Today's Tidbit... 1940+ Advertising Premium Football Art

Yesterday’s Tidbit looked at Pre-1940 Advertising Premium Football Art, so we continue today with the art that followed.

Hires Root Beer opens our 1940+ review with covers for 1940 and 1941. The 1940 front cover is standard fare, and the back cover shows an armchair quarterback knocking back a Hires while listening to the game. The 1941 front cover has a great perspective of a radio announcer calling the game and knocking one back a Hires, while honoring those enlisting in those pre-Pearl Harbor days.

-Click images to enlarge-

The 1952 Richfield Gasoline Dealer brochure has a great overall look and includes a photograph as part of its image. The demise of illustrations for magazines, game programs, and other printed covers came as printing technologies allowed photographs to be printed cheaply.

The 1953 Oldsmobile cover is not particularly attractive, but the rocket ship and other artwork scream Mid Century Modern.

One sign of how football changed after WWII is players featured on the covers of these premiums. Initially, the covers often portrayed the punters, always with their legs extended, arms in the air, and smiles on their faces.

As football increasingly tossed the pea downfield, passing halfbacks and quarterbacks took over, even when the object being thrown downfield was not a football.

Of course, balls or cigarette boxes thrown downfield need someone there to catch them, so receivers routed themselves onto covers as the decade turned.

Offensive linemen and defensive players made few appearances on these covers and then showed up -as in the 1960 Early Times cover- they are extras in an image showing the spectacular play of the quarterback and his gazelle-like receiver. Like those betting on the Heisman Trophy winner, however, the smart money is always on a quarterback, so we close with a great piece of Ford cover art showing a quarterback following through after a pass.

That brings our advertising premium cover art journey to an end until I can find more items worth showing. However, I’ve clipped over 200 pieces of college yearbook art, so rest assured, you will see those popping up when we need something to warm our hearts in the coming winter.

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