Why Is It So Dang Difficult To Get Accurate Information About Broadband Speeds?

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Your cable company sells you a broadband plan advertising download speeds of “up to 25Mbps.” But it feels sluggish to you so you check out an online speed test site and it tells you you’re only getting a fraction of that speed. Then the FCC comes out with its Measuring Broadband America report which — if you can even make heads or tails of it — says your ISP is actually exceeding its advertised download speeds. Why don’t all of these things agree?

A new report [PDF] from the Government Accountability Office finds that while there are multiple sources for information on broadband performance, there is disagreement about exactly what information should be shared and how to present it.

FORCED TRANSPARENCY RESULTS IN INCONSISTENT DISCLOSURES

Though Verizon’s lawsuit gutted the net neutrality portion of the FCC’s 2010 Open Internet order, one portion of the order that survived was the “transparency rule,” which requires that fixed and mobile broadband providers “publicly disclose accurate information regarding the network management practices, performance, and commercial terms of its broadband Internet access services sufficient for consumers to make informed choices regarding use of such services.”

When drafting this rule, ISPs complained that it would be too burdensome if they were all compelled to provide this information in the exact same way. And so there is currently no standardized format for your cable or phone company to comply with the transparency requirement. As long the disclosures include information like actual speeds and that they are timely and prominently published in plain language, they are considered compliant.

The 2015 Open Internet order, which goes into effect in the coming weeks, tries to bolster the original by requiring that ISPs disclose information on actual speed, latency, and packet loss. Additionally, there should be disclosures about so-called “network management practices,” like when a broadband provider throttles or otherwise limits access to users who exceed certain limits. Beyond posting this information, the ISPs must also develop a system for notifying individual users when their use will trigger some sort of limiting response from the ISP.

While the new rules will result in more data available to consumers, there is still an issue of standardized presentation.

“Currently, ISPs’ disclosures vary with respect to length, content, and where they are placed on ISPs’ websites,” writes the GAO. “In addition, according to public interest groups we spoke with, the complexity of this information and its lack of standardization across ISPs can make it difficult for consumers to find and use the information to compare broadband products and services.”

Beyond the access to this information, there is concern about consumers being able to understand what the numbers indicate.

Most ISPs claim that, by not being forced into a standardized presentation format, they are given the flexibility of being able to better explain this information. But not all providers objected. At least one told the GAO that it believes standardized transparency reports would benefit consumers.

The FCC has looked into the idea of a standardized “label” for broadband services that would provide all the relevant information for consumers, but the Commission tells the GAO that the rapidly evolving nature of broadband complicates matters. The new Open Internet rules did establish an acceptable format for ISPs to use to disclose this info, but does not mandate that they actually use it.

ONLINE SPEED TESTS: HELPFUL, BUT INCOMPLETE

There are numerous websites that anyone can go to in order to get some sort of measure for the performance of their broadband connection. Some of these are third party sites, while others are operated by the ISP. The FCC itself uses an app to test volunteer consumers’ wireless data connections.

And while these can be valuable tools for getting a speed snapshot at any given moment, the GAO says these tests can fall short of representing the entire issue.

“[T]he information from speed tests may not provide consumers with the information they need to understand what factors are affecting their broadband performance,” reads the report. Among the factors that can impact speed tests:

• A user’s hardware: Slow data isn’t always the fault of the ISP. Faulty or outdated modems and routers can impact speed tests.

• Other users: Running a speed test while your roommates or kids are streaming movies over the same connection could provide bad information.

• Location of the speed-test server: “If a speed test server is located outside the consumer’s ISP network, then the results could be affected by congestion occurring on networks outside of the ISP’s control,” explains the report. Conversely, a server tested on the ISP’s network may not capture congestion that affecting the user’s ability to access content outside of that network.

• Disputes between ISPs and content providers: Think back to the year-plus battle between Netflix and Verizon/Comcast/Time Warner Cable/AT&T, where the ISPs refused to open up new connections at the points where their local networks connected to Netflix’s bandwidth providers. Most speed tests would have shown that users had sufficient connections to stream Netflix, and yet their actual connections to the Netflix data were insufficient.

FCC: MEASURING BROADBAND, BUT NOT WELL ENOUGH

For four years, the FCC has undertaken its Measuring Broadband America reports, which provides oodles of information — advertised vs. delivered download and upload speeds (both over a 24-hour period and during peak weeknight periods); latency; website loading time and more.

For its reports, the FCC samples broadband data from 6,000 volunteer customers of 14 of the largest ISPs, representing more than 80% of the residential broadband marketplace. That’s all well and good, but the GAO notes that the speed tests only check speeds within an ISP’s network.

This means that the FCC is only seeing whether companies are delivering the speeds they promise along that so-called “last mile” of the Internet that they control. This gives no indication of a user’s ability to reach any content outside of that network.

The tests are a good measure of whether an ISP is living up to its end of the bargain, but don’t paint
an accurate picture of the real broadband landscape. Almost everything you read, watch, or listen to online comes passes through multiple networks before it gets to your computer or mobile device:

This is why Netflix and a handful of other super-size content providers have made deals to connect their servers more directly to the end networks of big ISPs like Comcast and Verizon. It eliminates the likelihood of congestion experienced in the “backbone” portion of the trip.

Another concern about the FCC’s handling of the broadband issue is that it may be too focused on merely measuring data rather than establishing performance goals for ISPs to meet. Instead of just making sure that ISPs are delivering advertised connection speeds for in-network data, the Commission could try to establish performance goals for interconnected networks. At the very least, sampling data across networks would provide consumers a more accurate picture of what to expect in general from their broadband connection.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

New York City Promises To Crack Down On Nail Salon Labor Abuses

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(Great Beyond)

After the first-ever state Department of Labor crackdown and the New York Times published an investigative report on work conditions in the nail salon industry based on interviews with hundreds of workers, now politicians are taking action to help these vulnerable workers. Today, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio pledged that the city government will crack down on poor work conditions and pay in the city’s nail salons.

Earlier this week, the governor of New York State announced a multi-agency task force to make sure labor laws are followed. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced new regulations that will require nail salon owners to post a bond or take out an insurance policy to cover any unpaid wage claims.

Nail salons are relatively inexpensive and easy to open, and when one encounters legal problems, the owner and their assets often disappear. The state also promises stricter regulations on work conditions for manicurists, who spend their days exposed to harsh chemicals and who often suffer health effects.

While the state regulates labor conditions and pay, the city at least has the opportunity to investigate employment agencies that send people to work in nail salons, and can also perform outreach to make sure that nail salon workers know what their rights are.

Next Thursday, city representatives and volunteers will visit nail salons all over New York City, where nail salons are plentiful and the competition is fierce, forcing prices and wages down. The multilingual information campaign will ensure that workers understand their rights when it comes to wages and work conditions.

New York City pledges crackdown on nail salons that exploit workers [Reuters]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

The Inevitable Comes To Pass: Pedialyte Targeting Hungover Adults

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(jsharktank)

Although we acknowledge the fact that all of our readers are surely shining examples of fun in moderation, perhaps you may have known someone in your adult life who, after having had a few too many Brandy Alexanders, has attempted to rehydrate the next morning with the same drink your mom gave you when you stayed home with a stomach bug. Pedialyte feels your pain, and it’s definitely taking of its popularity among adults.

There’s nothing to be ashamed of, after all — it’s like Johnson’s Baby Shampoo: Just because it’s for babies doesn’t mean parents can’t use it too.

And mom, dad and friends are drinking it, Pedialyte says, with adult consumption growing by almost 60% since 2012, accounting for more tan a third of the company’s sales, Heather Mason, an executive vice president at Abbott Laboratories, the manufacturer told the Wall Street Journal.

The company doesn’t disclose sales but said that retail sales tracked by Nielsen have gone up 22% to $102 million in 2014 from 2013, giving it a 58.2% share in the $167 million U.S. oral electrolyte market.

The historical average of adult drinkers was more in the 10% to 15% average range, she noted.

Of course, athletes are also in need of rehydration often, but with the advent of social media and sharing of life tips like surviving college, Pedialyte is often the beverage of choice to treat a hangover.

Abbott isn’t letting this opportunity pass, Tweeting things like “#CincoDeMayo #rehydrate” on May 5, an occasion often celebrated with copious amounts of margaritas.

#CincoDeMayo #rehydrate http://pic.twitter.com/rjqgnuGT21

— Pedialyte US (@pedialyte) May 5, 2015

The company is also heading to where the action is, with plans to hand out free samples at 144 music festivals and sporting events around the country this summer.

“There’s an underground movement in social media to drive word of mouth,” Mason told the WSJ. “We saw increased use by adults. We have high electrolyte and lower sugar content than common [hydration] beverages. That combination caused us to say, ‘We need to be part of this.’”

There are no plans to veer from the Pedia part of the name, she said, as it has “strong brand recognition,” adding that the company won’t change its product make-up to cater to adults more closely. But it will be launching larger packs of the powdered version it sells and add flavors like strawberry, lemonade and orange.

Me, I like my electrolytes frozen in popsicle form. You know, after I’ve run a marathon or whatever.

Pedialyte Sales Grow—Into an Adult Market [Wall Street Journal]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

One Month After Closing Stores For Plumbing Repairs, Walmart Actually Files For Permits

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(Mike Mozart)

When Walmart closed five stores in four different states on the same day, claiming that they were shutting down due to unspecified “plumbing problems,” people became suspicious. Some citizen theories involve the military, and others involve the nationwide OUR Walmart walkouts that began at one of the California stores targeted for temporary closing. One piece of evidence was that Walmart hadn’t yet filed for permits for any of these urgent renovations. Well, now they have.

OUR Walmart is the campaign for better pay and work conditions for Walmart employees that’s backed by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. UFCW filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing Walmart of targeting the store for temporary closure to punish that store’s employees, many of whom have been active in the OUR Walmart movement. The other closings, the union claimed in its complaint, were to make it look like the temporary closings weren’t about punishing the employees of one store. The closings, which could last until the end of this year, put about 2,200 full- and part-time workers out of work.

Walmart announced today that it finally got around to filing for the required permits for the plumbing work in these five stores, which includes tearing up floors and replacing sewer lines. According to Walmart, these five stores all had extensive plumbing problems, which included flooded sales floors and other issues that affected their ability to prepare and sell food in-store.

A Walmart spokesperson told Reuters that the company has granted severance pay to part-time employees, which is not its normal policy, and that about half of the employees displaced by the plumbing repairs have found jobs at other nearby Walmart stores.

Wal-Mart seeks repair permits for stores in labor dispute

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Amazon Echo Now Lets Prime Members Reorder Stuff With Voice Command

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Forget about the Amazon Dash. The company’s web-connected speaker – you know, the one that talks? – now has the ability to do your shopping for you; as long as the item is a reorder from a pervious purchase and happens to be Prime eligible.

GeekWire reports that the e-tailer’s latest update to its Echo smart speaker enables consumers to voice purchase any item they previously bought through their Prime accounts.

Making purchases with Echo’s digital assistant seems pretty straight forward. You simply say “[Whatever the wake word is for your machine], reorder dish soap.”

Echo then searches your previous Prime eligible purchases and if a matching product is found, the assistant will either make the purchase with your default payment and shipping settings, or ask the user to confirm their confirmation code.

While the ordering done mostly based on previous orders, when an item can’t be found the speaker may offer up a similar Amazon Choice product, along with pricing details, giving you a chance to buy that item.

Here’s Amazon’s full list of Echo voice purchasing options.

If, for some reason, you (or your rowdy friends) accidentally place an order or decide you no longer need the item, simply tell your device to “cancel order.”

In the case that Echo can’t cancel the order, Prime members can visit the Your Orders section of their account to call off the purchase.

Amazon lets Echo users easily restock their home with a voice command [GeekWire]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Of Course You Can Buy Marijuana-Infused Coffee Pods On The West Coast

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(torode)

Because everyone knows that the best part of waking up is staying in your soft pants all day and eating cereal while watching Warner Herzog documentaries, the chilled out folks on the West Coast are pairing your morning cup of joe with marijuana to start the day.

Brewing up a steaming cup of THC-infused marijuana is within your reach if you happen to live in somewhere like Seattle, where recreational marijuana use is legal: Yahoo! Finance reports that one Seattle pot shop is selling pods of “premium infused coffee” for $10 a pop.

Each pod contains 10 mg of THC and fits in standard single-serve coffee makers.

“I liken it to a Red Bull and vodka,” the shop’s sales manager says. “I had more energy, but I still had the relaxation you get from cannabis.”

This isn’t the first commercial coffee/cannabis combination, as a California company sells also sells marijuana-infused coffees, teas and creamers to medical marijuana dispensaries in that state, with the hopes of moving to Nevada when medical marijuana businesses open up shop there.

Marijuana K-cups and coffee pods are here [Yahoo! Finance]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

IKEA Is Testing Small Pick-Up Point Stores In Canada

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(Gregory Brown)

I live in a smaller metropolitan area where people often whine that we have to drive more than two hours each way to visit an IKEA store. What if we didn’t, though? What if cities too small to support a mammoth IKEA of their own had small stores with some retail offerings, where they could pick up their online orders of flat-pack furniture themselves? The chain of mega-stores announced this week that they’re trying that idea out in Canada.

When it comes to IKEA, of course, “small” is relative. These mini stores for the pilot program will be about 20,000 square feet: about the size of an H&M store, a larger Apple Store, and maybe half the size of a small grocery store. That’s one-twelfth the size of the smallest IKEA stores.

Customers can place orders at the first mini-IKEA, in the college town of London, Ontario: they’ll be able to have items delivered for an CDN$80 flat fee, or drive to the store to pick them up.

The stores will have a pared-down number of furniture and accessory displays, and samples of furniture finishes for customers to browse and touch in person. They will have four full kitchens displayed, for example, and three beds set up.

If the idea works, it will spread to other areas that are too small to support full-grown IKEA stores. “If we see that it is a good thing, we will roll it out [elsewhere],” IKEA Canada president Stefan Sjöstrand told the Toronto Star. “If it’s not working, then we will have to try something else.” Canada seems like a good choice to try this out: it has a relatively spread-out population, and very few IKEA stores relative to the number of people who live there and who presumably need furniture.

Ikea to test retail concept at new location opening in Ontario [Toronto Star]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

This Summer’s Gas Prices Predicted To Be At Their Lowest In Six Years

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(beebo wallace)

As if there wasn’t enough to celebrate with the impending arrival of summer, road trip vacations will be even better this year with gasoline predicted to be at its cheapest in at least six years. Perfect for when you finally decide to drive across the country to visit that giant ball of [insert weird thing to make a giant ball out of] in [state far away from where you live].

Prices have been up a bit recently but gas prices will be moderate this summer and hover around $1 cheaper a gallon than last year, reports USA Today (warning: link has video that autoplays).

“This is cheapest driving season since the summer of 2009,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis for the Oil Price Information Service.

The national average gas price went up $0.20 in a month to $2.69 a gallon for regular after a hike in crude oil prices and issues at West Coast refineries, according to the Energy Department.

As a result of falling average prices however, more people will be hitting the road — AAA predicted that 37.2 million Americans will hit the open road or board planes over the holiday weekend, an increase of more than 2 million travelers from last year.

Forecast: Summer gas prices will be lowest in six years [USA Today]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Dept. Of Education Proposes Rules To Govern College Prepaid Credit & Debit Cards

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College students’ federal aid has increasingly been put at risk by the cozy relationship between institutions of higher education and credit card issuers over the years. While consumer advocates and legislators have debated whether or not products like student IDs that double as credit or debit cards provide an actual benefit to students or if they’re just a way for schools and banks to rake in the big bucks, the Department of Education finally took steps today to ensure students are afforded proper protections from excess fees and other harmful practices with the proposal of regulations targeting the college debit and prepaid card marketplace.

The Department’s proposed rules – published in the Federal Register [PDF] – aim to regulate the way colleges can enter into marketing agreements with banks and prepaid card issuers who wish to access their student populations, as well as provide certain restrictions when it comes to allowable fees assessed on the cards.

“The proposed regulations are intended to safeguard students from excess fees and provide students the freedom to choose how to access their federal student aid funds when paying for college,” the Dept. said in a statement.

In all, the Dept. estimates the tougher standards and greater transparency of the agreements will protect as many as nine million college students receiving $25 billion in federal student aid.

“It is critically important to ensure that students can freely choose how to receive their federal student aid refunds,” U.S. Under Secretary of Education Ted Mitchell said in a statement. “Students need objective, neutral information about their account options. For example, students should be able to choose to receive deposits to their own checking accounts and not be forced to utilize debit cards with obscure and unreasonable fees.”

NEW SAFEGUARDS

With about 40% of all postsecondary students enrolled in institutions that have debit or prepaid card agreements with billions of dollars in Pell Grant and Direct Loan program funds disbursed to students at those institutions annually, the Dept. determined regulatory action had become necessary.

The proposed regulations would require that schools who choose to partner with a financial institution do so under one of two types of arrangements.

A Tier One (T1) arrangement is between an institution and a third-party servicer that performs one or more of the functions associated with processing direct payments of title IV funds on behalf of the institution and that offers one or more financial accounts to students and parents.

A Tier Two (T2) arrangement is between an institution and a financial institution or entity that offers financial accounts through a financial institution under which financial accounts are offered and marketed directly to students or their parents.

The proposed regulations would:
• Prohibit institutions from requiring students or parents to open a certain account into which their credit balances are deposited.

• Require institutions to ensure that students are not charged overdraft fees if students select an account offered directly or indirectly by contractors that assist institutions in making direct payments of federal student aid.

• Require an institution to provide a list of account options that a student may choose from to receive credit balance funds, where each option is presented in a neutral manner and the student’s preexisting bank account is listed as the first, most prominent, and default option. And,

• Require institutions to ensure electronic payments made to a student’s preexisting account are as timely as, and no more onerous to the student than, payments made to accounts marketed through the institution.

“Through these proposed protections, the Education Department seeks to protect students from unreasonable account fees, safeguard taxpayer dollars, provide transparency regarding accounts offered to students by requiring disclosure of the agreements between institutions and financial account providers as well as the costs students incur, ensure students have a choice about how to receive their federal aid, and prohibit their personal information from being shared without their consent,” the Dept. said in its announcement.

A LONG TIME COMING

Friday’s announcement of the proposed rules quickly drew commendations from regulators with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Rohit Chopra, student loan ombudsman for the CFPB – which has extensively investigated college credit and debit cards – said the Bureau plans to continue to work toward greater safeguards for students.

“Students deserve access to safe and affordable financial products—not to have their loans and scholarships skimmed away by surprise fees,” Chopra said in a statement [PDF]. “Financial products marketed to students should have clear upfront terms and clearly disclose partnerships between colleges and financial institutions. The CFPB looks forward to reviewing the proposed rule and will continue to work with the Department of Education to ensure students are protected from harmful practices.”

Consumer advocacy groups were also quick to applaud the Dept. for taking steps to protect students.

Our colleagues at Consumers Union – the advocacy branch of Consumer Reports – praised the Dept. for its strong stance on college prepaid credit and debit cards.

“These rules will help provide greater accountability that has been lacking for too long around these school-bank partnerships,” Suzanne Martindale, staff attorney for CU, said in a statement [PDF]. “We applaud this strong first step by the Department, and urge them to protect all students from being steered into accounts with harmful fees that eat into their precious financial aid dollars.”

Likewise, Maura Dundon, senior policy counsel for the Center for Responsible Lending, commended the Dept. for ensuring all students are protected, especially from excessively highs overdraft fees.

“Colleges have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their students – and this should include financial safety as well,” she said in a statement. “The proposed Cash Management rule would help restore college’s proper role in educating students to become informed citizens, instead of taking advantage of their loan funds.”

Dundon goes on to say that banning costly overdraft fees allows student financial aid to go toward supporting higher education, not banks.

YEARS OF ISSUES

The proposed rules come after consumer advocates – including those from CRL and CU – raised issues with the increase of campus debit and prepaid card accounts being offered to students in exchange for monetary and other benefits to schools.

Over the years, advocates and legislators have taken issue with the way federal funds are handled when such credit and debit card agreements are in place, including the lack of choice a student has when it comes to the institution providing the cards, the unreasonably high fees associated with using the cards, and lack of transparency when it comes to the agreements.

While many agreements have cut back on the high fees associated with ATM and transaction usage, a CRL report issued earlier this year found the cards are more advantageous to the banks than students.

The report – which focuses on overdraft policies for ATM withdrawals and transactions present in many student banking accounts – determined that many of the accounts offered through exclusive deals between colleges and financial institutions include abusive practices that can quickly drain student aid funds.

As for the actual agreements, Consumer Union raised concerns with the CFPB over the availability and continued lack of transparency regarding college and credit card issuer agreements.

The CARD Act, which was passed in 2009, provides several protections for consumers, one of which requires colleges that have credit card marketing agreements with financial institutions to make such agreements available to the public online or upon request.

CU conducted an informal investigation to see if members of the public could easily obtain copies of the agreements by calling the main campuses and requesting the information – as required by the CARD Act.

Colleges selected for the investigation were chosen because they have the largest active account volume and do not post agreements or information on how to obtain copies of agreements online.

In all, the organization found that it challenging, if not impossible, for a member of the public to get information about college credit card agreements.

The Department’s proposed rules are available for viewing in the Federal Register and public comment will be accepted for the next 45 days though the Department’s “Program Integrity and Improvement” package.

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Starbucks Is Really Sorry That This Employee Flipped Out On Customer (And That It Was Caught On Video)

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There’s a widely held misconception that customer service used to be perfect “back when,” and every retail transaction was straight out of a 1960s sitcom. The fact is that customers and store employees have been going at each other since the first paleolithic entrepreneur tried to upsell his neighbor on a thrashing stick to go with his bludgeoning stone. But now we all get to see and hear about these retail rows and foodservice fisticuffs — and companies are often compelled to apologize for them — thanks to social media.

The latest incident comes out of a New York Starbucks, where a customer shot two separate videos of an employee unleashing a torrent of anger at a customer — all over a cookie straw:

According to the customer’s Facebook post, she ordered a Frappuccino and a cookie straw. She then claims the employee tried to get her attention by saying “helloooo” with a “very bad attitude.”

The customer says she responded with “sorry I don’t hear you but you don’t have to yell.”

That’s when the employee allegedly refused to let the customer pay, told her to leave and never come back.

“I was trying to ask other employees who I can speak to,” writes the customer.

But the employee apparently thought the customer was trying to leave with the cookie straw she was still holding.

The customer says there was no one in the store for her to complain to because the woman yelling at her was apparently a manager. She said that other customers started telling the employee things like “you need to get fired.” Another customer shot the above videos and sent them to the woman being yelled at.

Starbucks replied to the Facebook post, saying that the incident “is not reflective of the service our partners provide to our customers every day. Someone from our leadership team will be reaching out to you shortly to apologize and make this right.”

“We take this issue seriously,” reads another comment from Starbucks HQ, “this experience does not represent the high service standards we set for ourselves. This partner no longer works for Starbucks.”

[via Eater]

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Google’s Newest Self-Driving Cars Set To Hit Public Roads This Summer

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(Google)

While drivers in Mountain View, CA may already be familiar with the sight of Google’s self-driving Lexus SUVs tooling around without being steered by a person, a new set of driverless prototypes will soon be joining them on public roads come this summer.

Chris Urmson, director of Google’s self-driving car project writes in a blog post that the next step is a few new prototypes that are leaving the test track and heading for the roads around its California home.

Of course, much like its Lexus vehicles, these cars won’t be entirely on their own — safety drivers will be on board with removable steering wheels, accelerator pedals and brake pedals that lets them take over in case the cars’ software or sensors can’t handle things on their own.

The prototypes drive with the same software that its existing fleet uses, a fleet that the company says has spent nearly a million autonomous miles on the road, and self-driving about 10,000 miles per week.

There won’t be any zipping and zooming around going on either, as the prototype’s speed is capped at 25 mph.

“We’re looking forward to learning how the community perceives and interacts with the vehicles, and to uncovering challenges that are unique to a fully self-driving vehicle—e.g., where it should stop if it can’t stop at its exact destination due to construction or congestion,” Urmson writes.

Earlier this week, Google confirmed that its self-driving cars had been in 11 minor accidents, but Urmson pointed out that incident rate for those cars is below the national average for traditional motor vehicles.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Let’s All Watch A Kid Be Totally Confused By A Pay Phone

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(YouTube)

Listen, it’s Friday. We’ve all had a long week. There are only a few hours separating us from the weekend, so to make this last sprint toward freedom more enjoyable, why not watch the younger generation fumble to understand outdated technology? It’s something we always enjoy.

It’s only fair, you see, as kids increasingly get the one-up on their elders by knowing everything there is about new products and technological innovations. Sure, you kids are seemingly schooled on cloud computing in the womb, but you don’t even know what a phone booth is!

Do children not watch movies any more? When the Consumerist team were wee consumerists, no one had to tell us what a telegram was because we learned it from the movies.

The best part might be how he holds it to his ear like someone might be talking already on the other end.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Legislator Demands Department Of Education Investigate For-Profit Chain ITT Technical Institute

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Following the Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision earlier this week to file fraud charges against current and former executives with ITT Education Services – the operator of for-profit college chain ITT Technical Institute – for their part in concealing problems with company-run student loan programs, one legislator is calling on the Department of Education to further investigate the company.

Today, California Rep. Jackie Speier sent a letter [PDF] to the Dept. of Education demanding an investigation into alleged deceptive and predatory lending practices by ITT Education Services.

With more than 140 institution in 39 states and numerous online operations, ITT Education Services has become one of the largest operators of for-profit colleges in the U.S. But the company, which has previously been party to federal and state investigations, has continuously harmed students with large debt bills, while failing to provide the needed education and skills to repay their hefty student loans.

In fact, Speier says the schools have been plagued with large cohort default rates nearly twice the national average. During the 2009 to 2010 school year, ITT had a higher CDR than their graduation rate.

Even more troublesome for Speier are the company’s recent fraud charges levied by the SEC.

On Tuesday, the SEC filed fraud charges against former CEO Kevin Modany and current CFO Daniel Fitzpatrick stem from their alleged fraudulent concealment of the poor performance and looming negative financial impact of two student loan programs the company financially guaranteed to investors.

The loan programs – called PEAKS and CUSO – provided loans for ITT’s students after the collapse of the student loan markets. ITT guaranteed that the loans carried little risk of loss from the student loan pool to entice financial institutions to finance the loans.

According to the SEC complaint [PDF], the loans performed so poorly by 2012 that the company’s guarantee obligations were triggered. However, instead of disclosing the issue to investors, ITT and its management took a variety of actions to create the appearance that ITT’s exposure was more limited.

“If these allegations are accurate, ITT has engaged in deceptive and predatory lending practices, pushing students into high-interest loans they know cannot be repaid, at costly taxpayer expense,” Speier wrote in the letter. “These students become saddled with unforgivable debt, and their inability to repay it ruins their future job prospects while harming taxpayers who are stuck with the bill.”

Speier urged the Dept. to quickly move to investigate the college and not delay increased oversight, a move she says occurred with now defunct Corinthian Colleges, Inc. – the operator of for-profit schools Heald College, Everest University and WyoTech.

“In fact, Corinthian Colleges, Inc. was investigated by the SEC in June 2013 – a full year before the ED opened their own June 2014 investigation…” The letter states. “This delay harmed student who continued to take on a worthless education, and taxpayers who footed the bill. I ask that in this case you take action quickly and responsibly.”

Congresswoman Speier Demands Investigation into Deceptive and Predatory Lending Practices by For-Profit College Company ITT Educational Services, Inc. [Jackie Speier]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

FDA Finally Warns Drug Company Against Selling Antibiotic As A Pig-Fattener

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The website for Novartis Animal Health’s antibiotic feed-additive Denagard had an entire page dedicated to the drug’s growth-promotion effects.

A year after public health advocates called out drug maker Novartis for continuing to actively market a particular antibiotic as a product farmers could use to fatten up their pigs, the FDA has finally gotten around to issuing a warning.

Some background: Antibiotics used on farm animals account for more than 80% of all antibiotics sold in the U.S., and most of them are not used to treat sick cows, chickens, and pigs, but because these animals get bigger when these drugs are put into their feed and water.

Unfortunately, continual low-dose use of antibiotics also has the effect of creating drug-resistant bacteria. That’s not good for the animals or humans, which is why there has been increasing pressure on regulators to limit non-medical use of important antibiotics on farm animals.

In 2013, after decades of inaction on the issue, the FDA issued voluntary guidelines for drug makers, asking them to stop selling medically important antibiotics for non-medical applications.

And yet Novartis Animal Health (which is now owned by Eli Lilly) continued to market the growth-promotion aspects of its swine antibiotic product Denagard with an entire section of the drug’s website dedicated to the topic, touting weight gains for pigs that consumed the drug and how the antibiotic “provided a 4:1 return on investment.”

The FDA’s initial response to complaints from advocacy group Keep Antibiotics Working about Denagard’s marketing was lackluster to say the least. At the time, the agency said, “We understand your concern and… we intend to look for ways to reinforce the importance of the principles of judicious and appropriate use, including engaging animal drug manufacturers on the appropriate use of promotional materials.”

Meanwhile, Novartis defended its marketing and argued that — in spite of evidence to the contrary — it was not pushing an off-label use of Denagard.

But in a warning letter sent earlier this month from the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine to Novartis Animal Health, the agency disagreed with the drug company.

Citing the Denagard website’s growth-promotion section, the letter contends that the company is marketing the drug for “new uses for which it lacks approval, conditional approval or an index listing, and for which its labeling does not provide adequate directions for use.”

According to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Denagard would thus be considered unsafe, adulterated, and misbranded.

The letter takes issue with statements about Denagard, like, “Success starts in the nursery with Denagard,” and various statistics given about things like the ratio of weight gain to feed.

Also of concern to the FDA was that some the studies cited in the Novartis marketing materials were designed specifically to demonstrate the economic benefits from increased weight gain and more efficient use of animal feed, of using Denagard.

“Variables related to clinical disease were not measured with the exception of mortality, which was not found to be statistically different between the control and treated groups,” writes the FDA. “In fact, the authors of one article reported ‘No significant health issues were observed,’ and ‘Overall mortality was relatively low for both treatment groups.’ Therefore, the supporting studies cited in the materials do not support the claims that the weight gain and feed efficiency improvements described in these studies resulted from Denagard plus CTC being effective for its approved indications.”

Another concern raised in the letter was the description of Denagard as a “broad-spectrum” drug for enteric and respiratory diseases in pigs, even though the antibiotic is only approved for the treatment of one respiratory ailment caused by one type of bacteria. Its use in enteric disease treatment is also limited.

“Use of the term ‘broad spectrum control’ implies that this product could be used for control of a wider range of disease organisms than the four pathogens included in the product approval,” states the FDA letter. “The approved indications are limited and very specific. Therefore the claim of broad spectrum control of enteric and respiratory disease in nursery pigs seen in these materials broadens the indication and is a new intended use.”

The FDA has called on the Denagard makers to “immediately cease misbranding Denagard plus CTC and cease introducing the adulterated and misbranded drug into interstate commerce.”

The letter also clarifies that the violations listed in the warning are not exhaustive and that Novartis Animal Health is now responsible for re-vetting all its materials to make sure they are compliant.

“Failure to correct the violations discussed above may result in enforcement action by FDA without further notice, including seizure and injunction,” reads the warning.

NAH has 15 days to respond to the warning.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

New York Islanders Sell Bottles Of Melted Ice From Old Arena For $20

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Never underestimate the love that sports fans have for their favorite team’s old fields, rinks, and stadiums. Without that affection, there would be no sales of seats or infield dirt when those venues close. Now there’s another relic for team faithful to enjoy: the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders will sell $20 bottles of holy water to fans. I mean, melted ice from their last game at the now-closed Nassau Coliseum.

Do you want some of that ice? Too bad. Every drop of it that was available to the public has already sold out to nostalgic fans.

The team, meanwhile, will play at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. They might move back to Lawn Guy Land eventually, but only with a sufficiently not-crappy arena to coax them back. Geographical pedants would argue that Brooklyn is already attached to Long Island, so really the team is just moving 30 miles or so east.

Even if the team were only moving across the street, which is what often happens when it’s time to move to a new venue, nostalgic fans would still demand old seats, bottles of melted ice, or little packages of infield dirt. That’s just what fans do.

NY Islanders quickly sell out of melted Nassau Coliseum ice [Yahoo Sports]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Windows 10 Will Come Pre-Loaded With Candy Crush Saga Because That Is The World We Live In Now

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(abbamouse)

Get your best “back in my day” grumble face on: Solitaire and Minesweeper might’ve been good enough procrastination tools in times past, but Microsoft is getting hip to the times, and will pre-load Candy Crush Saga into its upcoming Windows 10.

Anyone who’s looked up from their smartphone long enough on the bus, train or park bench knows that the addictive candy popping and dropping game from mobile game company King is the distraction of choice, and Microsoft says it’s definitely noticed.

Noting that Windows Phone users have been able to play Candy Crush since it came to that platform in December, Microsoft writes on Xbox Wire: “As an added bonus, Candy Crush Saga will automatically be installed for customers that upgrade to or download Windows 10 for periods of time following the game launch. It will even include cross-play options for your iOS and Android devices.”

And for those still firmly in the solitaire camp — you know, the kind of game you play that doesn’t intone “Taaaasty!” when you forget to turn the volume off — Microsoft recently announced it’s bringing Solitaire back for Windows 10 after leaving it off with Windows 8. Something for everyone, I suppose.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Detergent Pod Poisonings Increase, Even After Changes To Packaging

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(Mike Mozart)

In spite of efforts by manufacturers to make their laundry detergent pods look less like candy in a jar, the number of poisoning incidents related to these products continues to grow.

This according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of data from the American Association of Poison Control Centers. Between 2012 and 2014, the number of reported poisonings jumped from 6,343 to 11,714.

In 2012, Tide’s corporate overlords at Procter & Gamble responded to concerns about the safety of the pod packaging by switching to a double-latch lid intended to make it more difficult for a very young child to open.

Safety advocates urged P&G and others to go further and put the pods in opaque packaging. Some pods, like Costco’s store-brand detergent — were being sold in the same sorts of bins the company sells bulk candy, cookies, and nuts in, but with a simple peel-back lid instead of a screw-top. Costco eventually began wrapping its pod jars in opaque plastic.

It was revealed in 2013 that P&G had originally tested opaque packaging for the pods but opted against it because the clear jars show off the brightly colored packets. Tide has since switched to opaque packaging, but some brands continue to sell detergent packets in clear jars and resealable plastic bags.

In terms of educating the public, both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission spoke out publicly about the risk of having pods within reach of young children who haven’t learned to differentiate between what should and shouldn’t go in their mouths.

According to the Journal, at least seven people have died after biting into single-dose laundry packets. Four of those deaths occurred in 2014 and one already this year. Two of the seven deaths have involved adults with dementia, so this isn’t always just a matter of putting the pods on a higher shelf in the laundry room.

It’s likely no coincidence that the increase in poisoning incidents is occurring at the same time as sales of detergent packets increase. During a period in which poisoning reports increased 20%, sales of pods were up 30%. However, they still only make up around 12% of the detergent market.

From their colorful exterior, to their packaging, to the fact that the detergent gel can shoot out when punctured or bitten into, these pods are a safety advocate’s nightmare.

“There is something inherent about these products that makes them unsafe,” Richard Geller, medical director of the California Poison Control System, tells the Journal.

Earlier this year, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois and Rep. Jackie Speier of California introduced legislation, the Detergent Poisoning and Child Safety Act, in both the Senate and House that would require the CPSC to issue safety standards to protect children under five years of age from the risks of injury or illness caused by exposure to liquid detergent packets. The odds of that legislation even making it out of committee are currently quite slim.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream To Reopen Scoop Shops After Listeria Contamination

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Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream will reopen scoop shops by Memorial Day weekend.

A week after Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream announced it had pinpointed the source of the listeria contamination that led to the Ohio-based company recalling all of its products and closing its boutique stores, the treats maker has restored production –– just in time for summer.

The Chicago Tribune reports that Jeni’s Splendid has reworked production to prevent future contamination and plans to reopen its scoop shops by Memorial Day weekend.

The company prevoiusly identified the source of the listeria contamination at its production kitchen to a single pint-filling machine.

Since finding the issue, Jeni’s has turned its focus to creating a production kitchen with the best defenses against any contamination. To do so, the company has enlisted top food safety experts and plans to invest more than $200,000 into the kitchen transformation.

Although Jeni’s recall included closing boutique ice cream shops, the contaminated machine was not used to produce ice cream scooped at those stores.

Still, because the company destroyed hundreds of thousands of pounds of ice cream during the initial recall, guests shouldn’t expect all flavors to be available at scoop stores right away.

The company says it will take time to rebuild its supply. But with the assistance of several other Ohio-based Ice cream producers, it hopes to be back to full demand soon.

Jeni’s Splendid recalled all of its products on April 23 after the Nebraska Department of Agriculture found listeria in a random sample of the company’s products.

The recall covered all products including ice creams, frozen yogurts, sorbets, and ice cream sandwiches sold at boutique stores in seven states and at retailers such as Whole Foods and Target.

A week after the recall was initiated, Jeni’s announced it would dispose of 535,000 pounds of ice cream by placing it in an anaerobic digester, which provides electricity while it digests and produces fertilizer.

Jeni’s to reopen ice cream shops by Memorial Day weekend [Chicago Tribune]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Ad Board Recommends McDonald’s Focus On Actual Meal, Not Just The Cool Toy

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By now we all know that McDonald’s is trying to appeal to a younger audience, but a commercial the company aired last fall geared toward its youngest customers apparently didn’t sit well with an ad review board. And now that group is warning the fast food giant to stick to its food and not to use toys to appeal to youngsters.

The Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) recommended yesterday that McDonald’s ensure all future advertising directed at children focus on food products and not on included toys after reviewing a 30-second commercial for Happy Meals that ran last year.

CARU – which is an investigative unit of the advertising industry’s self-regulatory system and is administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus – opened its investigation into McDonald’s commercial featuring “Teenie Beanie Baby Boo” toys after routine monitoring of ads directed to children.

Self-regulatory guidelines dictate that advertisers should not stimulate children’s unreasonable expectations about product quality or performance; something the CARU questioned about the McDonald’s ad.

As with the National Advertising Division (NAD), recommendations from CARU aren’t legally binding, but most companies generally follow them.

According to CARU, the McDonald’s commercial generally glosses over the meal portion of the Happy Meal and instead focuses on the “premium” – their word for toy.

The ad spot opens with two animated characters shaped like Happy Meal boxes playfully engaging with a tube of yogurt. The scene then cuts to a child walking toward a Happy Meal box, exclaiming “I am so excited to find out what’s in here.”

Instead of featuring a box full of actual food, the commercial showed a second child pulling a toy from the box; the tube of yogurt, chicken nuggets and French fries that presumably came in the box were already situated on the table and generally skipped over.

Another scene in the commercial cuts to two other children beside a Happy Meal box. While one child held a tube of yogurt, the rest of the food – juice boxes and French fries – were on the table. The camera then moved in for a close-up of the toy, as one of the children pulled her toy from the box and then focused on the toy.

The final two scenes include the entire lineup of Teenie Beanie Boo toys, the animated Happy Meal boxes, and a wide shot of a Happy Meal including chicken McNuggets, a large container of French fries, a juice box and a tube of yogurt.

According to CARU, McDonald’s argued that the commercial more prominently features edible contents of the Happy Meal rather than the toy, because the primary focus and most engaging aspect of the ad was an animated box interacting in a fun way with yogurt.

The company maintained that the food was prominently displayed throughout the commercial and was displayed on-screen almost twice as long as the toy.

Still, CARU’s final determination was that the commercial’s primary focus was on the premium and that children would have difficulty distinguishing between the product and the toy.

In a statement to CARU, McDonald’s continues to believe the commercial was appropriate for children.

“The ad at issue is no longer running,” the company said. “Although we believe that the ad primarily focuses the child’s attention on the product, McDonald’s respects the self-regulatory process and will take CARU’s comments into consideration when producing future ads.”

CARU Recommends McDonald’s Modify Adverting to Focus on Product, Not Premium [Children’s Advertising Review Unit]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

That Was Then, This Is Now: How 72 Brands From ‘Mad Men’ Have Changed Since Don Draper Was In Charge

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Because nothing gold can stay, AMC’s popular Mad Men has reached the final episode of its final, seventh season. Over the course of the show, we’ve seen pitches for a multitude of companies, brands, sports, groups and even cities. While some of those brands were created for the show, the large majority were very real — and some continue to exist today. In the spirit of nostalgia, we thought now might be the right time to check in on those products and companies pitched by Sterling Cooper (and its various rebirths), to see which have been lost to the mists of time, and which still remain.

Inspired by a very thorough list from FiveThirtyEight.com last year of all the clients Don Draper ever had, we decided to embark on a quest to see how many of those real companies we could track down, and compare the ads of yesteryear to those of today. And if they aren’t around anymore — what happened to them?

A few disclaimers before you fall down the rabbit hole:

• In the interest of the person’s sanity compiling this information (Oh, hey!), we mostly stuck to national brands, stayed away from local organizations like car dealership associations and avoided overly, intensely complicated mega situations (sorry, General Foods).

• Some entries don’t feature any advertising — that’s because we either couldn’t track it down or confirm those companies ever had advertising, but left on the list for the interest of learning things.

• Yes, there will be spoilers, but no, this isn’t an episode guide explaining what happened on the show, because there are plenty of those out there.

SEASON 1: March 1960 – November 1960

BETHLEHEM STEEL CORPORATION
Then: The steel industry was prospering in the years after World War II, and enjoyed a high point in the late 1950s. At that time, it was manufacturing about 23 million tons of steel per year.

(via Fast Company)

Now: Bethlehem Steel filed for bankruptcy in 2001, after years of the steel industry struggling to keep up with foreign competitors.

CLEARASIL
Then: Created in 1940 as the first brand designed specifically for younger skin to battle pimples, Clearasil was marketed to teens on shows like American Bandstand. In 1960, owner Ivan Combe sold his product to Vick Chemical, as seen on Mad Men.

In this 1960 ad, Clearasil’s tag line is that it “starves pimples.” Sounds rough for the pimples:

Now: Richardson-Vicks and Clearasil were acquired in 1985 by Procter & Gamble. In 2000 Clearasil went to Boots Group, which was purchased by Reckitt Benckiser in 2006.

Things have changed with technology — today Clearasil has its own YouTube page now, of course:

DR. SCHOLL’S
Then: In 1960 Dr. Scholl Inc. would’ve been 54 years old and still owned by its podiatrist creator, William Mathias Scholl. There was no exercise shoe line yet — that wouldn’t come along until 1968 — just products like corn pads, stockings, arch supports and cushions, etc.

Don’t call’em corn pads though, call ’em Zino-pads:

(Via Phil Are Go!)

Now: Today there are two different sides of the business — Brown Shoe Company manufactures the Dr. Scholl’s shoe line under a distribution agreement with Merck. The foot care product line is owned by Bayer Group in the U.S., while Reckitt Benckiser owns the brand outside the States.

You might not want be reminded of the “Gellin'” line of commercials, but sorry, here you go anyway:

KODAK
Then: One of the first companies to successfully mass-produce dry plates and put them into the first simple cameras that consumers could use, in 1960 Kodak was on the verge of introducing Kodak Carousel Projectors, which featured a round tray holding 80 slides.

Here’s a version of the earliest ads introducing the idea, with a tag line that even Don would be proud of:

Now: After dominating the photographic film industry for much of 20th century, Kodak has struggled to refine itself in the new era of digital photography and smartphones. To wit: The company claims about $2 billion in annual sales today, compared to the $19 billion it commanded in 1990.

In March 2015, the company told the New York Times it was looking for new ways to use old patents on its technology — but had no big ideas about Kodak-branded products paving its way to a brighter future.

“We’ll never be able to prosecute the value of our intellectual property with Kodak-branded sales,” CEO Jeff Clarke told the NYT.

LUCKY STRIKE
Then: American Tobacco Company owned Lucky Strike in 1960. But that “It’s Toasted!” line that Don appears to come up with during a pitch to Lucky Strike is actually a real one the company used in advertising as far back as 1917. Genius slogan? Maybe, but Don Draper didn’t think of it.

Now: Sold to British American Tobacco in 1976; U.S. rights to Lucky Strike were bought by Brown & Williamson, a favorite of nostalgia driven people. Due to current restrictions on tobacco advertising, it’s doubtful you’ll come into contact with any Lucky Strikes ads, however.

RELAXACIZOR
Then: A product that touted electrostimulation during the 1950s as a way to stimulate the muscles of a relaxing person — “passive exercise,” these products claimed to reduce girth by shocking the muscles with electricity.

(via Lulu’s Vintage Blog)

Don’t worry, fellas, there’s one for you, too:

(via Swinging Sixties)

Now: No more lying down with wet pads all over your body — the RelaxAcizor was banned in 1970.

“The involuntary muscle contractions caused by Relaxacizor are abnormal and cannot be equated with ordinary exercise,” found Judge William P. Gray, in United States v Relaxacizor Inc, calling the product “misbranded… in that that its its labeling is misleading because it represents that the device is safe for use by a layman but fails to reveal facts material in the light of such representation, namely, that the device is capable of aggravating many pre-existing conditions and otherwise injuring the user.”

RIGHT GUARD
Then: Right Guard started off as a unisex brand in 1960 from Gillette, as the first aerosol antiperspirant on the market.

Here’s an ad from that era, around 1968:

(Tias.com)

Now: Still around but with separate versions for both sexes, Right Guard is now made by the Dial Corporation unit of Henkel North America, with heavy focus on sports activity.

VICK CHEMICAL COMPANY
Then: Though Vick Chemical’s most popular product was Vicks VapoRub, in 1960 the company also marketed other cold products like nose drops, cough drops, toiletries and even prescription drugs.

Now: The company was renamed Richardson-Merrell in 1960 and then to Richardson-Vicks in 1981. Vicks sold the company to Procter & Gamble in 1985 to fend off Unilever, which was seeking to acquire the company.

Season 2: February 1962 – October 1962

HEINEKEN
Then: The first European beer to be imported to the United States after Prohibition ended in 1933, the grandson of Heineken’s founder Alfred Henry “Freddy” Heineken worked at the company during the time of Mad Men and was a powerful force behind Heineken’s global expansion. He might’ve been the one behind those meetings with ad companies. One slogan back then — “Good People Bring Home Heineken.”

Here’s another 1960s era ad:

Heineken’s first TV commercial wasn’t broadcast until 1968 — and it’s in Dutch with funny puppets.

Now: The company touts 250 brands brewed in more than 70 countries, and says on its company site that it’s available in “almost every country on the globe.”

Like many beer companies, many of its ads are aimed at sports fans.

MARTINSON COFFEE
Then: Founded in 1898, the company says rumor has it that the expression “Cup of Joe” came from founder Joe Martinson’s door-to-door deliveries with his cart, bringing people his particularly roasted coffee. In 1962, Andy Warhol featured Martinson Coffee in a silkscreen ink and pencil on canvas, aptly named, “Martinson Coffee.”

(via ArtNet)

Now: Taglines include “It’s the real Joe” and “You can’t fake real.”

MAYTAG
Then: Founded in 1893 by Frederick Louis Maytag and others, his death in 1962 marked the first time someone outside the family led the company. In 1967, Maytag would introduce its first Maytag Repairman TV commercial:

Now:The Maytag brand has been owned by Whirlpool Corporation since a 2006 acquisition — but the repairman is still around:

MOHAWK AIRLINES
Then: In 1962, the airline was still struggling in the after-effects of a strike in 1960 that grounded its planes for two weeks. The financial effects were felt deeply, leading Mohawk to try borrowing money, to no avail. This is reflected in the show, when the company’s president is having a hard time finding an agency to take the company on. It was eventually acquired by Allegheny Airlines in 1972.

(via Mad Men Confidential)

Now: Allegheny Airlines eventually evolved into USAir and finally, US Airways.

PLAYTEX
Then: Playtex was only 15 years old in 1962, but already had been the first brand to advertise undergarments on national TV in 1955 (though not on a woman’s bare skin, that wouldn’t happen until 1987). While Don and the gang were debating the Marilyn/Jackie question on the show, in real life the industrial division of Playtex was awarded a contract to develop space suits for the Apollo mission to the moon.

Now: Playtex was acquired by Esmark in 1975, then Beatrice foods in 1985 for a year before going to Revlon. It split into two companies in 1988 — Playtex Apparel Inc. and Playtex Products LLC. Playtex Apparel was sold to Sara Lee in 1991 and then to HanesBrands in 2007. In 2013, its former rival Maidenform joined HanesBrands as well.

And these days, women can actually wear bras on TV without national outrage. Joan and Peggy would be proud.

POPSICLE
Then: Popsicle Pete was a popular radio character that told listeners they could win presents by sending in wrappers from Popsicle products to the manufacturers at that time, Joe Lowe Company of New York.

(via MyComicsShop.com)

Now: Good Humor, a subsidiary of Unilever, bought the rights to the name in 1989.

SAMSONITE
Then: Founded in 1910 in Colorado as The Shwayder Trunk Manufacturing Company, the company trademarked Samsonite — named after the biblical Samson it named one of its suitcases after — in 1941. It didn’t formally change its name until 1966. Samsonite was the first to use magnesium and injected-molded plastics to make its Ultra Lite Luggage line in 1956. Before that, suitcases were made using wooden frames.

(via ArtNectar.com)

Now: Samsonite International S.A. acquired competing brands like American Tourist and High Sierra to become the world’s biggest luggage maker.

Its ads are still playing up the lightness of the luggage, as seen in this 2015 ad:

SEA & SKI SUNTAN LOTION
Then: Time magazine said in 1961 that it was the “nation’s biggest maker of suntan lotion (its dollar-green Sea and Ski grosses some $12 million a year).”

(LIFE magazine)

Now: It’s somewhat of a mystery, as this 2009 BrandlandUsa.com post notes: After going through a string of owners from 1955 on — Botany Industries, Smith-Kline Pharmaceuticals, Faberge, Faulding Consumer (owner of Banana Boat) — the company most recently belonged to Pathfinder Management Inc., which attempted a revival in 2002. It now may just be lost to nostalgia.

UTZ POTATO CHIPS
Then: Founded in 1921 as “Hanover Home Brand Potato Chips”, Utz Quality Foods was 41 years old by the time Sterling Cooper shot ad spots with its fictional celebrity endorser, Jimmy Barrett smirking, “Utz are better than nuts” with his mouth full.

In reality, there was no such endorser or slogan. Instead, the company was known by its red-cheeked cartoon girl with a red bow in her hair reaching into a package of chips (we couldn’t find much else in terms of advertising).

Now: Still based in Hanover, PA, Utz is the largest independent privately held snack brand in the United States. Still no wise-cracking endorsers, and the cartoon girl has stayed around.

Season 3: March 1963 – December 1963

ADMIRAL TELEVISIONS
Then: Admiral started out as Continental Radio and Television Corp. in 1934, and was one of the major television manufacturers during TV’s early days. It did well selling TVs, allowing the company to branch out to refrigerators and other things by the 1950s.

Now: The company’s various divisions were sold off by the 1970s in the heyday of consumer electronics made in Japan. The company was bought by Rockwell International, selling the appliance operations to Magic Chef which was later sold to Maytag, which, was then acquired by Whirpool. Admiral is now an appliance brand, manufactured by Whirlpool Corporation and sold at Home Depot.

BACARDI RUM
Then: Bacardi was already 100 in the 1960s, when Peggy and the gang were sipping it all weekend in an attempt to find inspiration, before turning to marijuana. The men at least, might’ve liked a real Bacardi ad from those days.

Now: Still around today in various flavors that may or may not be advisable if you aren’t a 21-year-old with nothing to lose, Bacardi Limited is the largest privately held, family-owned spirits company in the world, according to the company’s site.

And now you don’t even have to mix your own mojitos:

BIRDS EYE
Then: The company that started as Birdseye Seafoods in 1922 was famous for founder Clarence Birdseye’s vision of flash-freezing vegetables, who came up with the idea after traveling through the Arctic and seeing Eskimos using ice, wind and temperature to freeze fresh fish almost instantly. Captain Birds Eye, a white-bearded seaman, debuted as the company’s mascot in its first TV commercial in 1967.

Now: Went through various owners including General Foods, Kraft Foods, Philip Morris USA, Dean Foods and then Birds Eye Foods again before Pinnacle Foods bought it in 2009.

Must admit, this recent ad is sorely lacking in Captain Birds Eye-ness.

CADBURY
Then: Included in a list of clients rattled off as belonging to Pete and Ken, as part of the merger with PPL.

Now: After merging with Schweppes in 1969, Cadbury was eventually bought by Kraft Food Groups in 2010 and now Mondelez International, is the second largest confectionary brand in the world after Wrigley’s.

CAMPBELL’S SOUP
Then: Campbell would’ve been pretty huge in 1962, almost 100 years after its founding in 1869, as it’s the year Andy Warhol first painted those famous cans. The company had been using “Mmm mmm good” since 1935.

Now: Called either Campbell Soup Company or Campbell’s today, its products are sold in 120 countries around the world and is divided into three divisions — soups, baked cakes (like Pepperidge Farm) and health beverages like V8 juices.

This handsome guy sure knows how to talk about soup.

CHEVRON OIL
Then: Chevron started with the Pacific Coast Oil Company back in 1867, and in 1961 merged with Standard Oil.

Now: Chevron merged with Texaco in 2000, acquiring it for $45 billion, Chevron ended retail operations in the Mid-Atlantic United States, taking off the Chevron and Texaco names from 1,100 stations.

And nowadays, cars talk.

DUNKIN’ DONUTS
Then: The doughnut company founded in 1950 would’ve been just a baby in 1962, competing with Mister Donut as its biggest rival back then. Fred the Baker, otherwise known as “Time To Make the Donuts” guy wouldn’t show up on the scene until 1982.

Now: As of 2014, Dunkin’ Donuts is owned by Dunkin’ Brands Inc., which also owns Baskin-Robbins, headquartered in Massachussetts. “America Runs on Dunkin’” is its slogan, with a redesigned logo appearing in 2006.

GILLETTE
Then: King C. Gillette patented the first safety razor in 1904 that meant men didn’t have to send straight edge razors to the barber for sharpening. A new president in 1938 increased the Gillette Company’s advertising budget by 50%, and started pouring money into sports broadcasts after the major success of sponsoring the 1939 World Series. It’s remained the event’s sole or main sponsor since 1964.

Here’s an ad from the Mad Men days, with the tagline “The closest thing to a perfect shave”:

Now: One of its most memorable recent slogans, “The Best a Man Can Get” was introduced was launched during Super Bowl XXIII in January 1989. As of 2005, Gillette became part of Procter & Gamble.

These days, Gillette knows it has to fight the beard.

GORTON’S
Then: Gorton’s of Gloucester was founded in 1849, and was the first to develop a frozen convenience food — Gorton’s Fried and Frozen Codfish Fillets. It came out with Gorton’s Fish Sticks in 1952, but we weren’t able to find good example of advertising back then.

Now: The Gorton’s Fisherman didn’t appear on the scene until 1975, along with the phrase “Trust the Gorton’s Fisherman.” Gorton’s of Gloucester changed its name to the Gorton Corporation, and merged with General Mills in 1968. It was bought by Unilever in 1995, which then sold it to Japanese seafood conglomerate Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd.

HILTON NYC
Then: Hilton Hotels was boron in 1925 when Conrad N. Hilton opened the first hotel with the family’s name on it in 1925 in Texas. By 1964, Hilton International formed as a separate company. It was acquired by Trans World Airlines in 1967. Historian Mark Young from the University of Houston told the Houston Chronicle that in 1963, Conrad Hilton actually was shopping for a new advertising agency, just as he was on Mad Men.

Now: Celebutante sex tapes and misbehaving members of the family aside, the company is now known as Hilton Hotels & Resorts with more than 500 hotels worldwide. All Hilton hotels are either owned by, managed by or franchised to independent operators by Hilton Worldwide.

JAI ALAI
Then: Though the Jai Alai obsessed Horace J. Cook didn’t really exist, gambling on jai alai instead of dog racing or horses was popular in the 1960s. If there was an advertising agency for the sport, we weren’t able to find it.

Now: Though the sport still doesn’t enjoy much interest in the U.S. as it does elsewhere in the world, it’s still popular in Florida — the first public amateur jai alai facility was built in the United States in 2008, in St. Petersburg, FL.

JOHN DEERE
Then: John Deere marked its 125 anniversary in 1962, and in 1963 became the world’s largest producer and seller of farm and industrial tractors and equipment. The company decided to dip its toes into the consumer market as well, producing and selling lawn and garden tractors, as well as mower and snow blower attachments. It’s unclear if using a tractor in an office ever cut someone’s toes off.

Now: Deere & Company is still around to this day, selling equipment with the slogan, “Nothing Runs Like a Deere.” The company also wants to be able to file copyright claims against the way you use your tractor.

LEVER BROTHERS
Then: There really was no Lever Brothers by 1963 — A British manufacturing company founded in 1885 that made soap using a new process that used glycerin and vegetable oils instead of tallow, it merged with Dutch margarine company Margarine Unie to form Unilever in 1930. Lever Brothers changed its name to Unilever PLC at that point and formed the British half of the company.

Now: Unilever its still a British-Dutch multinational consumer goods company with more than 400 brands under its umbrella, including Dove, Ben & Jerry’s, Popsicle, Lipton, Noxzema and others.

LONDON FOG
Then: Founded in 1923 as Londontown clothing company, the London Fog brand came to be in 1954. Real life adman Richard Gilbert, author of Marching Up Madison Avenue, took issue with Mad Men’s 1963ish portrayal of London Fog in 2009 when the brand was featured in season three. He wrote to AdAge at the time, saying in part that contrary to being the “tired, 40-year-old company whose advertising was in trouble,” with Don and the team swooping in with a company-saving ad idea, it was nothing of the sort.

“London Fog was not a tired, 40-year-old brand at the time, as it was launched in 1954 when it changed from Londontown Clothes, a Baltimore men’s clothing manufacturer, to its current brand title and rainwear emphasis. Gilbert Advertising handled the brand through the ’60s and built a body of work that was acclaimed for its creative brilliance and brand dominance. London Fog’s 65% Dacron/35% cotton fabric was the soul of the rainwear industry, and in 1960 the company was at the beginning of its advertising ascendency.”

Now: After going public in the 1960s, London Fog was bought by Iconix Brand Group in 2006, licensing the outwear business to Herman Kay Company.

Celebrities (Neil Patrick Harris and husband David Burtka) have now replaced ducks:

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
Then: There have been a few MSG’s in New York City. By the early 1960s, Manhattan was on its third venue on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 58th Streets. It wasn’t long for that location, as seen in Mad Men when plans were underway for its current spot above Penn Station on Seventh Avenue and 32nd Street. It was demolished in 1968 after the opening of the current MSG, above the bones of the old Penn Station.

Now: The current MSG has been standing since Feb. 11, 1968, and is home to the New York Knicks NBA team, New York Liberty WNBA team and the New York Rangers NHL team. The executive chairman of the Madison Square Garden Company is James Dolan, who also happens to be President and CEO of Cablevision. He gets to open for the Eagles at MSG whenever he wants.

NORTH AMERICAN AVIATION
Then: A major aerospace manufacturer, The Aerospace Legacy Foundation says that between 1935 and 1967, North American Aviation built more military aircraft than any other airplane maker in U.S. history. In the 1960s, CEO Lee Atwood moved the company’s voce on the space program, and NAA became the prime contractor for the Apollo Command/Service Module, a rocket to test Apollo’s launch escape system, and the second stage of the Saturn V. The Apollo 1 fire in January 1967 was partly blamed on the company.

Now: NAA no longer exists. After merging in March 1967 with Rockwell-Standard, the new company became known as Norht American Rockwell, and then later, Rockwell International. Through a series of mergers and sales, it was eventually absorbed into Boeing.

PAMPERS
Then: Pampers would’ve been a baby company during the first few seasons of Mad Men: Born in 1961 after a Procter & Gamble researcher who didn’t like changing cloth diapers assigned his fellow researchers to design a better disposable diaper, Pampers was a name coined by Alfred Goldman, Creative Director at Benton & Bowles, the first ad agency for the account.

Now: Still one of P&G’s brands, Pampers faced lawsuits in recent years over its DryMax diapers, settling claims that the diapers caused sores, rashes boils and other things babies do not want on their private bits.

PATIO SODA
Then: Patio Diet Cola was a brand of diet cola introduced by PepsiCo in 1963, created to rival Diet Rite. Though no-calorie colas were first marketed to diabetics, companies like Royal Crown (behind Diet Rite) and Pepsi realized they could target women trying to stay slim instead. Patio diet cola became Diet Pepsi in 1964, with Patio flavors like orange and root beer getting phased out by the mid 1970s.

Now: Diet Pepsi is now available on a global scale, though companies PepsiCo and Coca-Cola are finding it increasingly difficult to keep sales of soda up in the face of changing consumer trends.

PROCTER & GAMBLE
Then: P&G was founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble, the company’s first product was Ivory Soap. By the 1960s P&G had a healthy roster of brands any ad agency would be dying to get a piece of, including Tide, Crest and Pampers.

Now: Though the company shed a bunch of mostly minor brands in 2014, the company held on to “70 to 80” of its core brands, including Bounty, Cover Girl, Prilosec, Pantene and Swiffer, among others.

RIO DE JANEIRO
Then: Cities like Rio De Janeiro often turn to advertising agencies to help boost tourism and attract business. In the 1960s, Rio De Janeiro was still enjoying its status as a good place for companies after hosting state-owned businesses while it was the capital of Brazil. After the capital moved to Brasilia in 1960, companies kept coming to the city, especially after the discovery of oil in the Campos Basin.

Now: Rio De Janeiro was one of the host cities of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and will host the 2016 Summer Olympics.

SNIDER’S CATSUP
Then: There isn’t much out there about Snider’s, but it appears to be from the T.A. Snider Preserve company, which was founded in Cincinnati in 1879 before moving to Chicago in the 1920s. It made various products including catsup, soups, and pork and beans, and had been bought and sold off by the Birds Eye division of General Foods by the time it appeared in Mad Men times, when it appears that it became Snider Foods Inc.

In any case, there was catsup on TV.

Now: Snider Foods. Inc. was dissolved in New York in 1985.

UNITED FRUIT
Then: An American corporation founded in 1899, United Fruit traded in tropical fruit, mostly bananas, and sold them in the U.S. and Europe. It was often widely criticized for maintained a virtual monopoly in certain regions, some of which became known as banana republics.

In 1963, the company’s Chiquita brand had been around since 1947. The company says that year it “began the largest branding program ever undertaken by a produce marketer, accompanied by a record-breaking ad campaign which included affixing the trademark blue sticker to bananas: ‘This seal outside means the best inside.’

Now: Exists as Chiquita Brands International, whose company site does mention the years of unrest in the past: “Although Chiquita’s history includes storied moments in its past, the company now proudly focuses on extending labor rights, protecting our environment and investing in the communities in which we live and work.”

WARNER BROTHERS
Then: The entertainment company had been around for about 40 years by the time of Mad Men, making movies as it still does today. Ads would’ve been movie-centric.

Now: The company says its library consists of “more than 61,000 hours of programming, including nearly 6,500 feature films and 3,000 television programs comprised of tens of thousands of individual episodes.” Again, most advertising done by the company today is trailers.

WESTERN UNION
Then: Founded as the New-York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company in 1851, Western Union was already more than 100 years old in the time of Mad Men, when people still sent telegrams, ostensibly to share funny things their cats were doing.

Now: Telegrams are out, and sending money is in. We’d embed a recent commercial from the company about sending money so your loved ones can buy your cat new outfits, but it’s un-embeddable so here’s the link.

Season 4: November 1964 – October 1965

AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY
Then: On January 11, 1964, U.S. Surgeon General L. Terry released the first U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health after working with the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association and other health groups to take on “the smoking question.”

Terry chose to release it on a Saturday, to minimize the effect on the stock market and to maximize coverage in the Sunday papers. He remembered two decades later that the report “hit the country like a bombshell. It was front page news and a lead story on every radio and television station in the United States and many abroad.”

Naturally, this had cigarette makers scared, and they would’ve definitely turned to ad agencies to minimize the report’s effects.

Now: The American Cancer Society says today that 50 years of anti-smoking efforts have saved 8 million lives. In January 2015, the group hired DDB Chicago as its lead advertising agency, to continue that work.

DOW CHEMICAL
Then: Founded in 1897, Dow Chemical originally only sold bleach and potassium bromide, before branching into agricultural chemicals. Dow opened a consumer products division beginning with Saran wrap in 1953, and by 1964 had sales exceeding $1 billion based on its growing chemicals and plastics businesses. The company also happened to produce napalm, which made it a hot topic during the Vietnam War.

Now: Dow Chemical is still headquartered in Midland, Texas, and has a variety of subsidiary companies.

GLO-COAT FLOOR WAX
Then: Launched as an S.C. Johnson & Son brand in 1932, Glo-Coat floor wax ads weren’t as slick as the one Don won an award for on Mad Men.

Now: Glo-Coat no longer exists — S.C. Johnson discontinued it in 1998 “as floor care options grew and consumer choices changed.”

JANTZEN
Then: “The new Jantzen advertising campaign titled ‘Just Wear a Smile and a Jantzen’ took the country by storm,” the company says on its web site. But on the show, company executives were not okay with the racy ad Sterling Cooper presented, and Don and the gang didn’t land the account.

Now: Bought by Perry Ellis International in 2002, called Jantzen Apparel.

LIFE CEREAL
Then: A Quaker Oats cereal brand introduced in 1961, Life’s famous “Mikey Likes It” ads were still about eight years away in 1964. Instead, the brand focused on being a “healthy” breakfast, as other cereals were much more sugary. “The Most Useful Protein” was thankfully replaced as a slogan in 1972 with Mikey.

Now: The cereal’s current slogan is, according to Wikipedia (though we couldn’t find any current TV ads running recently on YouTube), “Life is full of surprises.” Don? Are you there? Peggy? Anyone? Quaker Oats is also owned by PepsiCo, as of 2001.

MOUNTAIN DEW
Then: The original formula for Mountain Dew was created by Barney and Ally Harmtan in the 1940s, medical scientists who were on the hunt for a cure for all the things that ailed people. The drink got a new formula in 1958 and was bought by PepsiCo in 1964. Mountain Dew’s first TV ad featuring a hillbilly saying, “Ya-Hoo, Mountain Dew! It’ll tickle your innards!” aired in 1965.

Now: Old is new again — “Do the Dew” is still Mountain Dew’s — excuse me, Mtn Dew’s mainstay slogan.

The company is also shilling Dew Shine these days, made with real sugar — and the hollerin’ hillbilly is back.

POND’S COLD CREAM
Then: Patented as a medicine by pharmacist Theron T. Pond in 1846, the company he started merged in 1955 with Chesebroigh Manufacturing Company. The company first used its iconic “tulip” logo in the 1960s.

Wait… busy AND beautiful? Amazing.

Now: Currently owned by Unilever, as of 1987, Pond’s is still on the market with various products, including Pond’s cold cream cleanser.

In 2008, a series of commercials for Pond’s White Beauty line in India were criticized by some as being racist, after showing a love story that only came to a happy ending once the woman used the skin lightening product.

TOPAZ PANTI-HOSE
Then: Although this one popped up on FiveThirtyEight.com’s list as “fake,” we were able to find ads from the 1960s for Topaz Panti-hose — but not much else information. One ad we found from the Oct. 11, 1963 edition of LIFE magazine lists an address for a Topaz Victoria Hosiery in Quebec, which led to finding trademarks for certain kinds of stockins owned by Topaz Hosiery Mills, Inc.

Now: Definitely not around today — though we can’t quite pinpoint the brands demise, the last name for the business we could find was Topaz Active Wear Corp. in New York, NY in 1975.

BUTLER FOOTWEAR
Then: The history of Butler Shoe Corporation (called Butler Footwear on Mad Men) is foggy, but this much is clear: It merged with Marilyn Shoes, an Augusta, GA chain in 1955. The new company had about 400 stores at that point, according to the obituary of the company’s former president, CEO and chairman. There’s not much else out there advertising wise — so clearly they could’ve used some Mad Men help.

Now: Butler Shoe Corporation’s chain of 500 shops was acquired by Sears in 1981, but was sold in 1988. After that, it’s anyone’s guess as the trail goes cold.

Season 5: May May 1966 – Spring 1967

CHEVALIER BLANC
This one also threw some in the media for a loop, which is why we chose to include it though it seems to be fake — though the list we originally consulted had Chevalier Blanc as an alcohol brand on Mad Men, the show actually had an ad pitch for a Chevalier Blanc cologne. Château Cheval Blanc, however, is a wine producer in the Bordeau region of France, and as far as we know, never made a cologne.

COOL WHIP
Then: Cool Whip was brand new from General Food’s Birds Eye division in 1966, so new that on Mad Men not many had heard of it. It was important to emphasis that it wasn’t “fake whipped cream,” but rather a non-dairy whipped topping. On Mad Men, Don and Megan Draper annoy Peggy with their “Just taste it” banter, focusing on the fact that they couldn’t call the product whipped cream, but didn’t want to draw attention to that fact.

In reality, Banker & Brisebois or B&B as it was known, worked on the Cool Whip campaign. One of the team, Hank Wasiak, wrote on Blog Critics that Mad Men did a good job, but after market testing, they went with another approach: “Yum Yum Cool Whip,” complete with a catchy jingle.

“It worked,” Wasiak says of their approach. “The commercial was supported by a powerful program of promotion and sampling including a promotional tie-in with the Gomer Pyle TV show. The early days of product placement. Cool Whip took off and within two years it was one of Birds Eye’s biggest selling brands.”

Now: Birds Eye later merged with Kraft and Philip Morris, which then turned into Altria Foods. When Kraft was spun off from Altria, Cool Whip went with it, and it’s still part of that company today, as the most consumed whipped topping in the U.S. — and the subject of a Family Guy bit focused solely on saying the words, “Cool Whip.”

The most recent TV spot Cool Whip has is for its frosting:

HEAD SKI COMPANY
Then: Founded in 1950 in Baltimore by Howard Head, the company pioneered a new alpine ski design involving a plywood core inside two aluminum sheets, covered in laminated plastic. This resulted in lighter, more durable skis, that made it easier for skiers to turn.

By the time of Mad Men, the Head Standard was used by more than 50% of skiers in the U.S. and UK . The company became HEAD Sportswear International in 1966 and went on to add tennis racquets and other sports equipment to its roster.

Here’s an ad from the late 1960s in LIFE magazine featuring Olympic skier Jean-Claude Killy from SKI magazine in 1970.

Now: Head Ski became part of HEAD NV, which today stills sells sports equipment and clothing.

HEINZ BAKED BEANS
Then: In 1967, Heinz’s slogan was “Heinz Meanz Beanz,” a term coined by advertising executive Maurice Drake. The Who also apparently really liked ’em, enough to put Roger Daltrey in a tub full of them for the cover of their 1967 album, The Who Sells Out, complete with the song “Heinz Baked Beans.”

Now: The official name of the canned product became Heinz Beanz in 2008, and is primarily sold in the UK, where the company says 1.5 million cans are sold each day.

Baked beans fell off the map in the U.S. sometime in the 1970s, and even the company didn’t seem to know why.

“I don’t know why it sort of went away,” Noel Geoffroy, vice president, Heinz Brands/U.S. Consumer Products told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2012, when Heinz’s baked beans returned to the shores from whence they came (albeit with different packaging and varieties of baked beans). Its parent companies are now Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital, as of 2013.

Here’s a recent ad from the UK:

JAGUAR
Then: Begun as Swallow Sidecar Company in 1922, in 1966 Jaguar merged with the British Motor Corporation, and in 1968 merged with Leyland Motor Company to create British Leyland. In the time of Mad Men, Jaguar was not at all afraid to get sexified, as seen in the below ad:

Now: Jaguar has company now, as it’s one of the Jaguar Land Rover brands manufactured in the UK and owned by Indian company Tata Motors.

In 2015, Jaguar went hi-tech with its advertising, with print ads in various publications that were linked to digital content through an app for Google Glass and mobile devices, as reported by AdAge.

MANISCHEWITZ
Then: Manischewitz, makers of Kosher foods like wine and matzo, had been around for about 80 years by the mid 1960s. On Mad Men, the company uses the slogan “Man-O-Manischewitz What a Wine!” which was in fact, a real ad campaign by Manischewitz used by the wine brand (licensed to Brooklyn’s Monarch wines).

But this 1960 ad is too good not to share, starring the one and only Sammy Davis Jr.:

Now: The Manischewitz Company revived the “Man-O-Manischewitz” ad line in 2009 for its line of kosher foods.

SNO BALL
Then: PepsiCo filed a trademark for Sno Ball in 1967 — not to be confused with the Hostess Sno Ball — this product was described as “Carbonated soft drinks and syrups and concentrates for their preparation.” It was advertised as a “sipping ice,” though there isn’t much still out there as an example.

The only real advertising image we could find was a tin sign:

Seems the creators of Mad Men couldn’t find much either, as noted by this Gothamist article that Ginsberg had a photocopy of what appears to be that same sign.

Now: No longer exists — the trademark is expired and most people just figure you’re talking about a Hostess dessert.

VIRGINIA SLIMS
Then: A Philip Morris brand of new, thinner cigarettes aimed at women that launched in 1968, the ad campaign that accompanied Virginia Slims’ debut is one of the most famous. “You’ve come a long way, baby” (sometimes without the “baby”) was developed by the Leo Burnett Agency, and ended up selling a lot of cigarettes for the company.

Now: Manufactured by Altria Group, a lot has changed in the cigarette advertising industry — namely that it’s illegal in the United States on TV and radio, and there are strict rules regarding ads that appear in print.

Season 6: December 1967 – November 1968

AVON COSMETICS
Then: Founded by a door-to-door book salesman David H. McConnell, who started selling perfumes in New York after realizing his female customers preferred the scent samples to the books that they came with, his company was first called the California Perfume Company Inc. before it became Avon Products Inc. in 1929.

“Ding Dong, Avon Calling!” ran from 1952-1967, promoting both its products and its direct-selling model.

Now: In recent years Avon has turned to celebrity faces like Salma Hayek in 2004 and Reese Witherspoon in 2008 to bring in a younger set of sellers and customers. Tennis player Maria Sharapova became the face of Avon fragrances in 2014.

CARNATION
Then: Carnation started as the Pacific Coast Condensend Milk Company in 1899. By the time Don and the gang were pitching to executives, the company had a slew of food products, including Carnation Instant Breakfast.

Now: Nestle acquired Carnation Company in 1985, and still has a line of instant breakfast drinks on the market called Nestle Breakfast Essentials. Nothing like a family getting together to gather round and drink breakfast as a family.

CHEVROLET
Then: The SCDP gang on Mad Men likely wouldn’t have celebrated landing the Chevy Vega — the “secret” car known only as Chevy 887 — campaign for too long: The car was one of General Motors biggest lemons ever, despite winning Motor Trend’s Car of the Year in 1971. A slew of problems including a rust-prone exterior, its aluminum engine warped and engine fires. This multitude of issues forced six separate recalls throughout the 1970s (though not so bad compared as our current recall bonanza, eh?). The Vega was pulled off the line for good in 1977.

Here’s an ad from 1971 that the SCDP group might’ve pitched, if they were real and not fictional characters:

Now: GM still owns Chevrolet, with the slogan “Find New Roads” replacing “Chevy Runs Deep” in 2013.

FLEISCHMANN’S MARGARINE
Then: Brothers Charles and Max Fleischmann are credited with introducing America’s first commercially produced yeast in the 19th century, going on to found Fleischmann’s Yeast. That company merged into Standard Brands in 1929, with the Fleischmann name spreading to other products like margarine.

The margarine market was crowded in the 1960s with competitors like Imperial and Blue Bonnet, as seen on Mad Men. Fleischmann’s marketed its margarine as a healthier alternative to butter, something that the Federal Trade Commission would have an issue with today, for sure.

Here’s a 1971 ad, pushing Fleischmann’s purported beneficial effects in preventing heart disease… a bit early in life.

Now: Still found in grocery aisles today, Fleischmann’s changed owners a few times, from Standard Brands to Nabisco, and now is a ConAgra Foods brand. It still uses the word “healthy” in marketing material, with the slogan, “Eat Well, Live Well, Be Well At Fleischmann’s” touting cholesterol free products.

KOSS HEADPHONES
Then: Koss Corporation founder John Koss invented the first stereo headphones in 1958. Though Mad Men had Koss running an ad during the 1968 Super Bowl, in reality, Koss says it has never run an ad during the big game.

It did have some pretty heavy hitters on its side, however, if you remember these guys:

Now: Koss is still around today, with the founder’s son Michael J. Koss taking over as president and executive officer in 1991.

OCEAN SPRAY
Then: Ocean Spray was formed in 1930 by three cranberry growers who started coming up with new cranberry products, including the company’s first Cranapple juice blend in 1963. In 1968, the company had just switched ad agencies, AdAge reported, moving the business from DDB to Ted Bates and Young & Rubicam. Cranprune, anyone?

Now: The Ocean Spray Cooperative of more than 700 grower families is still marketing juice these days, with the cranberry bog guys bringing comedic relief in recent years.

SHERATON
Then:Founded in 1937, Sheraton Corporation of America was the first hotel chain listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1947. By the 1960s, the company touted things like “Reservatron,” what it says was the industry’s first electronic reservation system, and in 1965, became the first hotel chain with a toll-free 800-number for direct guest access. It still uses the same number today.

Now:Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. acquired Sheraton in 1998. The brand knows what the kids are into these das, using hashtags for its latest promo, encouraging guests to use #BetterWhenShared to share photos of their stays.

ST. JOSEPH ASPIRIN
Then: The St. Joseph company was founded in 1887 by Leopold Gerstle, with the company touting its product then as the first low dosage aspirin. In 1920, Schering Plough Healthcare Products bought the St. Joseph company. Its aspirin was mainly was marketed for children until using aspirin for the younger set fell out of favor.

Now: Schering held onto the brand until 2000, then selling the rights to company in 2011 to Ilex Consumer Products Group Inc. bought the U.S. rights to the brand.

St. Joseph no longer makes children’s aspirin, and instead returned to the market in 1993 with a new adult formulation.

SUNKIST
Then: Sunkist Growers, Incorporated was known as the Southern California Fruit Exchange in 1893 before changing its name in 1905.

Now: Sunkist is still a citrus cooperative of California and Arizona citrus growers. But beyond just selling fruit, the company licenses its trademark to more than 40 food and beverage companies worldwide.

What did you eat at soccer games when you were young? Oranges, right? Sunkist wants to be that orange for today’s kids.

Season 7: January 1969 – April 1970

ACCUTRON WATCHES
Then:The name of the company behind Accutron is Bulova, which was founded in 1875, and developed the watch using a resonating tuning fork as a way to regulate the time-keeping function.

Now: Bulova was sold to Citizen Watch in 2007. In 2014, the company came out with this ad for the Accutron II:

H. SALT FISH & CHIPS
Then: Haddon Salt’s fish and chips shop in Skegness, UK impressed Americans passing through with its “non-greasy” fare, the company says, inspiring him and his wife to move to the United States and open their first restaurant in Sausalito in 1965. The shop grew to a franchise, but Haddon decided to change the name from Salt’s Fish & Chips to “H. Salt, Esq. Authentic English Fish and Chips,” as “esquire” made the whole thing sound even more British, he thought.

Here’s an ad for a local franchise back in the day:

Now: There are 26 independently owned franchise locations throughout Southern California today.

BURGER CHEF
Then: At one time the #2 fast-food burger chain in the U.S., Burger Chef’s parent company was founded in 1954, with its name reportedly chosen to portray a more highbrow version of Burger King. General Foods bought the chain in 1968, leading to rapid expansion.

Now: Burger Chef is no more: In 1982, General Foods sold Burger Chef toa company from Canada called Imasco, which owned Hardee’s at the time. It converted many Burger Chef locations into Hardee’s, and let franchisees of other locations decide if they want to convert or simply close. The last surviving Burger Chef location shut down in 1999.

PETER PAN
Then: Though as far as we can tell there were no Peter Pan Tinkerbell cookies in 1970 as seen on Mad Men, Peter Pan peanut butter had been around since 1920 through Swift & Company’s Derby Foods subsidiary. Originally called E.K. Pond, it was renamed Peter Pan after the J.M. Barrie character in 1928.

In the 1970s, one Peter Pan ad had a kid writing to the never-aging hero sort of like Santa Claus, but instead of asking for presents, he’s just sharing a compliment. How nice, kid.

Now: Today Peter Pan is owned by ConAgra Foods. The company has taken things social, with one Facebook promo photo touting it as “the perfect snack to satisfy our late night craving.” To which my Dad would reply, “Don’t just stand there! Shut the refrigerator door!”

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist