Advertising

Ivory Soap Ad

Advertising is meant to persuade, and the themes and techniques of that persuasion reveal a part of the nation's history. The Museum has preserved advertising campaigns for several familiar companies, such as Marlboro, Alka-Seltzer, Federal Express, Cover Girl, and Nike. It also holds the records of the NW Ayer Advertising Agency and business papers from Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Carvel Ice Cream, and other companies. The Warshaw Collection of Business Americana comprises thousands of trade cards, catalogs, labels, and other business papers and images dating back to the late 1700s.

Beyond advertising campaigns, the collections encompass thousands of examples of packaging, catalogs, and other literature from many crafts and trades, from engineering to hat making. The collections also contain an eclectic array of advertising objects, such as wooden cigar-store Indians, neon signs, and political campaign ads.

Advertising Button, Lotus, Lotusphere

This circular button has black text on a yellow background that reads: Ask Me About Lotusphere 1993. It has the Lotusphere logo in black, grey and yellow. A mark on the reverse reads: Groupware '93 San Jose 8/10/93.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a yellow background that reads: Ask Me About Lotusphere 1993. It has the Lotusphere logo in black, grey and yellow. A mark on the reverse reads: Groupware '93 San Jose 8/10/93.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1993
ID Number
2009.3071.120
catalog number
2009.3071.120
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Omnicomp Graphics Button

This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Texas Friendly Spoken Here. Omnicomp Graphics. Houston. It has a red image of Texas in background. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: NCGA Chicago 4/91.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Texas Friendly Spoken Here. Omnicomp Graphics. Houston. It has a red image of Texas in background. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: NCGA Chicago 4/91.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1991
ID Number
2009.3071.514
catalog number
2009.3071.514
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, Corporate Computing

This circular button is the fourth of ten in a series of Corporate Computing campaign buttons from 1992. White and red text on blue/light blue striped background reads: Corporate Computing Representing American Business.
Description
This circular button is the fourth of ten in a series of Corporate Computing campaign buttons from 1992. White and red text on blue/light blue striped background reads: Corporate Computing Representing American Business. The button also has an image of a hand pointing to the words. A mark in black ink on the reverse side of the button reads: PC Expo 6/92 NY 4/10.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1992
maker
unknown
ID Number
2009.3071.025
catalog number
2009.3071.025
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Elographics Inc. Button

This circular button has blue and grey text on a white background that reads: get IN TOUCH with Elographics. The touchscreen company. It has a blue image of a hand with the index finger extended. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Atlanta CDX 5/93.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has blue and grey text on a white background that reads: get IN TOUCH with Elographics. The touchscreen company. It has a blue image of a hand with the index finger extended. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Atlanta CDX 5/93.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1993
ID Number
2009.3071.500
catalog number
2009.3071.500
nonaccession number
2009.3071

ZD Classified Advertising Group Button, I'm A Savvy Marketer!

This circular button has a white background and a black and white image of a woman holding a book and pen. Red text reads: "I'm A Savvy Marketer!".A blue and yellow "ZD Classified Advertising Group" logo is at the bottom.
Description
This circular button has a white background and a black and white image of a woman holding a book and pen. Red text reads: "I'm A Savvy Marketer!".A blue and yellow "ZD Classified Advertising Group" logo is at the bottom. The reverse reads: "Spring Comdex '91" in red permanent ink.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1991
ID Number
2009.3071.655
catalog number
2009.3071.655
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Kay Kay Richmond Toffee Assortment

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.77-FT-15.0116
catalog number
77-FT-15.0116
accession number
283681

Button, Publishers' VGA. Willow Peripherals Inc.

This circular button has green text on a white background that reads: Publishers' VGA. Willow Peripherals Inc. In the center is a green image of a caveman with a camera and printouts. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Comdex Spring '89.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has green text on a white background that reads: Publishers' VGA. Willow Peripherals Inc. In the center is a green image of a caveman with a camera and printouts. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Comdex Spring '89.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1989
ID Number
2009.3071.386
catalog number
2009.3071.386
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Mr. Peanut® Statue

This is a cast iron figure in the shape of Mr. Peanut®, the Planters® Nut and Chocolate Company spokes character. This object weighs over 300lbs and was placed on a fence post surrounding the Planters® factory in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
Description
This is a cast iron figure in the shape of Mr. Peanut®, the Planters® Nut and Chocolate Company spokes character. This object weighs over 300lbs and was placed on a fence post surrounding the Planters® factory in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The Planters® company has been using Mr. Peanut® as their trademark since 1916 when they held a contest asking participants to draw a logo they thought best represented the company. A young school boy, Antonio Gentile, drew the winning character, a peanut with arms, legs and in some instances a cane performing different tasks. The drawings were refined by a graphic artist, a top hat, monocle and spats were added and Mr. Peanut® was born.
Planters® was founded in 1906 by Amedeo Obici and his partner, Mario Peruzzi in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Obici got his start working at a local store selling peanuts, before casting out on his own, selling nuts from a cart. Two years later, they incorporated the business as Planters® Nut and Chocolate Company. They eventually moved to Suffolk, Virginia to be closer to the peanut farms. In 1961, the company was sold to Standard Brands, which merged with Nabisco in 1981. In 2000, Kraft Foods acquired Nabisco, but the Planters® brand is still in use today (2014).
date made
1920s
ID Number
2013.0308.01
catalog number
2013.0308.01
accession number
2013.0308

Mug, ACCELL Gene Delivery From Agracetus, Inc.

Agracetus’s ACCELL gene gun, featured on this mug, delivers foreign genes into plant cells in order to create transgenic plants. To learn more about the ACCELL gene gun, please see object number 1993.0345.01, the Agracetus gene gun.Source:Accession FileCurrently not on view
Description (Brief)
Agracetus’s ACCELL gene gun, featured on this mug, delivers foreign genes into plant cells in order to create transgenic plants. To learn more about the ACCELL gene gun, please see object number 1993.0345.01, the Agracetus gene gun.
Source:
Accession File
Location
Currently not on view
inventor of prototype to accell gene gun
McCabe, Dennis
ID Number
2001.0193.01
catalog number
2001.0193.01
accession number
2001.0193

Colgan's Violet Chips Tin

This small, red, round container with gold lettering was used to store and market Colgan's violet gum.John Colgan of Louisville, Kentucky, was a pharmaceutical store owner in the late 1800s when he noticed young children chewing on tree sap.
Description
This small, red, round container with gold lettering was used to store and market Colgan's violet gum.
John Colgan of Louisville, Kentucky, was a pharmaceutical store owner in the late 1800s when he noticed young children chewing on tree sap. He made a type of gum he named Taffy Tolu which quickly gained popularity in the Louisville area. Colgan has also been credited with inventing the process of adding flavor that lasts while chewing. During the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, he sold his Taffy Tolu and created quite a buzz at the Fair. It was also here where William Wrigley, Jr., came across John Colgan’s chewing gum and while Wrigley’s Gum took off, John Colgan faded into history.
Sweet treats have been a part of the human diet nearly since the beginning of human existence. The type of treat has changed over time, but human desire for sweetness has not. Candy can be hard or chewy, may or may not contain chocolate and can be sweet or sour. Sugar cane was introduced to Europeans when crusaders brought the substance back from the Middle East, and it was with these Europeans that sugar gained its highly prized status as an art form and a gift to be given away on special occasions. A status that persists to this day when a suitor gives their beloved chocolate for Valentine’s Day. Early pharmacists also often used sugar to mask the bitter tastes of their medical concoctions or prescribed sugar as a cure for an ailment itself.
At one time, small family owned confectionary shops dominated the American landscape. Opening a candy making business was a relatively low cost investment, all one needed was a kitchen and a basket to sell their treats from on the street. As demand grew, they could grow their business. Today, many of these small businesses have been absorbed into large corporations who command a much greater market power. Breath mints gained popularity because of how they felt cool and refreshing in the mouth while also freshening one’s breath. Peppermint was also considered a digestive aid, and mint leaves and breath mints were often chewed after a meal.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Colgan Gum Company
ID Number
ZZ.RSN80525Z62

Button, Ask me about the Interchange Industry Partners Program

This circular button has black text on a red background that reads: Ask me about the Interchange Industry Partners Program. Above the text is a black Interchange logo.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a red background that reads: Ask me about the Interchange Industry Partners Program. Above the text is a black Interchange logo.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990s
ID Number
2009.3071.314
catalog number
2009.3071.314
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, More than a Dream...It's Real. DESQview X

This circular button has white text on a blue background that reads: More than a Dream...It's Real. DESQview X. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: CDX '90.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has white text on a blue background that reads: More than a Dream...It's Real. DESQview X. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: CDX '90.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990
ID Number
2009.3071.340
catalog number
2009.3071.340
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Anytime, Anyone, Anywhere

This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Anytime, Anyone, Anywhere. It has a blue DMA logo. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Spring Comdex '90.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Anytime, Anyone, Anywhere. It has a blue DMA logo. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Spring Comdex '90.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990
ID Number
2009.3071.412
catalog number
2009.3071.412
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Formula SCSI POWERED BY FUTURE DOMAIN

The background of this round button has an image of a racing driver in a red Formula 1 car. White text reads: Formula SCSI POWERED BY FUTURE DOMAIN. A mark on the back reads "Networld Boston '89" in black permanent ink.Currently not on view
Description
The background of this round button has an image of a racing driver in a red Formula 1 car. White text reads: Formula SCSI POWERED BY FUTURE DOMAIN. A mark on the back reads "Networld Boston '89" in black permanent ink.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1989
ID Number
2009.3071.641
catalog number
2009.3071.641
nonaccession number
2009.3071

"Watch out for MOM!" Microsoft button

This circular button has orange text on a red background that reads: Watch Out for MOM! It has a sepia image of an older woman wearing glasses. (Refers to "The Mother of All Windows" book series.)Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has orange text on a red background that reads: Watch Out for MOM! It has a sepia image of an older woman wearing glasses. (Refers to "The Mother of All Windows" book series.)
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990s
maker
Microsoft Corporation
ID Number
2009.3071.285
catalog number
2009.3071.285
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Watch out for the Dragon

This square button has blue text on a white background that reads: Watch out for the Dragon. It has an orange dragon tail in the upper left corner. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Fall CDX '88.Currently not on view
Description
This square button has blue text on a white background that reads: Watch out for the Dragon. It has an orange dragon tail in the upper left corner. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Fall CDX '88.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1988
ID Number
2009.3071.447
catalog number
2009.3071.447
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Chinese-American Shop Sign

This sign was purchased by a North Beach second-hand shop from a proprietor in the neighboring Chinatown district of San Francisco. It is said to date from between 1890 and 1910.
Description
This sign was purchased by a North Beach second-hand shop from a proprietor in the neighboring Chinatown district of San Francisco. It is said to date from between 1890 and 1910. If that is so, the sign’s survival is quite miraculous: The 1906 earthquake in April of that year caused much damage throughout the city due to spreading wildfires. Residents of Chinatown grabbed what they could easily carry and evacuated the neighborhood ahead of the fires, taking up temporary residence in relief camps in San Francisco and Oakland. Relocating Chinatown permanently to Hunter’s Point or North Beach was discussed, but, with realization of the continued need for the tax base provided by foreign trade between the business community and Asia, Chinatown was ultimately rebuilt at its original location and continued to be not only a major center for the Chinese American community but a popular destination for tourists to the present day.
Translation of this shop sign would help to document a portion of the economic history of this neighborhood. It is likely that the language is Cantonese, the dialect used in Southern China, which was engaged in foreign trade long before military oppression and American labor recruitment in the mid-19th century brought immigrants to “Gun San” or the “Land of the Golden Mountain,” as the Cantonese referred to the West Coast of the United States. Not only did Chinese pan for gold in San Francisco. They labored excavating coal, mercury, and borax, building railway lines and tunnels, and working for fisheries and canneries throughout Far West. Economic depression following the Civil War brought fear, discrimination, and violence to established Chinese communities. Successively restrictive acts of Congress prohibited further Chinese immigration beginning in 1882, with continuing restrictions of civil rights until the Immigration Law of 1965 eliminated such restrictions, bringing a new wave of migration to the United States from Asia.
With dwindling opportunities to earn enough money to return home, Chinese Americans turned to such service industries as laundries and restaurants and specialized increasingly in trade abroad. But this sign also may have advertised availability of herbal medicines, foodstuffs, cookwares, or furnishings desired by the local Chinese American community, which, while changing in population, has survived in San Francisco to the present day.
ID Number
1985.0844.02
accession number
1985.0844
catalog number
1985.0844.02

The Brothers Meade, Daguerreotypists, New York

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1852
depicted (sitter); described
Meade Brothers
ID Number
PG.72.04.27
catalog number
72.4.27
accession number
299220

Interliant Button, OneWorld OneHost

This circular button has blue and black text on a white background that reads: OneWorld OneHost. Below the text is a blue Interliant logo. Multicolored cirlces surround the text and logo.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has blue and black text on a white background that reads: OneWorld OneHost. Below the text is a blue Interliant logo. Multicolored cirlces surround the text and logo.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1998
ID Number
2009.3071.244
catalog number
2009.3071.244
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Beef Stew

A Nickolas Muray 3-color carbro photograph. Advertisment for Petrie Wine. A bowl of stew with two glasses of red wine in foreground.Recto: Signed and dated by artist in lower right corner (pencil). Verso: Five Muray stamps. One Muray label.
Description (Brief)
A Nickolas Muray 3-color carbro photograph. Advertisment for Petrie Wine. A bowl of stew with two glasses of red wine in foreground.
Recto: Signed and dated by artist in lower right corner (pencil). Verso: Five Muray stamps. One Muray label. "#15" in upper left corner (pencil).
Description
Nickolas Muray was born in Szeged, Hungary on February 15, 1892. Twelve years after his birth, Muray left his native town and enrolled in a graphic arts school in Budapest. Enrolling in art school was the first step on a road that would eventually lead him to study a photographic printing process called three-color carbro. In the course of his accomplished career, Muray would become an expert in this process and play a key role in bringing color photography to America.
While attending art school in Budapest, Muray studied lithography and photoengraving, earning an International Engraver's Certificate. Muray was also introduced to photography during this time period. His combined interest in photography and printmaking led him to Berlin, Germany to participate in a three-year color-photoengraving course. In Berlin, Muray learned how to make color filters, a first step in the craft that would one day become his trademark. Immediately after the completion of the course, Muray found a good job with a publishing company in Ullstein, Germany. However, the threat of war in Europe forced Muray to flee for America in 1913. Soon after his arrival in New York, Muray was working as a photoengraver for Condé Nast. His specialty was color separations and half-tone negatives.
By 1920, Muray had established a home for himself in the up-and-coming artists' haven of Greenwich Village. He opened a portrait studio out of his apartment and continued to work part time at his engraving job. Harper's Bazaar magazine gave Muray his first big assignment in 1921. The project was to photograph Broadway star Florence Reed. The magazine was so impressed with his photographs that they began to publish his work monthly. This allowed him to give up his part time job and work solely as a photographer. It did not take long for Muray to become one of the most renowned portrait photographers in Manhattan. Muray spent much of the early 1920s photographing the most famous and important personalities in New York at the time.
In his spare time Muray enjoyed fencing. In 1927, he won the National Sabre Championship and in 1928 and 1932, he was on the United States Olympic Team. During World War II, Muray was a flight lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
maker
Muray, Nickolas
ID Number
PG.69.247.02
catalog number
69.247.02
accession number
287542

Calera Wordscan Lapel Pin

This square lapel pin has a butterfly clutch clasp. The background is predominantly black, decorated with lines of red, yellow, pink, and green, as well as a pink circle, green square, and yellow triangle. In the lower left hand corner, text in pink, green, and red reads: OCR.
Description
This square lapel pin has a butterfly clutch clasp. The background is predominantly black, decorated with lines of red, yellow, pink, and green, as well as a pink circle, green square, and yellow triangle. In the lower left hand corner, text in pink, green, and red reads: OCR. A green stripe across the top has yellow, and red text reading "CALERA"; a red stripe along the right-hand side has black text reading vertically: WORDSCAN. The reverse is of white plastic; the clasp is of gold-colored metal. The plastic bag reads "Windows Expo 8/90" in black permanent ink.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990
ID Number
2009.3071.749
catalog number
2009.3071.749
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Kingston Technology Corporation Button

This square button has white text on a multi-colored background that reads: Kingston Technology Corporation. It has a red image of a man’s head in front of computer equipment. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Biz Solutions Expo. Boston 8/25/93.Currently not on view
Description
This square button has white text on a multi-colored background that reads: Kingston Technology Corporation. It has a red image of a man’s head in front of computer equipment. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Biz Solutions Expo. Boston 8/25/93.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1993
ID Number
2009.3071.504
catalog number
2009.3071.504
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, Mindscape

This circular button has white and blue text and a white background. A red and blue circle is in middle of button. The button also has the Mindscape logo and five red stars.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has white and blue text and a white background. A red and blue circle is in middle of button. The button also has the Mindscape logo and five red stars.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1985
maker
unknown
ID Number
2009.3071.032
catalog number
2009.3071.032
nonaccession number
2009.3071

ZD Labs Button, I'm Networking With ZD

This circular button has black text in yellow boxes on a red background that reads: I'm Networking with ZD. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: 11/90?Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text in yellow boxes on a red background that reads: I'm Networking with ZD. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: 11/90?
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990
ID Number
2009.3071.542
catalog number
2009.3071.542
nonaccession number
2009.3071

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