Easter Parade of Ads – 1953

Well, Easter is only a few days away, so I'd better serve up this final helping of warmed-over holiday fare, circa 1953.

Easter used to mean (and still does, I guess) lots of flowers and corsages, so it's not surprising to see that the local florists sponsored this nearly full-page ad. It appeared in the Journal back on March 31, 1953.

It's good to see that at least one business – Zelek's – is still around. I remember going to Marge's and Carek's for flowers for my date for the music formals and the Prom at Admiral King High School.

I like that wheelbarrow wabbit, er, rabbit clip art.

At least one jewelry store decided to offer an Easter promotion. Seymour's at 633 Broadway offered this large, 24 inch Easter Bunny available on a layaway plan. "Hmm.. should we spend the money on a ham or a stuffed bunny this year?" some families may have had to decide. The "big, huggable" bunny doesn't have a name; but since he's almost as big as Big Georgi in the Marshall's ad, we'll just call him Big Guido.

Journal ad from March 25, 1953

And speaking of ham (and its affordability), here's an ad for a grocery store that I'd never heard of: Henry's Food Center, located at 22nd and Reid. The ad ran in the Journal on April 2, 1953.

And lastly, while some stores today feature a live-action costumed Easter Bunny for kids to have their photo taken with, back in 1953 apparently that idea hadn't quite caught on yet. Instead, Penney's in Downtown Lorain offered up Peter Cottontail.

Like many of you, I remember the little song about Peter Cottontail. Here's the hit version by Gene Autry.

I assumed it was the same character as Peter Rabbit in the stories written by Beatrix Potter.

Not so. According to this Wiki entry, the name 'Peter Cottontail" was a name "temporarily assumed by a fictional rabbit named Peter Rabbit in the works of Thornton Burgess."  

But Gene Autry's song version came out in 1950 and designates Peter Cottontail as the Easter Bunny, so he became the de facto holiday hare, for at least a little while.