Life, 1918-06-06 · page 31 of 40
Life — June 6, 1918 — page 31: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a full-page advertisement (not satire) for Beeman's Original Pepsin Chewing Gum, appearing in *Life* magazine. A doctor endorses the product by describing a patient's insomnia case and recommending the gum as treatment. The advertisement uses a common early-20th-century marketing strategy: physician endorsement. Doctor E. E. Beeman (the actual product creator) claims he was "the first to introduce pepsin into pure chicle chewing gum" and that it helps patients with insomnia, nervousness, and indigestion. For modern readers: pepsin is a digestive enzyme, so the pitch combines digestive aid with the act of chewing—positioning gum as medicine rather than mere confection. This reflects an era when such medical claims in advertising were unregulated and relatively common. The earnest testimonial format, now recognized as quaint marketing, was then considered persuasive and scientific-sounding.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
member > I goes got me ust then eS over Pome, it v down, ke, with t-Bits, in a car miled at he Eng. replied. ver be- ntroduce ny Scot. ned from ly area “Didn’t sleep well last night?) Tossed about from aie” one side of the bed to the other, and heard the : clock strike every hour, eh? “And you say that you ate a very heavy meal be- fore you went to bed. “I have found that my patients suffering from In- somnia respond quickly if, during the night or just before retiring, they will chew a stick of my Original Pepsin Chewing Gum. “I was the first to introduce pepsin into pure chicle chewing gum, and it is a great satisfaction to know that this combination of a simple remedy and pure chicle chewing gum has been a source of relief to thousands of people who suffer from mild forms of nervousness and indigestion.” JSSEBimav AMERICAN CHICLE COMPANY , Doctor E. E, Beeman Limited comicbooks.com