Four pages from the 1943 Municipal Opera Program

These next four pages of the 1943 St. Louis Municipal Opera program were packed with advertisements! Monsanto Chemicals had a full page ad, “Streamlined Flavor” appealing to World War II sensibilities:

“For hungry fighting men, he’s turning out a cake “good as Mother used to make.” But Mother would be dumbfounded to see what he is using in place of her teaspoonful of liquid vanilla. It is a tiny 5-grain tablet—containing either vanillin or ethyl vanillin and coumarin—one of many products developed and made by Uncle Sam to save precious weight and space in shipments to our armed forces overseas. A package of 192 of these tablets is equal in flavor potency to a quart of liquid extract, yet it measures only 10 cubic inches (compared with 90 cubic inches for a quart of extract) and weighs only 234 ounces (compared with 234 pounds for the liquid quart). This is just one of the many war-born research developments in fields not commonly associated with war–from which will come much of the progress that will be ours after victory is won.”

The cast of characters continued for the cast of “The Great Waltz”, sandwiched between various advertisements for local St. Louis  businesses including Miss Hulling’s Cafeterias, SYFO soda water, Aloe’s Technician Glasses, and Bill Medart’s “Olde” Cheshire (which is still one of my favorite restaurants and bars).

Pages 12 and 13 of this program booklet included advertisements for local St. Louis businesses and restaurants:

• Carl’s on Washington St.
• Syfo soda water
• The Mural Room, Cocktail Lounge and Bar
• American Automobile Insurance Company (L.H. Antione, manager)
• Garavelli’s Restaurant and Tropical Cocktail Lounge
• Quality Dairy Company