Can Draft and Coca-Cola Slogan Number 7

Can selection number 7.

2012 Holiday Coke Can

1922's Coca-Cola slogan of "Thirst Knows No Season" ironically only lasted four seasons.  A year later they changed it again.

1923: Enjoy Thirst

Oh!  Sounds a bit masochistic.  Make yourself hurt a bit.  Enjoy it.  You can tame it with the bubbly pleasure of Coca-Cola.  Don't fight it, relish it!  That thirst is going to guide you to the local pharmacy to buy a Coca-Cola.  It actually sounds a little like Sprite's relatively modern, "Obey your Thirst."  Who knows, some Sprite executive might have mined this old Coca-Cola slogan to create that one.

Coca-Cola and the Olympics

Coca-Cola is one of the advertising heartbeats of the Olympics.  Every two years, you will never fail to see Coca-Cola commercials hailing the triumphs of athletes.  The Olympics are a feel good marketing event for the G8, and no one knows how to market to the feel good vibe better than Coca-Cola.

2014 Sochi Olympic Speed Skater Coke Can 

The funny part was Sochi 2014 was a little bumpy for Coke.  Putin's crackdown on the gay community angered many Americans, and anyone with ties to the Olympics became a fair target for guerrilla warfare.  For example, someone juxtaposed the iconic Hill Top Coca-Cola commercial with footage of Russians manhandling protesters of Russian's sexuality laws. The video attempts to convince the viewer Coke is in cahoots with this behavior by sponsoring the games.

Of course, to the sensible, anger should be directed more to the International Olympic Committee than Coca-Cola.  The IOC selected Russian as the host venue, not a beverage company.  Then again, it's far more fun to throw rocks at American corporations than at the French elitists that compose the IOC.  Yet is operated by marketing genius, and they struck back by posting the video on their facebook page, essentially recasting it as Coca-Cola being the bright light of diversity and inclusion coming to the dark and dreary Russian world, an advertising counter stroke I believe is pure genius.   

Still, I believe the memes like this had an effect; there were only 3 Coca-Cola winter games cans this year, far less than what was released for London.  It seems at least in American, Coke was willing to keep a lower profile than usual.

Can Draft and Coca-Cola Slogan Number 6

Can pick number 6!

2011 Captain American 7-Up Can

And the new Coca-Cola slogan?  Well, 1917's "Three Million a Day" lasted a solid five years.  In 1922 they changed the slogan again.  It appears below.

1922: Thirst Knows No Season

Yes, if you are thirsty, you don't care what season it is.  Sure, Coca-Cola tastes great on a hot summer day, but you can quench that thirst with a sugary Coca-Cola in the dead of winter as well. So regardless of when you are reading this post, you can feel free to grab a Coca-Cola.

Coca-Cola Wine Glass

I am a soda can collector, so I drink most of my Coke and related sodas out of aluminum cans.  It's strong, cool, and crisp.  I love the crackling pop tab.  However, if you feel the desire to be a bit more classy with your soft drinks, RIEDEL has you covered.

2013 Kmart Lemon Lime

RIEDEL is a wine glass company that was commissioned by Coca-Cola to make the perfect Coca-Cola drinking glass.  I'm not kidding.  Coke tastes best they say, and I am prone to agree, out of the original barrel-shaped glass bottle.  Unfortunately, since that is not always available, this glass is supposedly the next best thing.  You can order one here. Coke has always been classy, but this product provides some tangible tableware for it.

Can Draft and Coca-Cola Slogans Number 5

Can Draft pick number 5!

1986 Mickey's ToonTown Coca-Cola Can

To our sensitive modern ears, the slogans for Coca-Cola certainly seemed to be on the down slide starting in 1905.  Interestingly, it didn't get any better until 1917.  Yes, Coca-Cola was known as "The Great National Temperance Beverage" for eleven years!  And even that was three years before the 18th Amendment making Temperance an enshrined Constitutional ideal.  So what did Coca-Cola's slogan change to after being known as the non-alcoholic drink of choice?

1917:  Three Million a Day

Ah, so now Coca-Cola is giving us some numbers to justify why it's such a great American drink. It reminds me of the numbers McDonald's touts. Certainly, the slogan "Three Million a Day" is several pegs above the old slogan.  Of course, again imagining the slogan in the modern world, a measly three million a day would make Coca-Cola a type of niche hipster drink.  But it must have seen staggeringly large to a lad in 1917.

One, Two, Three

This little blog is about soda can collecting and its peripheries.  What does "peripheries" mean?  I dunno, really.  Perhaps Billy Wilder's movie One, Two, Three helps explain.  Released in 1961, it's a jolly comedy with a little romance. It's also about Coca-Cola.

2013 New A&W Ten

See, the protagonist is a Coca-Cola executive in West Berlin who is aiming to introduce Coca-Cola to the Soviet Union.  Things become derailed when he needs to babysit the 17 year-old daughter of his boss in Berlin, and she falls in love with a communist.  Coca-Cola becomes a thinly veiled metaphor throughout the film for all stuff American.  I watched it on Netflix and it was an evening well spent.  Perhaps you should buy a bottle of Coke and do so too.

Can Draft and Coca-Cola Slogans Number 4

Can number 4 in the draft!

Old School Coca-Cola Can

Now, if you thought that 1905's Coca-Cola slogan was odd, the following year will sound even odder to your modern ears.  Are you ready for it?  It appears below...

1906: The Great National Temperance Beverage

Wow.  I mean, really?  Imagine that today.  In 1906 during the push for prohibition, however, it certainly made sense.  Drink Coke, not booze!

Coca-Cola Life?

There was news back in December that Coca-Cola may be coming out with a new flavor in early 2014.  Supposedly its called Coca-Cola Life and it's already selling well in Argentina and Chile.

Tops Cola 2013

The secret to this new Coke is that it's a blend of real sugar and Stevia, which some folks think is safer than the humdrum aspartame found in Diet Coke.  This slices the calorie count by over half. What does this mean?  First and foremost, it means I need to be on the look out for a new can soon.  Secondly, all credit due, the Bloombergs and Obamas of the world need to realize soda is here to stay.  It's gonna adapt, it's gonna change, but it ain't going anywhere.

Summer Can Countdown 4

Can number 4!  It's roller coasters, baby!  This is actually my favorite summer Coke can of 2013. Who doesn't love a good roller coaster ride and a can of Coke to cool you off while you wait in the long line to board?

Coca-Cola Summer Can 4 of 6 2013

If you are looking for an actual Coca-Cola roller coaster and not just some lame one on a can, you could have checked out The Coca-Cola Roller at The Glasgow Garden festival in England.  It opened in 1988 but was sold off that same year and renamed The Missile.  It was later dismantled and renamed again in 2007 and is now called The Surfer at Pleasurewood Hills.

So it was a brief Coca-Cola/Roller Coaster moment, but a picture of it from 1988 decked out in Coca-Cola red and white appears below. 

The Coaster Behind the Can...1988

 

Can Draft and Coca-Cola Slogans Number 3

And here is my third pick for the great inaugural can draft!

2011 Red Skull Cherry 7-Up

So far we've discussed two Coca-Cola slogans.  The third appears below...

1905: Coca-Cola Revives and Sustains

Huh?  I think most of us can think that's a bit of a step down from the previous slogan of "Delicious and Refreshing."  Why the change?  Apparently many sodas were sold in the early years for their supposed medicinal properties.  The 1905 slogan indeed makes the soda seem more like a pharmaceutical product.  I don't think such a slogan could survive today.  For Gatorade it might work, but certainly not Coca-Cola.  Oh well, check back next week for a new can and slogan.