Dad’s Old Fashioned Root Beer Bottle – Tin Litho Embossed Sign 1937 – DRB200

Dad's Root Beer Bottle Cap Sign: Vintage Embossed Tin Litho

History

Dad's Root Beer was developed in the 1930s by partners Barney Berns and Ely Klapman in the basement of Klapman's Chicago-area home. The first trademark registration was filed on September 24, 1938, granted on February 14, 1939, to the Dad's Root Beer Company of Chicago, with the product name allegedly in use since February of 1937. Dad's earned a loyal following. Dad's Root Beer brand was famous throughout the Midwest and by the late 1940s, was one of the most consumed brands of root beer throughout the United States. Jules Klapman, son of co-founder Ely, successfully took the Dad's brand international. The name Dad's Old Fashioned Root Beer was selected in honor of Ely Klapman's father, and other fathers, who used to make root beer at home for their families (popular in the early 20th Century).

Dad's Root Beer was the first product to use the six pack format invented by the Atlanta Paper Company in the 1940s. Dad's also introduced the half-gallon bottle, becoming the first brand to market this size, marketed as a family-

"Junior" bottle size was the smallest, 7, 10 or 12 ounces.

"Mama" was a quart bottle

"Papa" was a half gallon bottle.

(The image of the young boy featured on the "Junior" size bottle is Barney Berns' son, Gene Berns.)

A common promotion in the 1940s was the 1 cent sale - purchase the Papa half gallon at regular price and get the Mama quart for 1 cent.