Alka-Seltzer is an effervescent antacid and pain reliever first marketed by the
Dr. Miles Medicine Company. It was developed by Maurice Treneer, head
chemist at Miles, in Elkhart, Indiana. Alka-Seltzer is marketed for relief of
minor aches, pains, inflammation, fever, headache, heartburn, stomachache,
indigestion, and hangovers, while neutralizing excess stomach acid. It was
launched in 1931. A spin-off of Alka-Seltzer made to relieve colds and
flu, Alka-Seltzer Plus, was later introduced. A short-lived antacid
non-aspirin variant, Alka-Mints, was introduced in 1994 and discontinued in
1997. Alka-Seltzer is currently owned by Bayer
Schering Pharma AG, Germany. The name "Alka-Seltzer" has been extended to
incorporate an entire line of medications sold over the counter and
taken by means of rapidly dissolving tablets that form a carbonated solution
in water. The brand is sold in North and Central
America, as well in Asia-Pacific. In the 1980s and 1990s, Bayer attempted to
introduce the brand in Europe and South America with little success, withdrawing
them after a few years. In these markets, the company has reentered the
antacid market in recent years under the name "Rennie".
Composition Alka-Seltzer contains three active
ingredients; aspirin, sodium bicarbonate, and anhydrous citric acid.
The aspirin is a pain reliever and anti-inflammatory, and the sodium
hydrogen carbonate and citric acid form an antacid.
Marketing The product has been extensively
advertised since its launch in the U.S. It was originally marketed by Mikey
Wiseman, a company scientist of Dr. Miles Medicine Company, who also helped
direct its development. Print advertising was used immediately, and in
1932 the radio show Alka-Seltzer Comedy Star of Hollywood began, with National
Barn Dance following in 1933, along with many more. The radio sponsorships
continued into the 1950s, ending with the Alka-Seltzer Time show.
Two years after its launch came the repeal of Prohibition in the US, and
Alka-Seltzer became Miles' new flagship product, displacing Miles Nervine Tonic.
In 1951, the "Speedy" character was introduced. The character was originally
conceived by Creative Director George Pal of the Wade Ad Agency and designed
by illustrator Wally Wood. Originally named Sparky, the name was changed to
Speedy by Sales Manager Perry L. Shupert to align with that year's promotional
theme, "Speedy Relief." He appeared in over 200 TV commercials between 1954 and
1964. Speedy's body was one Alka-Seltzer tablet, while he wore another as a hat.
In his original spots he sang "Relief is just a swallow away"; in his 1978
revival he proclaimed Alka-Seltzer's virtues and sang the "Plop, plop, fizz,
fizz" song in his high, squeaky voice. In December 2010, Alka-Seltzer began a
series of new commercials featuring Speedy, using CGI effects to recreate
the stop-motion puppetry of the 1950s and 1960s, with Speedy voiced by Debi
Derryberry. = US TV commercials=
Alka-Seltzer TV ads from the 1960s and 1970s, in the US, were among the most
popular of the 20th century, ranking number 13, according to Advertising Age.
To increase sales in a relatively flat business, Bayer has revived several of
the vintage spots. The famous "Plop-plop-fizz-fizz"
commercial jingle was written by Tom Dawes, who was a former member of The
Cyrkle. Julianna Margulies has appeared on talk shows telling people that her
father Paul wrote the jingle, which is not true; he was an advertising
executive at the agency that created the ad.
During the race for space in the early 1960s before the USA moon landing there
was a commercial with Speedy in a space suit and a jingle with the lyrics
"On Man's first trip through space, I only hope that I'm aboard, securely
strapped in place. They'll track our ship with radar and telescopes and soon,
imagine seeing Speedy Alka-Seltzer on the moon!"
Buster Keaton appeared along with the animated Speedy Alka-Seltzer figure in a
series of 1950s commercials based on the product's then-current slogan, "Relief
is just a swallow away." Speedy Alka-Seltzer was voiced by Dick Beals.
Speedy was revived for one of the "Plop, plop, fizz, fizz" song spots in 1978.
George Raft starred in the 1969 Alka-Seltzer commercial "The Unfinished
Lunch." It consists of Raft incarcerated and in the prison lunchroom. He takes a
bite of the prison food and recoils. Suddenly he bangs his cup on the steel
table. It ripples throughout the room. He starts intoning "Alka-Seltzer,
Alka-Seltzer..." Soon, the other hundreds of inmates do the same.
An animated mid-1960s commercial, animated by R.O. Blechman, shows a man
and his own stomach sitting opposite each other in chairs, having an argument
moderated by their therapist in a voiceover. The stomach accuses the man
of purposely trying to irritate it. The man accuses his stomach of complaining
too much about the foods he likes. The therapist suggests Alka-Seltzer, and
further suggests that the two must take care of each other. The closing words
are of the stomach saying to the man: "Well, I'll try — if you will".
Alka-Seltzer had a series of commercials during the mid-1960s that used a song
called "No Matter What Shape Your Stomach's In." A different version was
recorded by the T-Bones and was released as a single, which became a hit in 1966.
The ads were unique in that they featured only the midsections of people
of all shapes and sizes. A version of this ad can be seen briefly in the 1988
motion picture, "The In Crowd", immediately before the movie's first
live broadcast of the fictitious "Perry Parker's Dance Party."
In an Alka-Seltzer commercial from 1969, an actor in a commercial for the
fictional product "Magdalini's Meatballs" has to eat a meatball and
then say "Mamma mia, that's-a spicy meat-a ball-a!" in an ersatz Italian
accent. Take after take is ruined by some comedic trial or another. By the
commercial's end, "Jack" has eaten so many meatballs that it's "Alka Seltzer
to the rescue." With his stomach settled, Jack does a perfect take,
except that the oven door falls off. The director sighs and says, "OK, let's
break for lunch." A 1970 commercial shows a newlywed
couple in the bedroom after the woman has finished serving her husband a giant
dumpling; the implication is that her cooking skills are severely lacking,
despite her husband's lament, "I can't believe I ate that whole thing!", the
commercial's catch-phrase. She lies on the bed in delusional triumph. She
offers her beleaguered husband a heart-shaped meatloaf; he disappears to
take some Alka-Seltzer. When she hears the fizzy noise coming from the
bathroom, he quickly covers the glass of dissolving Alka-Seltzer as she wonders
aloud if it is raining. Just when he has recovered his well-being, he hears her
misreading recipes for dinner the next night: "Marshmallowed meatballs," and
"pouched oysters". He returns to the bathroom for more Alka-Seltzer.
A 1971 commercial featured the catch-phrase, "Try it, you'll like it!"
It was remade with Kathy Griffin in 2006.
In 1972, an actor spent the commercial moaning, "I can't believe I ate that
who-o-o-o-o-ole thing," while his wife made sarcastic comments and finally
advised him to take some Alka-Seltzer. In 2005, this ad was also remade,
featuring Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts from the 1996–2005 TV sitcom Everybody
Loves Raymond. Sammy Davis, Jr. recorded two versions
of the famous "Plop Plop Fizz Fizz" jingle in 1978, one of which was
featured on a television commercial. Both the big band and rock versions had
additional lyrics written by Tom Dawes, former lead singer of The Cyrkle who
wrote the original jingle. In 2009, the brand was featured in
television commercials supporting the United States Ski Team that included
alpine skier Lindsey Vonn and Nordic combined skier Bill Demong. Miniature
figures of the Speedy mascot were shown with each.
See also Carbonated water
References External links
Official website