Poor Marvin, Prince of Pariahs – A Funny Listerine Ad From 1929

Aside from the halitosis, pipe smoking and fleece robe at the beach, there's bonus creepiness in the title of the book he’s reading “Deliverance.” Listerine ad from the July 1929 issue of Physical Culture magazine.

You wouldn’t care to meet Marvin 

 

Money. Charm. Ability. In all New York there was no abler man in his field. Yet people called him “the prince of pariahs.”

Men thought him a great fellow—for a little while. Women grew romantic about him—until they knew. People welcomed him at first—then dropped him as though he were an outcast.

Poor Marvin, yearning so for companionship and always denied it. Poor Marvin, ignorant of his nick-name and ignorant, likewise, of the foundation for it.

Halitosis (unpleasant breath) is the damning, unforgivable, social fault. It doesn't announce its presence to its victims. Consequently it is the last thing people suspect themselves of having—but it ought to be the first.

For halitosis is a definite daily threat to all. And for very obvious reasons, physicians explain. So slight a matter as a decaying tooth may cause it. Or an abnormal condition of the gums. Or fermenting food particles skipped by the tooth brush. Or minor nose and throat infections. Or excesses of eating, drinking and smoking.

Intelligent people recognize the risk and minimize it by the regular use of full strength Listerine as a mouth wash and gargle. Night and morning. And between times before meeting others.

Listerine quickly checks halitosis because Listerine is an effective anti-septic and germicide* which immediately strikes at the cause of odors. Furthermore, it is a powerful de-odorant, capable of overcoming even the scent of onion and fish.

Keep Listerine handy in home and office. Carry it when you travel. Take it with you on your vacation. It is better to be safe than snubbed. Lambert Pharmacal Company, St. Louis, Mo., U. S. A. 

*Full strength Listerine is so safe it may be used in any body cavity, yet so powerful it kills even the stubborn Bacillus Typhosus (typhoid) and Staphylococcus Aureus (pus) germs in 15 seconds. We could not make this statement unless we were prepared to prove it to the entire satisfaction of the medical profession and the U. S. Government.

LISTERINE