Time Capsule

With this being December and Christmas so close, I found a December 1955 issue in the old stack of Reader's Digests that I salvaged from a dumpster.  I thought I might give you a little bit of holiday nostalgia.

Sadly, you won't find advertisements like this in today's Reader's Digest. 

The ad:

This Christmas you can give those you love a Bible they'll turn to twice as often because it is written in the language we use today:  the Revised Standard Version Bible.

A Bible for the family that already has a Bible.

Illustrated editions......from $3.25

Genuine leather edition: gold-edged pages; red silk ribbon marker. 

A truly magnificent gift......$10

Maroon buckram (shown).....$6

AT ALL BOOKSTORES

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The ad:

Here goes another letter to Santa Claus, written with hope, sealed with confidence, and stamped with the limitless faith that makes Christmas the greatest day of the year!

How right youngsters are!  They know there is a Santa Claus.  How else could so many Christmas wishes be granted?  And as adults, how right we are to reflect their hope and faith, and confidence in the future.  For today, many of mankind's oldest Christmas "wishes" are being granted through the work of modern science - wishes for better health, better food, clothing and shelter for our families, better and more abundant living for young and old everywhere.

American Cyanamid Company is privileged to take part, through research and chemical production, in scientific advances that help to make each succeeding Christmas happier, healthier and more abundant for mankind.

I had no idea what American Cyanamid Company was.   Here's the little bit I could find.

American Cyanamid is a large, diversified, American chemical manufacturer, founded by Frank Washburn in 1907.

Lederle Laboratories, maker of Centrum and Stresstabs vitamins, was Cyanamid's pharmaceutical division. Davis & Geck was the company's medical device division. In consumer products, its Shulton division made Old Spice cologne, Breck shampoo and Pine-Sol floor cleaner. Melmac was Cyanamid's trademark for plastic kitchenware.

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