Note: This is an encore post from 2005 and originally appeared on the 1947project.

This dental accessory, imported from England, surfaced in Los Angeles in November 1947 and by January 1948 had altered its slogan slightly to “Wine-Colored Toothpaste,” in ads featuring “local model Betty Reid” and offices at 8572 Hollywood Blvd. It apparently vanished from Los Angeles drugstores in 1954, but continued to be sold in the United Kingdom with offices based at 225 Bath Road, Slough SL1 4AU. A Google search reveals that it remains elusive but in demand in 2005. A user writes “the effect is not at all Dracula-like.”

Quote of the day: “A child born now can expect to live to be 100 if he’s given proper care in infancy and youth, and if he avails himself of present medical knowledge through his adult years.”

Dr. Edward L. Bortz, president of the American Medical Association.