Blue text on a white background next to an illustration of a yellow and black bee with wide, friendly eyes and light blue wings gathering honey out of a pink flower

“Clear, Clean Taste” ads were a marketing campaign for PM De Luxe Blended Whiskey, which was bottled by National Distillers Products. These ads ran in print during the late 1940s and early 1950s. The bee character shown on this button was one of many cartoon animals used in the ads. Each ad contained the text “Millions of bottles are bought by men who love that clear, clean taste”, which would be followed by a cartoon animal and unique text about the character and the beverage. 

Illustration of the Phillie Phanatic ona white background holding a red banner with white text and a blue outline

Making his big debut on April 25, 1978, the Phillie Phanatic mascot was the creation of Bonnie Erickson and her husband and business partner, Wayde Harrison. Erickson was part of the original team for The Muppet Show and designed characters such as Miss Piggy and balcony hecklers Statler and Waldorf. After working on The Muppet Show, Erickson and Harrison set up their own design firm for puppets to be used in TV ads and toys. Their big moment came when they were contacted by the promotion department at the Philadelphia Phillies who were looking to create a new mascot. They gave Erickson complete creative freedom with the desing, and she emerged with the Phillie Phanatic, a creature with a long snout and protruding tongue who, according to Erickson, hails from the Galapagos Islands. The Phanatic was a surprise success and is one of the only mascots on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.  

Line illustration of a fist holding a red rose on a white background with black text underneath

The Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee, or DSOC, was an American socialist organization founded in 1973 by socialist writer Michael Harrington. It began as an offshoot of the Debsian Socialist party, splitting over the original organization’s stance on the Vietnam War. The DSOC eventually grew into a coalition of close to 5,000 people, including trade unionists, activists, and liberals. In 1982, the DCOS merged with the New American Movement and reorganized into the Democratic Socialists of America.

The symbol of a fist and rose is one used by many socialist organizations around the world. The flower is meant to invoke hope and an ultimate desire for peace (as well as environmentalism in some uses) while the fist represents the fighting spirit of the laboring class.  

Color illustration of the child actor Davey Lee on a yellow background in the center surrounded by black text on a red background around the rim

Davey Lee was a child star in the 1920s and 1930s who made his film debut at the age of three in the 1928 Al Jolson feature film The Singing Fool, which was the top grossing motion picture of the time until Gone With the Wind premiered in 1939. Davey Lee portrayed Al Jolson’s three-year-old son, dubbed “Sonny Boy.” Following the success of The Singing Fool, Lee went on to star in his own feature film, Sonny Boy, in 1929 at the age of four. The character of Sonny Boy was a national hit, and the moniker remained with Lee for the rest of his life.

Following the release of Sonny Boy in 1929 there was a Davey Lee lookalike contest held in Brooklyn for local children to enter. The Davey Lee “Sonny Boy” Club buttons were given to all contestants in the lookalike contest, as well as being available for purchase in nearby businesses or directly from the Philadelphia Badge Co. First and second place winners of the lookalike contest were awarded with a button and a Yorkshire Knitting Company “Sonny Boy” sun-suit modeled after a costume worn by Lee in the film. Children who were fans of Sonny Boy could also purchase certificates of membership to the Davey Lee “Sonny Boy” Club, which could be filled out to certify a child “has joined the Davey Lee “Sonny Boy” Club with the understanding that there never will be any reason why mother or father will not be as proud of their “Sonny Boy” as Mrs. Lee is of her Davey Lee.” 

Black text on a white background

British-born Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)—philosopher, logician, and essayist—is best known for his work in mathematical logic and analytic philosophy. Along with Gottlob Frege and G.E. Moore, Russell is credited as a founder of modern analytic philosophy, a philosophical approach that emphasizes the use of logical analysis to solve philosophical problems. Russell focused on the study of linguistics, language, and meaning, where the core method was to break down complex ideas and concepts into their constituent parts through logical analysis. Russell’s contributions to logic, linguistics, philosophy, and epistemology earned him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950.

Russell was also known to be a social reformer; he campaigned for peace during WWI. As a result of his anti-war campaigning, Russell was let go from his professorship at Trinity College, Cambridge and became a freelance journalist and writer. He eventually returned to Trinity College in 1944 and lectured on “Human Knowledge: Its Scope and Limits” in 1948, his last major philosophical written contribution. He came back to campaigning for peace in the 1950s with the Vietnam War, where he took place in mass demonstrations and was ultimately imprisoned in 1961 due to “inciting young people to civil disobedience.”

Russell is, perhaps, now better known for his anti-war work and campaigning than his contributions to philosophy and mathematics.

Red text on a white background with a black coat hanger layered on top of the text

In 1973, the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) was created to stop the anti-abortion movement growing in the United States. Once Ronald Reagan became president in 1980—a man staunchly against abortion rights—more anti-abortion movements began to mobilize, such as the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL). By 1982, Pennsylvania passed the Abortion Control Act, a law that made seeking an abortion very difficult; women were required to give informed consent, give spousal notification of their want of an abortion, and were subjected to mandatory waiting periods.

In 1986, the National Organization for Women (NOW) organized a major Women’s Rights march in Washington, DC: the East Coast/West Coast March for Women’s Equality/Women’s Lives demonstration, where over 120,000 people protested the threat to abortion rights. During these political rallies, buttons were distributed and worn, many of which bore the slogan “Never Again!” and included pictures of coat hangers. Such protest buttons pushed for Women’s Rights and the right to have a legal abortion safely; so-called “coat-hanger” abortions, done in secret by non-professionals, were extremely dangerous and caused harm to mother and child.

Green background with white outlined text surrounding an illustration of the main character, Oblio, wearing his characteristic pointed hat, looking up at his dog, Arrow. 

Between 1970-1971, Harry Nilsson (1941-1994) wrote a folk rock concept album titled The Point! An illustrated comic book accompanied the LP, and Fred Wolf directed an accompanying animated movie for “ABC Movie of the Week,” also titled The Point!, which aired one month later. The main character of the narrative, Oblio, is a little boy born with a deformity: his head is round. Everyone else in “the Land of Point” has conical-shaped heads. Because of this deformity, Oblio is banished and travels through the “Pointless Forest” with his dog, Arrow, learning many lessons along the way.

Much like the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, The Point! features Nilsson’s songs throughout, which compliment the movie’s scenes and vignettes. There is a sharpness to the film (pun intended!) and its sociopolitical commentary; fear of the “other” is explored in the film, as is the enforcement of hegemony and bias. It is a criticism of the patriarchy, where “the Land of Point” is comprised of a triangular hierarchy filled with citizens who practice blind adherence to nonsensical laws and are willing to tolerate violence and bias against anything that runs contrary to society.

Harry Nilsson rubbed elbows with important artists of his day. The artist is credited as being the Beatles’ favorite American musician, helping launch Randy Newman’s career, and being close friends with Mama Cass (of the Mamas and the Papas) and Keith Moon (of the Who).

Black and white headshot photograph of Greta Garbo with red text and two red stars on a white background around the rim

Swedish-American actress Greta Garbo (1905-1990) rose to fame during Hollywood’s silent and early Golden eras. Garbo is credited with introducing what is now known as “method acting,” a technique wherein actors strive to create authentic performances by “fully inhabiting” their character’s inner life and personality traits. This helps garner genuine emotionally-expressive performances that feel believable. 

Garbo had a certain allure about her. Considered glamorous, mysterious, and even a little aloof, Garbo came to be an enduring fashion icon. She represented a different type of movie star, one with more of an air of sophistication and less of innocence. She made her transition from silent films to the “talkies,” to great acclaim, with the movie Anna Christie (1930). Garbo later earned a Best Picuture Oscar win in 1932 with the movie Anna Karenina.

Pink litho photo image of the band Devo with black text around the rim and pink text below the image.

WPLJ was a non-commercial radio station that broadcast in New York City between 1973 and 2019. The station produced buttons to celebrate musical performances at specific venues or for particular artists. 

The Dr. Pepper Central Park Music Festival, formerly the Schaefer Music Festival in Central Park, was held annually during the 60s, 70s, and 80s. The 1980 festival was held from July 1st to August 30th 1980, with the band DEVO performing on July 21st along with Lenny Kaye and WKGB.

Red background with white text curved on the top and bottom of button and a thick white bar in the center of the button with red text.

“Button, button, who’s got the button?” refers to a children’s game that originated during the 19th century when households frequently had a surplus of buttons. The game consists of the players gathered in a circle with cupped hands extended outward while one player designated as “it” stands in the center. The player that is “it” has a button in hand and goes around the circle to pretend to drop the button in each player’s hands. One anonymous player actually receives the button in their hands. Then, everyone collectively chants “Button, button, who’s got the button?” and the guessing begins. Each player gets one guess as to who has the button and the first player to guess correctly is then “it”. This game has even been referenced in media, such as Disney’s Alice in Wonderland.