Lifebuoy (soap)
Encyclopedia
Lifebuoy is a brand of soap
containing phenol
marketed originally by Lever Brothers
in England
in 1895.
in Cyprus
for the UK, EU, US and Brazil markets, as well as in Trinidad and Tobago
for the Caribbean market. Unilever in Cyprus and Trinidad and Tobago is manufacturing the original Red Lifebuoy Soap with phenol
. In other markets, including South
and South East Asia, the global brand of Lifebuoy Soap has been updated to use red and other colours with ‘modern’ aromas.
played at the Baker Bowl
during the 1920s, an outfield wall advertisement for Lifebuoy stated, "The Phillies use Lifebuoy". One night a vandal snuck in and added to the ad, "And they still stink". Variations of the joke were also employed by detractors of other losing teams.
The term "B.O.", short for "body odor
", is often thought to have been invented by Lifebuoy for an advertising campaign. However, the term "B.O." was actually coined by a company that made deodorant for women called Odo-Ro-No in 1919. Lifebuoy made the term famous, however. The Lifebuoy radio ad, parodied by several Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes
cartoons, used a foghorn
-type sound to create the "B.O." sound.
lifebuoy is pronounced by life-boy
Soap
In chemistry, soap is a salt of a fatty acid.IUPAC. "" Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. . Compiled by A. D. McNaught and A. Wilkinson. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford . XML on-line corrected version: created by M. Nic, J. Jirat, B. Kosata; updates compiled by A. Jenkins. ISBN...
containing phenol
Phenol
Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, phenic acid, is an organic compound with the chemical formula C6H5OH. It is a white crystalline solid. The molecule consists of a phenyl , bonded to a hydroxyl group. It is produced on a large scale as a precursor to many materials and useful compounds...
marketed originally by Lever Brothers
Lever Brothers
Lever Brothers was a British manufacturer founded in 1885 by William Hesketh Lever and his brother, James Darcy Lever . The brothers had invested in and promoted a new soap making process invented by chemist William Hough Watson, it was a huge success...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1895.
History
Although Lifebuoy is no longer produced in the US and UK, it is still being mass produced by UnileverUnilever
Unilever is a British-Dutch multinational corporation that owns many of the world's consumer product brands in foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products....
in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
for the UK, EU, US and Brazil markets, as well as in Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
for the Caribbean market. Unilever in Cyprus and Trinidad and Tobago is manufacturing the original Red Lifebuoy Soap with phenol
Phenol
Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, phenic acid, is an organic compound with the chemical formula C6H5OH. It is a white crystalline solid. The molecule consists of a phenyl , bonded to a hydroxyl group. It is produced on a large scale as a precursor to many materials and useful compounds...
. In other markets, including South
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
and South East Asia, the global brand of Lifebuoy Soap has been updated to use red and other colours with ‘modern’ aromas.
Catchphrases
When the Philadelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
played at the Baker Bowl
Baker Bowl
Baker Bowl is the best-known popular name of a baseball park that formerly stood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Its formal name, painted on its outer wall, was National League Park. It was also initially known as Philadelphia Park or Philadelphia Base Ball Grounds.It was on a small...
during the 1920s, an outfield wall advertisement for Lifebuoy stated, "The Phillies use Lifebuoy". One night a vandal snuck in and added to the ad, "And they still stink". Variations of the joke were also employed by detractors of other losing teams.
The term "B.O.", short for "body odor
Body odor
Body odor or body odour, sometimes colloquially abbreviated as B.O., is the smell of bacteria growing on the body. The bacteria multiply rapidly in the presence of sweat, but sweat itself is almost completely odorless to humans....
", is often thought to have been invented by Lifebuoy for an advertising campaign. However, the term "B.O." was actually coined by a company that made deodorant for women called Odo-Ro-No in 1919. Lifebuoy made the term famous, however. The Lifebuoy radio ad, parodied by several Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
cartoons, used a foghorn
Foghorn
A foghorn or fog signal or fog bell is a device that uses sound to warn vehicles of hazards or boats of the presence of other vehicles in foggy conditions. The term is most often used in relation to marine transport...
-type sound to create the "B.O." sound.
External links
- lifebuoy.com, official website
- lifebuoy.co.uk, importers
- Lifebuoy, Brazil
- Lifebuoy, Turkey
lifebuoy is pronounced by life-boy