Backwards Glance I

n the mid-1920s, advertising within the Bulletin of the Missouri State Dental Association included common dental products … dental labs and instruments, lights and cabinets, and scrap metal.

Fast forward a few years to 1929 and product variety increased. Ads still showcased dental wares— such as Co-Re-Ga denture powder, Lavoris mouth rinse (astringent and deodorant), alloys and even dental colleges—but other items appeared, promoting their benefit for overall “health and well-being” such as milk of magnesia, flavored cod liver oil and even Lucky Strike cigarettes—touting “throat protection against irritation and cough!”

One Lucky Strike ad, in particular, has a unique dental tie. Jean Harlow—an American film actress and sex symbol of the 1930s who died at the age of 26—was featured in the Lucky Strike ad in the January 1932 Bulletin. She was born Harlean Harlow Carpenter to Mont Clair Carpenter, a 1902 graduate of the Kansas City Dental College who practiced in Kansas City and was known for his expertise in gold work.

10 focus | MAY/JUN 2015 | ISSUE 3