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Thousands of bright red signs used to dot the sides of American roads.
They were ads for Burma-Shave, a shaving cream that debuted in 1925 and proved to be as smooth as any barber shop product.
But who wanted to try a shaving cream that sounded as if it came from a country no one could find on a map?
That’s when one of the company’s traveling salesmen came up with a nutty idea. Why not promote Burma-Shave with a sequence of cheerful signs, the way that filling stations used to remind drivers that gasoline and coffee were just ahead?
Thus was born one of the most novel marketing approaches in American history.
The signs were spaced a few hundred feet apart and were designed to captivate drivers:
Shaving brushes / you’ll soon see ’em / way down East / in some museum (1930)
He played a sax / had no B.O. / but his whiskers scratched / so she let him go (1933)
He had the ring / he had the flat / but she felt his chin / and that was that (1934)
Her chariot raced / at 80 per / they hauled away / what had Ben Hur (clever, but yikes)
Each sequence ended with a bright red Burma-Shave sign, reminding motorists that they had just experienced a drive-by commercial.
On average, a string of Burma-Shave signs held the attention of a passing driver for 18 seconds (which seems to approximate the average American attention span).
Burma-Shave paid $100 to anyone who could come up with a witty new turn of phrase. At one point the company was receiving 50,000 entries a year.
The arrival of interstates spelled the end of the fun. The higher speeds and divided highways made it harder to read the little red signs, and the last ones disappeared in 1963.
There’s still a place, however, where you can read catchy sayings and pithy aphorisms.
That would be the Old Testament book of Proverbs.
Proverbs is arguably the Bible’s most down-to-earth book. Perusing its 31 chapters feels like gleaning good advice from a Dutch uncle or a favorite grandmother.
In general, biblical proverbs are catchy observations that are meant to convey deep truths. They are not commands. Nor are they fail-safe promises from God. In other words, it’s not a good idea to make a major life decision based on a single proverb.
But taken as a whole, these sayings convey the priceless virtue of wisdom, the very purpose of the book as stated in Proverbs 1:2. They describe the way life usually works.
Some of them are masterpieces of Hebrew humor: “As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed” (26:14).
Others present unforgettable images: “Like one who seizes a dog by the ears is a passer-by who meddles in a quarrel not his own” (26:17).
Some offer words of reassurance: “When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever” (10:25).
Still others provide a challenge: “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (27:17) .
A special few have become celebrated as timeless truths: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and don’t rely on what you think you know. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
For more than a generation, Burma-Shave brought smiles to people heading down the open road.
For at least 3,000 years, the book of Proverbs has offered wisdom and encouragement for those willing to let God show them where the path goes next.