What'll You Have?

Craft beers (which are considered Ultra-premium) and Premium beers (the mid-price ones) lead the market in respectability.  But it's Sub-premium beer whose prices have oddly been rising, and the research company Restaurant Services says the reason appears to be one beer in particular, the popularity of Pabst Blue Ribbon.

"I believe the single biggest driver in sub-premium beer price increases is indeed specifically PBR," Chuck Ellis, head of the research company, told the NY Daily News. "It has become quite fashionable."

For the past several years, the under-the-wire Pabst has become, of all things, a hipster beer.  The reason is, in part, the price, but lots of beers are low-price and that's hardly a cornerstone of being hip.  There may be another reason, according to Jack Anderson, CEO of Hornall Anderson, a design firm.  "People don't like to be shouted at.  It's more authentic and cooler if you discover it or you're told by a friend."

And Pabst, a 165-year-old company based in Milwaukee doesn't do much marketing.  Oddly enough, the only reason this especially is of interest to me is because of marketing.

For many decades, Pabst ran commercials with a catchy jingle (to the tune of "Ten Little Indians") that went --

What'll you have?
Pabst Blue Ribbon.
What'll you have?
Pabst Blue Ribbon.
What'll you have?
Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.

The jingle was probably on the air for 20 years, starting on the radio and lasting into television of the '60s.  And the the reason I care about this is because the jingle was created by my cousin, I.J. Wagner.  In fact, going further, I'm named after him.  He was Isadore James Wagner.  And I'm Robert James Elisberg.  That's the reason I've always written with the "J." in my name, as an homage.  (Needless to say, he passed away before I was born.)

He was an extremely successful adman in Chicago, and sort of a pioneer in radio jingles.  The book, The Big Broadcast, on radio from 1920-1950, is an encyclopedia-like collection of information on the era.  In the section on commercials, the authors  Frank Buxon and Bill Owens, list about 20 radio jingles, and two of them are by Iz, as he was known.  The other (beside Pabst) was for a old-time candy bar, Whiz Candy.  ("Whiz!  The best candy bar there izzzzz."  And no, this wasn't a tribute to himself.)  Long after I had assumed Whiz Candy had gone out of business, I oddly came across one at a candy counter.  I quickly bought it, and while it wasn't the best candy bar that wazzzzz, it was pretty good.  Sort of a hard marshmallow covered with chocolate.  People from Chicago might remember another of his very popular jingles for Salerno Butter Cookies, the very sing-songy, "Mommy?  What is it dear?  I want a Salerno Butter Cookie!!"

I later discovered that he gave Studs Terkel his start in radio.  Studs talks about "that adman I.J. Wagner" in one of his autobiographies, who hired him for his first jobs.  When I first read this in a newspaper interview, I ran to my mother that "Studs Terkel knew Iz!"  It was old news to her.  "Oh, sure.  He spoke at Iz's funeral."

So, I've always had a warm spot in my heart for Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.

If you haven't heard the jingle in years -- or ever -- here it is.