, fountain pens were a sort of a status symbol, not only to be used and refilled with ink, but also to show them off, as fancy ones that had silver and gold fittings, trimmed with mother-of-pearl, and precious gems like diamonds and sapphires! But the ink remained the same favored  Parker QUINK INK.

QUINK INK is a coined term from  'quick' and 'ink' developed by the Parker Pen Company in 1931 and continues to be produced today. Chemist Galen Sayler is credited for its development creation, and  Quink was launched  on 17 March 1931—and its superior qualities—continuous flow, non-cloggging, smooth writing, quick-drying—drove its commercial success worldwide.

A myth grew out of QUINK INK’s origin in that it was a U.P. Filipino chemical engineer  Francisco A. Quisumbing who invented the world-famous ink. After receiving his Ph.D. from Columbia in 1921, he returned to the Philippines to teach Industrial Chemistry at his alma mater, U.P. (1922-1934).In 1923, he founded the Quisumbing Ink Products, that was not connected with Parker, in any way.

Though the popularity of fountain pens gradually dipped during the second half of the 20th century, Parker QUINK INK bottles and refills continue to be available today to a whole market legion traditional fountain pen users worldwide.

SOURCE

Quink Ink, Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quink

475. EGGO MAYONNAISE, SANDWICH SPREAD & SALAD DRESSING, 1959-1967 Ads

EGGO SANDWICH SPREAD, 1967 Ad

An early American mayonnaise brand that made its way to the Philippines in the late 1950s and which briefly earned the nods of Filipino consumers before the advent of Lady’s Choice and Kraft Mayonnaise  was EGGO. In 1959, EGGO Mayonnaise, Sandwich Spread and Salad Dressing were brought to the Philippines by Kaw Sek and Co., a product retail, wholesale, and distribution firm that was established by Peter Kawsek Sr. back in 1945 in Quiapo, Manila.

FRANK SR., ONE OF THE 3 DORSO BROTHERS, SAM AND ANTHONY,
CREATOR OF THE EGGO MAYONNAISE IN 1932

One of the American products they made available was EGGO, a mayonnaise brand that was developed in 1932 by 3 brothers: Frank, Sam and Anthony Dorsa. The brothers formulated their mayonnaise made from fresh eggs in their hometown of San Jose, California. As a tribute to their egg-cellent and successful product, they name their company EGGO Foods.

EGGO SALAD DRESSING, 1959

Eventually, they branched out to making frozen egg waffles that were even more successful which became their flagship brand. Eventually, the EGGO line would feature a host of other products like EGGO syrup,  noodles, and pretzels, along with their original EGGO mayonnaise, salad dressing and spreads.

EGGO, FOR TASTIER SANDWICHES, 1966

Early advertising of EGGO products in the Philippines began in 1959, with small ads, both in black and white and in full color. It featured the EGGO Mascot, complete with a hat and bowtie. EGGO spreads and dressings were available all throughout the 60s, until the company began to focus on its highly successful waffle products, which are still in production to this day. In the 1970s, EGGO became part of Kellogg’s.  The senior Frank Dorsa passed away in Saratoga, on Jan. 17, 1996 at the age of 88. 

As to the local distributor Kaw Sek & Co., it is still in operations under the name Kawsek Inc., based in Mandaluyong. It is managed and operated by Lawrence L. Kawsek, the founder’s 2^nd son. It is currently a distributor of Pauls Milk products, Gina Nectar, Apex and Susan Baker brands. It also manufactures the Apex detergents and its services are utilized by major brands like Kraft, Dole, Anchor and Minola.

SOURCES:

San Jose History: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SanJoseHistory/posts/2365718663559354/

 The Origins Of Eggo Have Nothing To Do With Waffles: https://www.thedailymeal.com/1127961/the-origins-of-eggo-have-nothing-to-do-with-waffles/

 

421. For a cleaner, neater, fresher look! VITALIS SOLID BRILLIANTINE, 1957

VITALIS SOLID BRILLIATINE PRINT AD, 1957

Old school barber shops are becoming trendier these days—specializing in timeless haircuts styles done in the old fashioned way: pompadours, fades, tapers, bowl cut, crew cut, French crop, side part and slick backs. Suddenly, more male hair care products in vintage-style packaging are appearing in the market to appeal to this fresher, neater styles of the past.

 One such stuff men put on their hair as part of their grroming regimen during the Magsaysay years was VITALIS SOLID BRILLIANTINE., made by Metro Laboratories Inc., under license from Bristol-Myers Co., New York, U.S. VITALIS was originally a hair tonic brand that was produced in the 1940s, but since hair lotion was not popular in the local market, the VITALIS name was appended to a pomade brand that were more in use by Filipino menfolk. When launched, VITALIS was touted as the most exciting hair preparation since the ordinary pomade—holding hair better, thus keeping a man well-groomed all day.

Even the name VITALIS, however, could not hold the competitors at bay—like Vaseline and Brylcreem. Besides, there were cheaper pomades entrenched in the market—X-7 , Black Panther, Robin Hood, Three Flowers. The VITALIS brand still exists in the online market as VITALIS Hair Tonic, and is produced today by Idelle Labs in the U.S.

410. Brand Stories: DR. WEST’S TOOTHBRUSH, Philippine Ads 1929-1961

AN EARLY 1929 DR. WEST'S TOOTHBRUSH Print Ad, Graphic Magazine

DR. WEST’S –a name that originated from West Products Company--became a byword in dental hygiene when, in 1938, the company introduced the world’s first nylon toothbrush—the DR. WEST’S Miracle Tuft Tootbrush. But the globally popular brand was already in existence since 1921,  when the Chicago-based company, launched its DR. WEST’S Toothbrush with the health curve, that follows the curved angles of the mouth for better cleaning. These toothbrushes and their subsequent variants were known and sold  as WESCO Products.

1924 DR. WEST'S with Health Curve

Less than a decade after its introduction, DR. WEST’S Toothbrush brands were being sold in the Philippines, available at local druggists. These early toothbrushes were still being made with ”choice, carefully-selected bristles” from animal hair, like boars and pigs.

1929 DR. WEST'S TOOTHBRUSH Philippine Ad

The West Products Company changed all that in 1938, when it launched the orange coloured, medium size, Dr. WEST’S Miracle Tuft Toothbrush. Originally released in February 1938, this toothbrush was the first successful commercial application of nylon, marketed as the DuPont 'Exton' bristle.

DR. WEST'S GERM-FIGHTER AD, 1959

In October 1938, the West Products Company, Chicago rolled out  an intensive national advertising campaign for its new toothbrush with the Dupont-made synthetic bristles. The ads communicated 4 benefits:  ‘No bristle shedding, 100 percent waterproofed, longer life, greater cleaning power.’ The value of oral hygiene was underscored when DR. WEST’S Toothbrushes were included in the personal kits of soliders  who served during World War II.

DR. WEST'S Color Ad, 1961

When WECO's exclusive franchise with Dupont  on the use of the bristles expired in 1940, other manufacturers began to make nylon bristled toothbrushes. By the 1950s, almost 80% of all toothbrushes had synthetic bristles. DR. WEST’s Tootbrushes were advertised until the 1960s in Philippine magazines.  The 1961 colored ad played up on the different color handles available to make brushing with the germ-fighting DR. WEST’S Toothbrush more fun and appealing.

There is no information available about the closure of the West Products Co. business,  Today, there are Dr. West (not West’s) toothbrushes being made in China and Oman, but these are not in any way, connected with the original DR. WEST’S Toothbrush of West Products Co.

SOURCES:

1924 Dr. West’s print Ad, ebay.com

Dr. West’s ad,  Life Magazine ,Nov. 21, 1938 issue.

History of the Modern Toothbrush, by White Dental Studio | Oct 12, 2015 |, https://mywhitedental.com/toothbrush-history/

409. CALUMET: The Double-Acting, Better Baking Powder, 1956-1960

1950s CALUMET PRINT ADS, with endorsers Gloria Romero and Lolita Rodriguez

One of the most popular baking products in the world with the most recognizable packaging is CALUMET Baking Powder. Chicagoan William Monroe Wright, with partner chemist George Campbell Rew, formulated a revolutionary, double-acting baking powder in 1899 that replaced cream of tartar with aluminum phosphate and also included dried egg whites.

The product was christened CALUMET, after a French-derived word for a Native American ceremonial pipe. It was also the name given to the land that would give rise to Calumet City, Illinois. The red, black and white CALUMET tin canisters featured the stylized profile of an Indian wearing a feathered war bonnet. To this day, this iconic packaging remains unchanged.

1956 CALUMET AD, Baked Desserts

1956 CALUMET AD,Baked Desserts

The success of CALUMET prompted Wright to put up his CALUMET Baking Powder Company  until it was acquired by General Foods in 1929..

CALUMET RECIPE ADS, 1957

CALUMET Baking Powder became available in the Philippines in the 1950s, when Filipino women discovered the joys of baking in modern ovens. It was heavily advertised in 2-color ads in leading magazines, using movie celebrities like Gloria Romero and Lolita Rodriguez as endorsers. Ot was promoted along with Swans Down Cake Flour, another General Foods product.

FILM STAR GLORIA ROMERO FOR CALUMET, 1958

LOLITA RODRIGUEZ CALUMET AD,1959

GLORIA ROMERO FOR CALUMET, 1958

In 1990, General Foods merged with Kraft Foods. The company grew even bigger when, 2015, Kraft Foods  merged with H.J. Heinz Co. It continues to produce and market CALUMET Baking Powder today

1960 VINTAGE CALUMET ADS

SOURCES:

The Kraft Heinz Co., https://www.kraftheinzcompany.com/

Calumet, on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calumet_Baking_Powder_Company

 

397. Celebrity Endorser: MARY PRIETO for YUKI-NO-HANA Medicated Cream, 1959

MARY PRIETO in her only known endorsement, YUK NO HANA Cream, 1959

MARY PRIETO (b.1 Jan. 1920/d. 11 June 2010), a long and fruitful life, finding fame in many different worlds: as Yolanda Marquez, she made waves as a pre-war movie star on the silver screen. As Mary Prieto, she became a celebrated personality in Philippine high society, becoming a classic icon of style and grace. She became a model, and later, she a columnist and writer.

The Fil-Mex beauty (her father was Filipino lawyer Generoso Hernandez, mother was Marina, a Mexican)  grew up in California until age 14, when she opted to come back to the Philippines to stay in Macabebe, her father’s hometown. It was here that she met her father’s cousin, the celebrated Miss Pampanga of 1926, Rosario H. Paganiban. Rosario had been married a few years with director Vicente Salumbides. She opened doors for the young Yolanda so she could start a career in the movies. Soon, she was cast in “Milagro ng Nazareno” from Parlatone Films, where she co-starred with Angel Esmeralda (Nepomuceno). It was an unprecedented success and Yolanda was on her way.

WHEN MARY WAS YOLANDA, 1930s Fan Photo

Her output over a period of 2 decades was limited to just 9 film appearances, but those were enough to propel her to national fame. The war however, put her career on hold. In 1944, she met a La Sallian basketball star, Leo Prieto (later a PBA Commissioner), whom she married and stayed with for 65 years.

She would resurface as MARY PRIETO, and though she had retired from the movies, she made a very rare appearance as an ad model at age 39. Prieto appeared in an ad for a medicated cream made by Kimura Laboratories in 1959. The brand, YUKI NO HANA (Snow Flower) was touted as “the miracle cream of the century” that promises “a pearl-like complexion”.

Prieto gushes about the revolutionary in her endorsement: “YUKI NO HANA Medicated Cream part of my everyday beauty care. It softens and clears my complexion. I use it as a make-up base too. I recommend it for complexion problems.”

Not much is known about this product and its maker. But certainly, the endorser is quintessential figure in Philippine high society: Mary Prieto. With her passing, came the end of a gracious era, where good manners and proper decorum where hallmarks of a good and genteel society.

 SOURCES:

Tatler Asia: https://www.tatlerasia.com/style/fashion/mary-prieto-the-quintessential-society-lady

High Society Star: Yolanda Marquez, http://viewsfromthepampang.blogspot.com/2012/07/300-high-society-star-yolanda-marquez.html

The Best of Karilagan, https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2017/08/26/1733004/best-karilagan

395. Always a Good Cake with SWANS DOWN Cake Flour, Ads 1957-1962

SWANS DOWN PRINT AD, 1961

Cake baking was never a Philippines tradition;  homemakers were happy with their kerosene stoves, and gas ranges were yet to be preferred. Mothers were also contented with their all-purpose flour. SWANS DOWN was meant to add more sophistication and variety to a Filipina mother’s culinary skills.

SWANS DOWN PRINT AD, 1961

 The product innovation was developed by Addison Igleheart,  who in 1894, discovered a new way of milling wheat that made a flour ideal for cake baking. He named it SWANS DOWN, because like the down feather of birds that were used in pillows, the cakes made from the flour were soft, light and fluffy. In 1904, SWANS DOWN confections won Gold medal at the St. Louis World’s Fair.

The Iglehearts joined General Foods Corp. in 1926, and in 1945, the food company  introduced  the first cake mix under the SWANS DOWN  name. It was such a success that SWANS DOWN became America’s favorite cake flour brand.

MOVIE STAR GLORIA ROMERO FOR SWANS DOWN, 1957

SWANS DOWN was first marketed in the Philippines beginning in the mid 1950s, and by 1957 was being advertised in national media. The first ad featured a black and white endorsement of 1950s superstar, Gloria Romero, who was also a sought-after celebrity model.

 SWANS DOWN was one of the first food products to use color and photography in their ads, in a time  when even food ads were largely illustrated in monotone.  It SWANS DOWN had less than a decade’s run in the Philippine market, it laid the foundation for cake baking and pastry making that led to the rise of cakeshops and bakeshop businesses like Red Ribbon and Goldilocks.

SWANS DOWN CHRISTMAS AD, 1962

By the early 1970s, marketing by other competitors forced SWANS DOWN Cake Mix out of business worldwide, but SWANS DOWN  Cake Flour survived because of the loyal generations of scratch bakers who refused to bake with anything else. In 1985, the Wm. B. Reily & Company purchased the Swans Down brand, and it is now manufactured and marketed by Reily Foods.

SWANS DOWN Cake Flour is only available in the Philippines through international shopping stores today.

SOURCES:

America’s favorite Cake Flour since 1894: https://swansdown.com/

Swans Down FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/SwansDownCakeFlour/

Swans Down photo:  https://reilyproducts.com/products/swans-down-32-oz/

387. Brand Stories: EVEREADY® BATTERIES, 1929-1983 Philippine Ads

EVEREADY Print Ad, with Model Dawn Colvin.1970,

The EVEREADY Battery Company was founded back in the 1890s by Conrad Hubert , the inventor of the first electric hand torch—or the flashlight. With a rough brass reflector inside a paper tube, the contraption was powered by dry cell batteries. 

EVEREADY, FLASHLIGHTS & BATTERIES, 1929

The flashlight proved to be a successful product, but the batteries were also much in demand, and by the 1920s the production of the EVEREADY® battery brand begins to expand across the globe over the next three decades. By 1929, EVEREADY flashlights and batteries were available in the Philippines, imported all the way from the U.S., advertised in leading magazines and dailies.

EVEREADY FLASHLIGHTS & BATTERIES, 1929

The now familiar “Cat & 9” EVEREADY® icon was launched in the 1930s, and the brand character became one of the most identifiable marks of EVEREADY. By the 1950s, the “battery with 9 lives” was an established brand, distributed by Pacific Merchandising Corp., along with EVEREADY-branded flashlights, radio batteries and dry cells.  

EVEREADY, SILENT NIGHT, 1955

The National Carbon Philippines, Inc. in Mandaluyong  began producing EVEREADY batteries to serve the growing needs of the Philippine market. The fledgling company would grow to become the Union Carbide Philippines in the late 1960s, part of the Union Carbide Corporation, the world’s largest producer of ethylene glycol and the a leading manufacturer of the world’s most widely used plastic, polyethylene. 

THANKS TO EVEREADY, 1957

EVEREADY, BUY FRESH, 1958

The marketing of EVEREADY took a more sophisticated turn, with communication and media strategies planned by its appointed ad agency, McCann-Erickson Phils.  In 1968, “The Fresh Ones” campaign was launched, harping on the freshness of EVEREADY Batteries as as for the first time, they were manufactured locally in the Mandaue plant in Cebu.

EVEREADY, THE FRESH ONES, "Fruits", 1968

EVEREADY, THE FRESH ONES, "Vegetables", 1968

One of the most memorable EVEREADY campaigns that was launched on Philippine TV ca. 1983, carried the theme “EVEREADY—may lakas sa loob na tumatagal”, that shows how the batteries came to save the day  for a husband and wife about to have their baby. The delivery was hampered by a brownout, but an EVEREADY-powered flashlight ensured a smooth delivery. The ad was the brainchild of the legendary McCann-Erickson creative director Bill Y. Ibañez. 

WATCH THE EVEREADY "LAKAS SA LOOB" TVC HERE:

uploaded by ADman 1909, July 5, 2007

In 1986, Union Carbide sold its Battery Products Division to Ralston Purina Company for $1.4 billion.  In 2000, Ralston spun off Eveready, and it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange as a holding company, Energizer Holdings, Inc. with EVEREADY Battery Company, Inc continuing as its most important daughter company.

The Union Carbide plant in Cebu was renamed as  Energizer Philippines, and continued to produce batteries until its closure in May 2011. The company is still represented in the country as Energizer Philippines and continues to make EVEREADY and Energizer batteries available. 

 SOURCES:

Eveready website: https://www.eveready.com/

Goodbye-Union Carbide, The Philippine Star, 27 April 2011. https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2011/04/27/679662/editorial-goodbye-union-carbide

Union Carbide Corp., https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/economics-business-and-labor/businesses-and-occupations/union-carbide-corp

Video: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1192253240694