'Burma Shave'

Someone north of Holbrook, Nebraska, displays a sense of humor in two "Burma Shave" sign collections along a county road. One set reads: "She put a bullet through his hat but he's had closer shaves than that. Burma Shave." Another reads: "When frisky with whiskey don't drive 'cause it's risky. Burma Shave" Original Burma Shave signs went up along U.S. highways in the mid-to-late 1920s, and advertised what would become the second highest selling brushless shaving cream in the United States. Some signs also urged public safety and warned against speeding. Drivers and passengers alike enjoyed reading the signs outloud as they traveled at speeds incredibly slow compared to today's limits. The use of advertising billboards declined in the 1950s due in part to interstate highways and increased speed limits. By 1963, Burma Shave sales were dropping, the Burma-Vita Company was sold to Philip Morris and Burma Shave signs came down.