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Williams Soap & William L. Shirer

Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2026 5:51 am
by drmoss_ca
Here's a bit of trivia unknown to me until now. The radio correspondent (this was before he was sacked by CBS and became even better known as an author) William L. Shirer was sponsored after the war by J B Williams Soap Co, and announced the first brushless shaving cream ("Glider") in an on-air advert. However, he tended to let his opinions out in his broadcasts, and he decried Truman’s Executive Order 9835, which mandated anti-communist loyalty oaths for federal employees, a practice that soon spread to civilian employers, including the broadcasters at CBS. J B Williams pulled their sponsorship and CBS demoted him. He complained the freedom of the press was at stake and criticised his employer, who then sacked him.

He went on to become known for writing The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, based on his first-hand experience as a correspondent in Germany 1934-1940. And when it was made into a three part television series in 1968, it was broadcast by ABC.

Glider.jpg
Glider.jpg (122.01 KiB) Viewed 206 times

Re: Williams Soap & William L. Shirer

Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2026 7:56 pm
by CMur12
That's quite the resume!

- Murray

Re: Williams Soap & William L. Shirer

Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2026 11:52 am
by brothers
I'd love to try the old Williams. I think I did use something called Williams many years ago when SMF was just became famous.

Re: Williams Soap & William L. Shirer

Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2026 6:08 am
by drmoss_ca
Williams soap was still a drugstore staple then. Nice verbena scent, but not much of a performer.