I was never really crazy about Dennis the Menace either, so the mischievous moppet's appearances in Dairy Queen advertising did nothing to make me want to patronize the place.
But my wife, who grew up with Dairy Queen, still likes to go there to get one of their signature creations. So Dairy Queen is in rotation along with our other soft serve ice cream choices, such as Avon Dairy Isle and Terry's Dairy. (For real ice cream, though, it's gotta be Toft's in Sandusky!)
Here's a couple of newspaper ads from the 1950's that show the present Terry's Dairy's original identity, as Lorain's Dairy Queen.
The ad at left is from April 16, 1958. It's a real attention-getter with a nice, clean easy-to-read layout and great illustration.
The next ad (below) is more of a curiosity. It's still branded with the Lorain Dairy Queen's 903 East Erie Avenue address, but the ad really isn't directed to the ice-cream loving public. It's more of a corporate ad touting DQ's success and promoting the concept of free enterprise.
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| If this ad doesn't make you want your own DQ franchise, nothing will! |
The ad goes on to say how healthy DQ is for you, since it's loaded with milk.
We had Dairy Queen on Friday night (we went to the newly renovated Amherst one). Somehow I don't think my Chocolate Xtreme Blizzard – full of brownies, cocoa fudge, and chocolate bits (not to mention 660 calories!) – was all that healthy!
But it sure was good! (Small wonder that I've ordered the same thing the last four times we've gone to Dairy Queen!)
Dairy Queen must have an odd corporate model. Down here there is a Dairy Queen in almost every town of any size at all, even if they have nothing else. But they are burger joints that also sell some ice cream confections. And there's no "Brazier's" on the sign, to show that they also sell food. They all do. Patty was confused by the Brazier thing the first time we visited Ohio together. I remember as a young man going into DQ up in Avon Lake or somewhere looking for something to eat but all they had was ice cream. Strange regional difference. They are a routine and familiar part of the Texas landscape wherever you go.
ReplyDeleteAlso they only served Vanilla on E Erie. In the 60's I remember eating my ice cream sundae a "Jack and Jill" and fresh smell the lake. But there was Home Dairy I think between Elyria Ave and Broadway ( I wasnt driving yet)
ReplyDeleteThe old Home Dairy building still stands although is an unsightly wreck. Our family often stopped there on our way back from visitng the Howard Cobb family out on North Ridge Road. Howard was a bricklayer who grew up on (I believe) East Erie and went to Fairhome with my late father, Joseph Peter Thomas, Jr. Dad grew up on Idaho Avenue where I did, too.
ReplyDeleteMy grandfather, Joseph Peter Thomas, Sr. and I went to visit the property where the Dairy Queen was to be built. At that time (about 1953 or so) an old ice house stood on the property.
The first owner of the Dairy Queen was Stan (last name unknown to me) who was a very nice fellow that I got to know over the years as I grew up. Every spring when Stan reopened the "DQ" after winters snow had melted he would give away a free small cone to one and all. My father used to joke Stan did that to get the dead bugs out of the equipment. LOL!!
Terry Thomas...
the photographer
Atlanta, Georgia
http://www.TerryThomasPhotos.com
what was the name of the ice cream stand on W. 21st Street in Lorain, Ohio during the 60's and 70's? It was located just past the Westgate shopping center and on the same side of the road. It is now for sale and from the picture it looks like the name on the large cone says Dairy Twist.....however, we lived nearby and patronized it often but remember the name to be Dairy Isle....can anyone refresh my memory?
ReplyDeleteThe custard stand on W. 21st Street in Lorain, Ohio near the Westgate Shopping Center was Dairy Isle in 1960 and 1970....The building is empty now (2012) and the sign on the building says Dairy Twist.....That came after Dairy Isle closed...We lived in Sherwood Allotment during the 60's and 70's and visited the custard stand almost every evening in the summer.
ReplyDelete