Things that make me laugh: I was reading today in a book of short stories by James Lee Burke and came across a phrase that kind of tilted my tickle-box.. His story involved some 'wannabe' musicians in the 1950s era. The sentence that caused me to chuckle was, " . . . . . . we were blowing down the road in Eddy Ray's '49 Hudson, headed toward our next gig, a town up in Arkansas that was so small it was located between two Burma Shave signs." I reckon you would need to have been around long enough to remember the Burma Shave signs along the highways to appreciate the town size reference.. Love to all, Hank..
Oh, lordy Hank, I remember taking a road trip with my parents--I must have been about five or six--and looking for the Burma Shave signs along the roadside. The town I lived in was so small we didn't have any Burma Shave signs on entering and leaving. In fact, the "Welcome to ...." was on the sign, and "Now leaving ...." was immediately below.
They were godsends to my brothers & me as kids on the l-o-n-g drive from NJ to western NY state when we were heading to the family farm. I saw evidence of a rotted Burma Shave sign a few years back....on that way to the family farm, course! I couldn't believe it.
There used to be a village in Virginia on the Eastern Shore called Pinero. The Post Office was the size of an outhouse. The sign post was a 4"X4" post on one side the sign said " Pinero" and on the other side of the post, the sign said " Pinero ". Don't know if that village is still there or not.
Eileen, there was a brand of shaving cream called "Burma Shave" and the company posted signs along roadways, usually three or four signs, each with part of a saying on it. Here's one: His cheek Was rough His chick vamoosed And now she won't Come home to roost Burma-Shave I didn't say they were great poetry.
Eileen, 'google' or 'wiki' [Burma Shave Signs] to learn more than you ever wanted to know about them.. Chuckle. Hank
What I remember being fun about them was the anticipation between signs. Just think about this: here we are, 50 years later talking about Burma Shave signs. They occupy a small place in my childhood memories, which I think might be typical. They have become a cultural icon of a certain time in American history: post-WWII, most families had cars, we had a highway system that was well developed, families took road trips for vacation, etc. I wonder if these signs were as successful then as a marketing vehicle as they have become as a cultural icon.
