PICTURES, POSTCARDS & POSTERS
This section includes those items that are mostly made of paper and those of cardboard. These items are considered to be somewhat different than signs, which are often lighted, or made of a more durable material like metal, wood, plastic, glass, etc. The pictures or posters on paper usually did not come with a frame and could simply be attached to a wall with scotch tape or thumb tacks, but many were often later framed. Those cardboard items were a type of poster and often referred to as "prop-ups" because they usually had a built in fold out cardboard stand that allowed them to be propped-up and free standing on a table, bar or other flat area. A common theme with many of these items is that they were of old time subjects, or images of men. And those in the late 1940s and early 1950s used old-time scenes or subject matter to correspond with the "old" style of Bavarian's Old Style Beer.
PRE-PROHIBITION PICTURES & POSTCARDS
PICTURES c. Early 1900s. Pictures before Prohibition are rather rare. An unusual picture from the Bottling Department advertising (Standard) Bavarian Beer, which is a colored sketching on metal is on the left below. Only a black and white rendering of the image below on the right was available, obtained from former Bavarian Brewing Co. archives. It shows an image with a clear beer bottle. At some point it appears Bavarian changed from a brown bottle to a clear bottle not only for Bavarian, but also for its Riedlin's Select Beer, depicted in the postcards shown on the pictures. What's noteworthy in the picture of a bottle of Bavarian Beer, the label is very similar to another depicted on this web site, but it has some differences. The label in the picture does not refer to Bavarian as a "Style" and has some other variations in the wording on its label. Further, it appears the bottle cap used simply had a B before Prohibition. After Prohibition the bottle caps required more information. (Please see Beer Labels and Crowns.)
POSTCARDS c. Early 1900s. Postcards were extremely popular around the beginning of the 20th Century. As people traveled, they would send postcards to their relatives and friends, usually to let them know about their trip. At that time, there was an annual average of several postcards sent for each person in the U.S. As shown below, they were also used to advertise various products, such as beer, and there could be some interesting sayings on the back of postcards as well. Please note that the postcard of the brewery complex, bottom right, is not exactly accurate. For a precise view of the brewery please see Letterheads.
AFTER PROHIBITION POSTERS, STREET CARD ADS & PROP UPS
Posters were made that were sometime simply tacked on a wall, but that were also framed. There were also rectangular ads that were made for posting in street cars, and prop-up posters, as depicted and briefly discussed below.
POSTERS c. 1942 - 1945.
The paper posters on the side from Bavarian Brewing Co. promoted the WWII defense efforts. These are some early posters after Prohibition when the Schott Brothers acquired the brewer in 1938. Other brewers also promoted the war efforts not only with posters, but also ads. All the local brewers in Cincinnati would sometimes take out and ad together to support defense efforts. (See Ads: Bavarian's 1935 to 1945.) Due to rations imposed in WWII, the production capacity was limited during the war years.
POSTER c. Late 1940s - Early 1950s. The large colorful paper poster on the left side is entitled "Rippling Rhythm."
STREET CAR AD c. Early 1950s. The sign below may have been an ad for a street car in the strip above the window and below the ceiling. Cincinnati had an extensive electric street car system that was dissolved in the mid 1950s.
PROP-UPS: Bavarian's Old Style Beer
As compared to pictures that might require framing, posters often had attachments on the back enabling them to easily be hung. The Prop-ups had a built-in pull-out stand in the back that allowed them to easily rest on a flat surface. They could also have a hook for hanging, or be framed. They could also be placed on a shelf and rested against a wall. Further, some of the posters were framed.
c. Late 1940s - Early 1950s. These cardboard prop-ups all had a similar Bavarian's Old Style banner top and used the slogan "A Man's Beer." This slogan began in 1946 was used until about 1953 when ...And Hers Too! was added.
c.Early 1950s. A "Curier & Ives" print was used for the Christmas Greeting poster below, as well as for images of fighters, shown a little further below.
c. 1954 - 1956. The cardboard posters below have a frame painted onto the cardboard resembling wood, and featuring boxing legends. The posters were part of Bavarian's promotions for their sponsorship of "Monday Night Fights" on television between approximately 1954 and 1956. They measure 17" high by 12.5" wide. Originally published by "Currier & Ives," it's likely that there are more of these posters featuring other fighting legends. The poster in the center depicts the bare fisted fighting Champion of the World, John C. Heenan from West Troy, NY, known as the Benica Boy. He fought the Champion of England, Tom Sayers, at Farnborough, England, on April 17, 1860. Even though such bare fisted fights were illegal, there was a great deal of anticipation over this fight, which the referee actually called a draw, despite the title of the poster.
PROP-UPS: BAVARIAN'S SELECT
Bavarian Brewing Co. c. 1958. After Bavarian changed the design of their label in 1957, they changed their slogan initially to ...brewed nature's way. However, a year later they modified their slogan to …brewed the old world way, while the Bavarian Girl was an ambassadress for the brewery traveling to Germany - and the "old world."
International Breweries Inc. c. 1959 - 1966. Shortly after IBI acquired Bavarian they began using the slogan "Mel-O-Dry" for not just Bavarian's Select Beer, but their other brands as well. Still, they retained the new label design. The image on the bottom left can be hung and the snowman can be rotated, showing its different sides.