The 1949 Pabst Blue Ribbon Scandal

In the late 1940s, beer company Pabst Brewing Company ran a series of paper advertising for Pabst Blue Ribbon in magazines featuring prominent people and war veterans from the time such as Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Gary Cooper, Lawrence Tibbett, Hap Arnold, Jascha Heifetz, F. Warren Pershing, Jean Hersholt, Charles Laughton, and Sid Luckman.  In 1949, Pabst ran an ad in the February 14 issue of LIFE featuring F. Warren Pershing and his wife, Muriel.

Warren Pershing was the son of General John Joseph Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Forces during the First World War and revered as a mentor by many recognizable names such as George C. Marshall, Douglass McArthur, Omar Bradley, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and George S. Patton.  General Pershing was greatly respected by the men that he commanded during the First World War.  General John J. Pershing died on July 15, 1948, and seven months later, the ad was published.  One of the principal staff officers to serve with him during World War I, General George Van Horn Moseley, was greatly upset seeing the Pershing last name being used to advertise a beer brand.  The same day that the ad was published and made known to General Moseley, he wrote a scathing letter to Warren Pershing.

General Moseley was so upset that he sent copies of this letter to generals Charles G. Dawes, George C. Marshall, William D. Connor, and Fox Connor, and colonels George E. Adamson, and John C. O’Laughlin.  General Dawes served in World War One and later became the 30^th Vice-President of the United States under Calvin Coolidge.  General Marshall was aide-de-camp to General Pershing after the First World War.  General William Connor was a World War I veteran and the Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point from 1932-1948.  General Fox Connor was the operations officer for General Pershing during World War I.  Colonel Adamson was General Pershing’s military secretary for approximately 23 years.  John C. O’Laughlin was a major during the First World War under General Pershing and then a long-time publisher for the Army and Navy Journal.

The most scathing line is the first line of the letter which states, “Thank God your distinguished father is not here to see your picture in LIFE (February 14) wherein you use his great name to advertise some particular brand of beer.”  General Moseley continued in the letter, “You certainly realize that they are using you on account of your father’s name and prestige, and not because of anything you may have accomplished.”  At the end of the letter, General Moseley calls on Warren Pershing to issue a public apology for being in the ad.  General Moseley mentioned that General Pershing never used his name used unless it was in connection with his military service to the United States.

It was not uncommon for Pabst to use war heroes in their advertising, as both General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold and General Jonathan M. Wainwright were featured in their ads.  General Hap Arnold was a five-star general who held the ranks of General of the Army and later General of the Air Force.  General Wainwright was awarded the Medal of Honor for his service in the Philippines, where he was captured and held prisoner by the Japanese for more than three years.  It was not unusual for prominent figures to be featured in advertising at that time.

 

In General George C. Marshall’s papers, there is no indication that Warren Pershing ever apologized to these men for the advertisement in LIFE.  It was interesting that General Moseley was so troubled by this advertisement, even though General John J. Pershing’s name was never mentioned.  It can be speculated, however that General Moseley believed that since General Pershing’s death was still in recent memory, Pabst was using Warren just for the name in the advertisement.

 

Cadet Justice J. Rozic, an intern from the Adams Center for Military History at VMI, has worked as an intern at the Marshall Foundation Library this summer. Cadet Rozic will serve as the regimental executive officer of the Corps of Cadets for the 2024-2025 academic year.