I remember Burma Shave signs. I caught just the tail end of that ad campaign. Each set had 6 signs, the last one always being the product name. Example from 1959:
Drinking drivers
Nothing Worse
They put
The quart
Before the Hearse
Burma Shave
(Courtesy of “The Verse by the Side of the Road” by Frank Rowsome Jr.)
Bryl-creem, a little dab’ll do ya,
Use more, only if you dare,
But watch out,
The gals will all pursue ya,–
They’ll love to put their fingers through your hair.
Bryl-creem, a little dab’ll do ya,
Bryl-creem, you’ll look so debonair.
Bryl-creem, the gals will all pursue ya,
They’ll love to RUN their fingers through your hair.
Sorry, but in the third panel, does it look like the barber is running either a sander or a buffer on Walt’s head?
I always remember the old “Brylecreem, a little dab’ll do ya, for men who use their heads about their hair” version myself.
I think the way the seat faces determines if you’re in a barber shop or visiting a hair-stylist. At a real barber shop you face away from the mirror so you can talk to the other people in the shop. At a hair-stylists you face the mirror so you can watch what them work. A barber shop is more than a place to get your hair cut. You’re there to visit and talk. At places like Super Cuts they don’t want you to talk. You’re only there to get your hair cut and out again as fast as possible so they can set someone else in the seat for another $20 or so.
Dypak and Joe, I think the panel 3 problem is a trick of perspective– that Walt is more in the foreground than you’d think, and the clippers actually quite a bit further back in the scene than his head. Notice how Walt’s melon is much more massive than the barber’s noggin. I guess the barber is just revving the clippers for some reason, but they’re not yet close enough to Walt’s hair to be clipping anything. In the last panel, wherein they’re standing in the same plane, their head sizes are roughly the same. And yes, at this moment I have nothing better to do.
leakysqueaky712 over 14 years ago
That cant be Gertie??
ocean17 over 14 years ago
I see Gerdo booked in with Michael Jackson’s skin specialist.
btw, anyone remember where “a little dash will do you” comes from? (except it was “dab”, not “dash”)
brylcreem, a little dab’ll do ya brylcreem, you’ll look so debonair. brylcreem, the girls will all adore ya, so put a little brylcreem in your hair.
Or words to that effect, circa 1960. Mr. Jim and I seem to be about the same vintage.
Hillbillyman over 14 years ago
I remember it well…but it never worked for me. I thought of suing for false advertizing.
davidf42 over 14 years ago
The verse I remember is -
Brylcreem, a little dab’ll do ya, Use more only if you dare. But watch out, the girls will all pursue ya, They like to get their fingers in your hair.
axe-grinder over 14 years ago
There is no business that is not show business. Walt’s barber understands that.
JanLC over 14 years ago
I remember Burma Shave signs. I caught just the tail end of that ad campaign. Each set had 6 signs, the last one always being the product name. Example from 1959: Drinking drivers Nothing Worse They put The quart Before the Hearse Burma Shave (Courtesy of “The Verse by the Side of the Road” by Frank Rowsome Jr.)
travburg1 over 14 years ago
I remember the Burma Shave signs. I have also returned to using Brylcreem.
imrobert over 14 years ago
Bryl-creem, a little dab’ll do ya, Use more, only if you dare, But watch out, The gals will all pursue ya,– They’ll love to put their fingers through your hair. Bryl-creem, a little dab’ll do ya, Bryl-creem, you’ll look so debonair. Bryl-creem, the gals will all pursue ya, They’ll love to RUN their fingers through your hair.
axe-grinder over 14 years ago
Lots of different Brylcreem ads on youtube… here’s one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYaqPF6gkw4
Durak Premium Member over 14 years ago
Sorry, but in the third panel, does it look like the barber is running either a sander or a buffer on Walt’s head?
I always remember the old “Brylecreem, a little dab’ll do ya, for men who use their heads about their hair” version myself.
I think the way the seat faces determines if you’re in a barber shop or visiting a hair-stylist. At a real barber shop you face away from the mirror so you can talk to the other people in the shop. At a hair-stylists you face the mirror so you can watch what them work. A barber shop is more than a place to get your hair cut. You’re there to visit and talk. At places like Super Cuts they don’t want you to talk. You’re only there to get your hair cut and out again as fast as possible so they can set someone else in the seat for another $20 or so.
Durak Premium Member over 14 years ago
Heh, cute ad Axe. Good thing that guy didn’t use two and a half dabs. The commercial might have ended up with an X rating.
axe-grinder over 14 years ago
Dypak and Joe, I think the panel 3 problem is a trick of perspective– that Walt is more in the foreground than you’d think, and the clippers actually quite a bit further back in the scene than his head. Notice how Walt’s melon is much more massive than the barber’s noggin. I guess the barber is just revving the clippers for some reason, but they’re not yet close enough to Walt’s hair to be clipping anything. In the last panel, wherein they’re standing in the same plane, their head sizes are roughly the same. And yes, at this moment I have nothing better to do.