C. P. P. Shave Creams
Prove Comfortable Shaves
“Palmolive
Shave Cream, either brushless or lather, offers proof
of more comfortable, actually smoother shaves for 3 men out of every 4.”
--- Ron Rawson
Lincoln, Me. (DG)—
 The main objective of a shave cream was to provide its
users with a close, clean, and comfortable shave without the face
as red as a tomato and hot as a branding iron.
In magazine ads and radio commercials, all brands of brushless and lather
shave cream claimed they did this. To
the men who shave, advertising claims were all well and good, but it didn’t
mean much. Some men found a
specific brand of shave cream provided them with a close and comfortable shave,
while others may not find that same brand doing what its advertising said it’s
supposed to.
The reason why there was a difference of opinion was that
all men had different types of beards. There
were soft, peach fuzz beards that were easy to shave; heavy, wiry beards that
were difficult to shave; and any type of beard in between.
Despite the claims, some shave creams fell short in its shaving
quality--- especially with the tougher beards.
Of the many different shave creams on the market, there was a brand that
went a step further than claiming smoother, more comfortable shaves.
In 1946, the Colgate-Palmolive-Peet Company
made a bold statement in behalf of its Palmolive Brushless and Palmolive
Lather Shave Creams. The
company stated conclusive proof that Palmolive Shave Cream
provided its users with a smoother, more comfortable shave--- no matter how
tough the beard. This startling
proof was mentioned in the Palmolive Shave Cream commercials on NBC’s
CAN YOU TOP THIS?
In a commercial that featured 2 alternating spokesmen
 ,
program announcer Dan Donaldson and commercial spokesman Ron Rawson told the
listeners about 2548 men taking part in a shaving test.
With that many men participating, there were just about every type of
beard a man could possibly have. Based
on their preference of shave cream, the men shaved with either Palmolive
Brushless or Palmolive Lather.
When they finished, the majority of men were pleased with Palmolive’s
results by a 3-1 margin. To
break this down in percentages, 79% said their beards were easier to cut; 75%
said there was less razor pull; 69% said the shaves were closer; 82% said their
faces felt smoother; and 75% said the shaves were smoother, more comfortable.
All of these impressive numbers were translated into “Smoother, More
Comfortable Shaves for 3 men out of every 4.”
For the men in the listening audience who wanted
to try the shaving test, Donaldson described the same instructions the men in
the shaving test followed. The
first requirement was to have a tube or jar of Palmolive Brushless or
Palmolive Lather on hand. The
test was doomed if another shave cream brand was used.
With Palmolive nearby, the next requirement for the shaver
was to wash his face with soap and rinse with water.
When this was done, he had to wash his face with soap for a second
time--- this time without rinsing. With
a soapy face, the shaver applied Palmolive Shave Cream to his
beard, smoothing it upward into the beard to get Palmolive’s full
beard conditioning effect. With the
shave cream on the face, it was time to shave.
For the best results, the shaver should make sure there was a razor blade
in the razor.
Leaving no doubt in what was said, Rawson asked the men in
the listening audience to judge for themselves on the superior quality of the Palmolive
shave. It didn’t matter if the
men preferred brushless or lather--- as long as it said Palmolive on
the giant size tube or big 9 oz. jar. If
the men followed the directions Donaldson presented on the commercial to the
letter, they will find their shaving session a pleasant time in the morning.
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