Coca-Cola's First Television Ad Was Remarkably Simple

Whether you remember sipping Coca-Cola out of a glass bottle or you lived through the spectacular failure of New Coke in the '80s, the soda holds a nostalgic place in many of our hearts. While the beverage company's ads are commonplace these days, this wasn't always the case. In fact, the first Coca-Cola commercial appeared on TV in 1950, and it was far different from the company's ads we see today.

The commercial aired on Thanksgiving Day on CBS, and was a far cry from the highly stylized Coca-Cola commercials we're familiar with. The ad begins with an excited announcer introducing the television premiere that's about to play. The screen then cuts to a woman standing in front of stage curtains, holding several bottles of Coke on a tray. On-screen text then prompts viewers to take a refreshing break with a cold soda while tuning into the holiday broadcast featuring ventriloquist Edgar Bergen alongside his famous dummies, Charlie McCarthy and Mortimer Snerd. 

The ad went on to list others involved in the production, all while centered on the tray of Coca-Cola bottles. At the time, there was no need for the company to create out-of-the-box ads. By the 1950s, the drink was already super popular, in part due to World War II soldiers asking for the soda while serving overseas. Today, you can find Coke — and its advertising — pretty much anywhere.

Just like the taste of Coca-Cola, it's likely that you remember some of the company's advertising campaigns from your childhood, even if you weren't around for the first commercial in 1950. One of the brand's most memorable commercials came in 1971, with the iconic "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" commercial, one of many old-school food jingles you probably forgot about until now. This wouldn't be the only time that Coca-Cola worked to spread a message of love and unity through its advertising campaigns. The 2011 Share a Coke campaign encouraged consumers to buy a bottle of the sweet, fizzy beverage with a loved one's name on it. While the messaging wasn't quite as clear in the brand's first ad, the underlying theme was still there: Coca-Cola brings people together, and when you crack open a bottle, you're participating in a shared, nearly worldwide tradition (there are only two countries where you won't find Coke).

Another long-standing Coke ad campaign that's impossible to forget: the polar bears. The ads that so many of us remember from the Christmas season have cemented a place in history and will always be associated with the taste of Coca-Cola. Believe it or not, the polar bears were a part of the company's advertising campaigns long before it started running TV commercials. The fluffy, friendly creatures first appeared in the world of Coca-Cola in a French print ad in 1922. Coca-Cola has come a long way since its first TV ad back in 1950, and we're curious to see what the company will come up with in the future.