Hello Dear Readers! I am delighted to report that the other day, while I was milling around the thrift store, I came across this wonderful 1943 ad for Ipana Tooth Paste.
It was so endearing, so inspiring, so downright uplifting that I just had share it with you!
It seems feisty, first-aid, heroine, Kay Hunt was feeling pretty darn good about herself with her ability to whip up a traction splint as easily as she whipped up that batch of fudge last night — just as she did every night . . . all alone . . . with no one to talk to but her radio.
But in some sort of weird world war II gratitude, Kay Hunts’ traction-splint victim pointed out that she noticed — while Kay Hunt was taking two and a half hours to figure out how to tie a traction splint — that Kay Hunt didn’t brush her teeth before leaving the house.
She even went so far as to tell Kay Hunt her dingy smile and pink toothbrush are the reason Kay Hunt couldn’t get a date — even though Kay has a perfect figure and looks like a movie star (but of course she didn’t say that last part out loud.)
Now instead of getting mad and wrapping that traction splint around her victim’s catty little neck, our once feisty first-aid, heroine, Kay Hunt, became instantly inconsolable.
Luckily, Kate’s friend who was wearing a military uniform — thus making her superior in intelligence, common sense, and personal hygiene — attempted to comfort Kay Hunt by pouring large quantities of salt in her wound and agreeing that Kay really did need to brush her teeth at least as good as grade school children do and that nowadays the foods you eat won’t brush your teeth for you, which apparently used to be the case prior to World War II.
Enter Creepy Dentist and Ipana Toothpaste
So the next day our heroine Kay Hunt went to visit her oddly, creepy dentist who stood in such a way as to keep his distance from Kay lest he get a whiff of the air emanating from Kay’s . . . how to put this . . . dingy smile.
He explained to Kay (from across the room) that in order to get a date Kay will have to massage her gums with Ipana Toothpaste in order to stimulate them! Who knew? (Certainly not Kay!)
And boy did Kay feel sheepish having to be told this by her creepy dentist! But sure enough Kay went right home and massaged her gums ad nuaseum!
The next thing you know, our feisty, first-aid heroine, Kay Hunt’s gums were so very, very massaged that she became a huge hit with the all branches of the armed services.
“I can thank this new-found smile of mine for winning me a military escort and a naval convoy!” gushed our feisty, first-aid heroine, Kay Hunt.
And that, Dear Readers is how our feisty, first-aid, world war II heroine, Kay Hunt, became a very, very busy girl for the rest of World War II.
Until next time . . . I love you
Linda Vernon Humor 
Yay for fresh breath lol! 🙂
Haha! Yes YAY indeed. The fresher the better! 😀
Absolutely! now…where did I put that garlic bread 😛
Uh . . .what garlic bread? . . . (pay no attention to my breath btw! It’s just a coincidence that it smells like garlic!
ah hah!! busted! 😛
:D!!
now to let her know about Listerine!
Oh I know!! I’m pretty sure they had it even in those days! 😀
hopefully! lol
:D!
LOL, bravo!
Thanks Sillyliss. I’ve had that sitting on my desk for so long. That crazy World War II HA!
I just brushed my teeth after reading this because I was laughing my stinky morning breath all over my laptop 😀
Hahahahahaha! Dianne! Hahahahahaha!! How funny. I laughed so hard at your comment I’m going to have to go brush my teeth now. Our poor keyboards! 😀
Laughing! Boy, have times changed. Remember “Brusha brusha brusha, get the new Ipana, with the brand new flavor–it’s dandy for your teet!”
Oh I remember that jingle from the movie Grease and I also vaguely remember Ipana commercials when I was a kid, Although we never used Ipana. I think we used Colgate because of the “Colgate Shield”. HA! 😀
Ooops. Teeth. Dandy for your teeth. Yikes.
Haha and probably for you teets as well! 😀 LOL
I’m so glad I “massaged” my gums this morning or else I’d have to visit my creepy dentist too. Kay is a woman with sass a frass and minty fresh breath!
Oh Jackie! She is Sass a Frass on steriods!! But I don’t think steroids existed in 1943. But if they did Kay Hunt would be the Sass a frass queen of everything — especially when it came to broken limbs! 😀
WOW, was this stuff hard to find on eBay!! I can’t wait to try it out!
LOL! Let me know what happens Addie! I bet it was hard to find but I’m sure it will all be worth it!! 😀
I imagine I’ll have to chip it out of the tube, but, with enough water, it should soften up enough to use!!
Kay Hunt salutes you, Addie! (Wherever she is!) 😀
Hmmm…my PayPal went to a K.A. Hunt. I wonder if they are related
Hmmm…my PayPal went to a K.A. Hunt. I wonder if they are related
Really? Hmmm. . . I wonder if the A stands for Atta girl! I wouldn’t be surprised! 😀
You keep me laughing!!!
Robin! Thank you! How nice to hear! 😀
So she’s putting on this splint and someone decides this is the time to tell Kay about her teeth !!! What a ‘marketing’ idea…Diane
Haha! So true Diane! What an awkward attempt to tie toothpaste and World War II together! :b
I know they talk about the good old days, but I don’t think it would have been so good to sit through a full page ad with small print on the benefits of Ipana.
(And there really should have been a note on how to pronounce “Ipana”.)
Yes, you’d think they wouldn’t have given us at least a brief lesson on how to pronounce Ipana. Maybe by the time they wrote all the fine print they just didn’t care anymore. I know after reading it, I didn’t! 😀