Comments on: The Whole Year Through: Hotel Utah Advertising, 1944

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:56:02 +0000

Hmm … Postum-flavored milkshakes?

By: J. Stapley

J. Stapley — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:32:21 +0000

These are really intriguing. Thanks for sharing them.

Regarding the coffee shop…I have a certain relative that is notoriously remembered for going to the Hotel Utah for, shall we say, stronger beverages.

By: David B

David B — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 20:08:04 +0000

300 pounds of food wasted per person per year in the US at the time. Statistics i’ve seen say that we’re now at 333, though i don’t know if those are based on comparable data. If those numbers are comparable, i think it’s interesting how relatively static that number has remained.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:06:36 +0000

Ha! I hadn’t caught the timing of that variant ad, Clark! I wonder if they had something planned that no longer fit with what was happening in Europe, or whether they were so jubilant over D-Day that they couldn’t think of anything else? Either way, it’s great!

Go for it, MC! Yeah, there’s still (or again) a genuine need to conserve. It might be fun to rewrite the ads for today’s situation — the illustrations might change, but the lessons would in most cases be the same.

By: Moniker Challenged

Moniker Challenged — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:01:17 +0000

I enjoy old good advice that’s still good advice where’er I see it. We still waste too much food, and we could all use a victory garden where possible. I was already planning on planting something edible in the flowerbed in front of my apartment. Maybe I’ll have to make a plaque that says Veggies for Victory!

By: Clark

Clark — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 18:46:18 +0000

Interesting that the ‘knockout blow’ ad, so different from all the rest, coincided perfectly with the D-Day invasion.

Regarding comment 2, I side with the cynical. I think the hotel tips its hand in September with the “war production men” ad.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:49:03 +0000

Yeah, I would say so, Hunter. It’s like the term “cafe” which literally means “coffee” in French but which you think of as a casual, lower-end soup-and-sandwich or comfort-food-serving restaurant, not just a Starbucks coffee bar.

Query: Do you think the Hotel Utah was sincere in its campaign of “don’t use our services; leave us free to aid the war effort”? or was it a little more cynical than that, more “we know you’re going to travel despite what we say, so let us have your business”?

By: Hunter

Hunter — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:34:29 +0000

Wow, quite a lot of variety in these ads! I’m seriously impressed with all the different approaches they took with these ads. Thanks for the chance to see a whole year’s worth.

Why was I surprised to see a promotion of Hotel Utah’s Coffee Shop in a church magazine? I shouldn’t have been, I don’t think, but I was. Is “coffee shop” a sort of a generic term not necessarily referring to coffee (analogous to the term “drug store”)?