Judge, 1908-06-20 · page 19 of 28
Judge — June 20, 1908 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **Budweiser beer advertisement**, not satire. It appropriates the image and legacy of Founding Father **John Adams** to sell beer by claiming he was descended from brewers and drank barley beer throughout his long life (he lived to 91). The ad invokes Adams's reputation for principled independence and integrity, then connects this virtue to Budweiser by suggesting Adams's longevity and mental acuity came from drinking beer. The footnotes cite Adams's own letters—including one supposedly requesting beer from his wife—to lend historical authenticity. This marketing strategy exploits patriotic sentiment and associates the product with American founding ideals and personal vigor. For modern readers, it's striking how brazenly corporations once weaponized historical figures' images to promote alcohol consumption, framing beer-drinking as a mark of American character rather than mere consumption.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Budweiser THE most popular beer in Fa the world. There i 1s less profit to the dealer who sells it, because it costs more money at the brewery than John Adams any other beer made. A ‘leper of the Declaration of Independence ‘Secunda frateny of we leurs penne royal brew of malt and hops ERE we have a Puritan of the Puritans— whose absolute sovereignty + aman of stern and unbending rectitude has never been challenged. 3] —of generous and truly heroic tempera- ment. Unquestionably — Descended from a pious God-fearing New England family of Pilgrims and Pioneers (who THE KING OF ALL were for generations brewers, malsters, barley BOTTLED BEERS and hop growers) he became the mouthpiece of the Revolution—the terror of tyrants—a giant in debate—and diplomatically more than a match for Pitt and Talleyrand. I would rather die than be dictated to—this sentence accurately describes the stubborn spirit of this valiant old patriot whom all England could not govern. John Adams, even as his fathers before him, nourished mind and body on health- giving barley beer, and died at 91 (twenty-one years beyond the scriptural span) enjoying all his mental powers to the very last.* Bottled Only at the ANHEUSER-BUSCH BREWERY St. Louis, Mo. *Pamiliar Letters—Riverside Press, N. ¥.. 1776, pases 2243.4647.79:172.220277, Life and works by his son, John Quincy Adams~Vol. 1, pages 491011, ete. * For Sale at A letter to his wife, Abigail, May 22nd, 1777, says: “I would give $5.00 for a . All Hotels, Clubs and Bars gallon of your beer.” comicbooks.com