Small Home Gazette, Winter 2023
Charms the Chewer!
If you happen to be a first time kisser (ahem!), you might google “how to kiss.” And you would find tips like: start slow, keep the drool to a minimum, do not forget to breathe, keep up eye contact, and so on. (Really. Tips are from Cosmopolitan online magazine.) Also included is to “keep it fresh,” meaning your breath.
If you were a first time kisser in the 1910s, help was on the way from the Common Sense Gum Co.—in the form of an advertising postcard for their Listerated Pepsin Gum.
In 1911, a package of either gum “nuggets” or gum “slubs” (or sticks) came with this handy guide to kissing a girl. Directed at the young man, kissing advice was given in 15 steps, including sighing (twice) and gazing deeply.
The guide does reflect the gender politics of the day (putting the man in charge), and it does give a warning. Step 14 says “BUT WAIT! Do not kiss her until you know that she uses Listerated Pepsin Gum, the only antiseptic gum in the world, the only chewing gum that makes it safe to kiss.”
The Gum Competition
In 1907, the Common Sense Gum Co. decided it was time to make their mark on the American market. Chewing gum was very popular with Americans and had been since the mid-1850s. The Wrigley Co. had developed their Juicy Fruit brand in 1893, followed by their other iconic brand, Spearmint. In 1899, a New York City druggist had launched Dentyne, named by combining the words “dental” and “hygiene” and meant to appeal to health-minded gum chewers.
So how could the Common Sense Gum Co. make their product stand out from the established brands of chewing gum? The company decided it was a great idea to make a listerated chewing gum. The term listerated had been coined in the advertising world to mean “prophylactic cleanliness.” The term was tied to an English physician, Joseph Lister, and his discoveries pertaining to microbial infections and how to prevent them.
Let the Advertising Begin!
Their early full-page, text-heavy advertisement was titled “The Ounce of Prevention” and went on to say “Listerated Pepsin Gum stands guard in the mouth against germs entering the system—instead of curing disease, it prevents disease—it is not a medicine, yet it makes the taking of medicine unnecessary. Listerated Pepsin Gum whitens the teeth, sweetens the breath, aids digestion, makes the mouth cavity antiseptic, and leaves ‘that clean, cool taste.’”
With the words “We Are Chewing Listerated Pepsin Gum, the After Dinner Vest Pocket Cordial,” this 1908 postcard suggested that after an evening “out,” chewing a piece of this gum was a good idea. A road sign behind the car carried the be-proactive-with-your-health message: “Road to Health and Happiness is Always Found by Chewing Listerated Pepsin Gum.”
By 1908, the company was a recognized brand. They created a series of postcards with clever pictures and verses that served a clever purpose: Recipients would save the cards and show them to friends and family, which made more people aware of the gum.
One of the postcards was designed as a certificate for a membership in the “Association of Listerated Pepsin Gum Chewers of America.” This card entitled the person “…to chew, masticate or otherwise enjoy Listerated Pepsin Gum at any time or place, public or private…”
The cardholder was also entitled to a free sample. And there was a health-focused motto: “Next after a clean heart is a clean mouth.” AND just in case you thought this association was real, the certificate was signed by “Pres. Aunty Septic!”
During WWI, the gum was popular among enlisted men. The advertisements began to include messages like “Listerated Gum steadies the nerves and is used by submarine crews in many naval services.” The ads also made Americans at home aware of the fact that science backed their chewing gum. Words like “The brand which has raised chewing gum to the dignity of a universal health-habit” and “Doctors endorse it” were commonly used.
The brand was popular well into the mid-1920s but the market was becoming crowded with listerated gums. The Common Sense Gum Co. sold out to the Wrigley Co. in 1925, who promptly closed their factory. But while it lasted, the Common Sense Gum Co. was known for a novel approach for reaching its public including giving young men and women the confidence to not only kiss, but to kiss well.
