UPDATE III: I just found an ad from the January 4, 1947, issue of Time Magazine that includes a “Get a ‘Jeep'” campaign. It’s on eBay.
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(April 09, 2019) UPDATE II: There was at least one GET A ‘JEEP’ mailer that was distributed to current and potential jeep owners.
UPDATE: As Terry pointed out, the GET A ‘JEEP’ campaign was likely a play off of the popular phrase Get a horse, the popular cry that greeted almost every automobile which appeared on the roads during the early years of the automobile. A 1930 article from the Saturday Evening Post also highlights the use of this phrase.
Starting in January of 1946, Willy’s Overland introduced the GET A ‘JEEP’ phrase to their Collier’s and Saturday Evening Post full-page ad campaign.
Examples of the GET A ‘JEEP’ campaign in the full page ads of the Saturday Evening Post.
The company also introduced a subtler GET A ‘JEEP’ magazine marketing strategy in the form of small cartoons.
So far, I’ve only identified the publishing date of one cartoon, but I’m sure with time we can identify the others. As of a November 13, 1946, the cartoon ad campaign was still being used, but the December 14, 1946, full-page ad does not include that phrase.
- This GET A ‘JEEP’ ad appeared in the October 12, 1946, issue of Collier’s Magazine. Strangely, the only attribution is the “A product of WILLYS-OVERLAND MOTORS”. My conclusion is that this was a sneakier “ad” for the new jeep.
2. This version of the ad was published in a 1946 magazine. The cartoon print is available on eBay.
3. This one was found on Pinterest:
4. I’d published this one a few years ago. It was being sold on eBay.
5. This was posted on eBay for sale and labeled a 1946 ad: