4 American Legends that Originated as Advertisements

We Americans are absolutely starved for cultural identity. On the other side of the pond, they've got thousands of years' worth of temples and artifacts behind their legends. Eager to make our own melting-pot culture, we had to come up with our own folklore to give us a sense of purpose and identity.

But how does a 200-year-old nation develop its own legends and lore? Through Big Business, of course. Thanks to our sales skills, we've made Mickey Mouse and Ronald McDonald some of the world's most well-known mythological figures.

Here are some of your favorite classic legends, which actually originated as advertisements in the last century.

Paul Bunyan

What you Believed:

For centuries, the simple wood-folk of the chilly North have exchanged legends about Paul Bunyan. He is a giant lumberjack with remarkable woodcutting skills and a massive companion-- a blue ox named Babe.

The Truth:

Paul Bunyan is as authentic of a legend as the Pillsbury Dough Boy or Aunt Jemima. The Red River Lumber Company, realizing that nothing sells better than a good mascot, hired a guy William Laughead as their P.R. guy in 1916. As you might expect from a P.R. guy named Laughead, William had tons of weird ideas about how to sell wood to the public. One of those ideas involved writing stories about a giant and a blue cow.

Laughead's stories about Paul Bunyan can be traced back to ancient legends from Native Americans and pilgrims. Oh, wait, no-- they can be traced all the way back to the dark ages of 1910, when journalist James MacGillivray invented the guy. Laughead took enough acid to elaborate the character, passed out several dozen pamphlets for Red River Lumber Company, and created the foundation for Paul Bunyan as we know him today.

Except that, these days, Paul's probably chilling with the Jolly Green Giant. The two of them enjoy kvetching about the stresses of being a well-loved mascot who could almost pass for mythology.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

What you Believed:

Along with Mrs. Claus and Santa, Rudolph is a centuries-old legend and a historic component of Christmas lore.

The Reality:

Rudolph was invented as an advertisement for Montgomery Ward in 1939. Robert May, then 34 years old, worked as an ad copy-writer for Montgomery Ward. When asked to create a lovable childrren's character to advance sales during the Christmas season, May came up with Rudolph. Borrowing heavily from the Ugly Duckling, he created a pleasant children's book with a positive moral-- so that Montgomery Ward could double its Christmas profits.

The story was a huge hit, and that season was a great one for Montgomery Ward. But May didn't make much money from his character invention. As an employee of the store, he received no royalties for anr the story or any of the spin-offs that followed. Rudolph actually remains a copyrighted character.

Despite his positive influence on American culture, Rudolph is as authentic of an American fairy-tale as the Keebler elves.
Pecos Bill

What You Believed:

Pecos Bill is part of the historic cultural mythology of the West. Tall tales about Pecos Bill were passed down through generations of cowboys in Texas and Arizona.

The Reality:

Pecos Bill was invented by Edward O'Reilly in the early 20th century, to revive the failing economy of the West. Once the frontier began vanishing and we ran out of Indians and buffaloes to kill, we needed legends like Pecos Bill to help us cling to a romantic vision of the West.

Let's also address one major misconception: the Wild West, as you envision it, never existed. The popular image of the Wild West was created, like many of our most beloved legends, as an advertisement. The rootin', tootin' character of Pecos Bill was also fabricated to sell what has now become one of the most profitable investments of the American government: the Western United States.

The legend of Pecos Bill-- along with his habitat full of mustangs, guns and tumbleweeds-- was designed to promote a romantic and easy-to-sell image of the Western U.S.-- both during and after the frontier era. How could we expect anyone to move to Houston unless we came up with a profitable image to support its settlement? Thanks to Pecos Bill and his buddies, we could all feel good about killing Indians and supporting unsustainable businesses. It's the American way.

Even now, the economy of the Western U.S. depends largely images of Pecos Bill and other cowboys. Just ask the owners of Pecos Bill's Bar-be-Que, Pecos Bill's Beef Jerky and Pecos Bill's Cafe.

Joe Magarac

What you Believed:

Joe Magarac is a legend among immigrant steelworkers. He represents hard labor for material gain and the realization of the American dream.

The Truth:

In an attempt to promote steel companies in the Pittsburgh area, journalist Owen Francis interviewed several Croatian immigrants and asked them to share their workplace folklore. Clearly not interested in advancing their employers' agendas, the steelworkers made up Joe Magarac on the spot and instructed Francis to spread the word about him. Failing to notice the steelworkers' snickers, Owen spread the modern myth of Joe Magarc.

The immigrant workers undoubtedly had a good laugh when they saw that a character named Joe Magarc-- literally, "Joe Jackass" was being passed off as genuine company folklore in a 1950 issue of Scribner's magazine. People who don't speak Croatian still failed to get the joke until... well, now.