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 The Steel Guitar Forum
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 Hadacol/Hadacol Shows
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| Author | Topic: Hadacol/Hadacol Shows |
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Chris L. Christensen Member From: Los Angeles, California, USA |
posted 20 January 2006 06:28 PM
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I'm wondering if any of you steelers out there have any memories and/or interesting stories about either Hadacol, the quack patent medicine agressively marketing in the late 1940s/early 1950s by Louisiana state senator Dudley J. LeBlanc, or the huge "Hadacol Caravans" shows that toured the South and the West Coast in the same era. I understand several of the biggest country music stars of that time including Hank Williams, Roy Acuff, and Minnie Pearl, along with A-list entertainers of the stature of Judy Garland, Burns and Allen, Bob Hope, and Cesar Romero were in these shows. The Hadacol promotion and advertising used all the tricks of the 19th century snake oil salesman only on a much bigger scale. An interesting website on the subject is: http://www.quackwatch.org/13Hx/MM/15.html Hadacol is a fascinating chapter in Americana, the last of great patent medicines to be sure. Surely a big part of Hadacol's appeal was that it was 12% alcohol. I'd love to hear anybody's stories about Hadacol or the Hadacol shows. |
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Bob Knight Member From: Bowling Green KY |
posted 20 January 2006 06:40 PM
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Chris L. Christensen Member From: Los Angeles, California, USA |
posted 20 January 2006 06:48 PM
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Bob, Thanks for the picture! I've never seen an actual bottle before, and a full one to boot!And you have the box too. In reading the interesting article it seems that the FDA was on LeBlanc's tail from almost the word go and judging by what I can read of the label, I'm wondering if your bottle & box was manufactured late in Hadacol's life. Where did you ever get them? How long have you had them? |
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Sonny Priddy Member From: Elizabethtown, Kentucky, USA |
posted 20 January 2006 07:50 PM
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I Very well remember The Hadacol. I Think There was A Show In Louisville. Ky One Time. I Think Hank Williams was On It. SONNY. ------------------ |
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Jerry Overstreet Member From: Louisville Ky |
posted 20 January 2006 08:03 PM
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HADACOL! HAHAHA! I'm old enough to remember Hadacol, I'm afraid. Probably took my share of it as a kid. I think it was supposed to be a remedy for nearly every health problem. I don't remember anything about the shows or tours although I remember it was advertised aggressively. I found this tune a while back searching for some blues tunes on either Cowpie or Harmony Central. It was written and recorded by Bill Nettles. Here's a sample. THE HADACOL BOOGIE. Here's my favorite verse: |
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John P.Phillips Member From: Brunswick, Ga. U.S.A. |
posted 20 January 2006 09:08 PM
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If memory serves me right, I think Arthur Smith and his Crackerjacks (of guitar boogie fame) did a version of that too ! ------------------ |
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Dean Dobbins Member From: Rome, Ilinois, U.S.A. |
posted 20 January 2006 10:12 PM
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I remember the Hadacol shows-never saw one, but I know Hank Williams was a big part of the tour. The big thing going around back then, was the question, "Why did they call it "Hadacol"?- they hadda call it somethin'! ------------------ |
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David L. Donald Member From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand |
posted 21 January 2006 07:33 AM
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Does that stuff make the youngn'sd run and hide when mom brings out the bottle? Dang what's in that? |
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Chris L. Christensen Member From: Los Angeles, California, USA |
posted 21 January 2006 08:29 AM
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As I mentioned, Hadacol was 12% Alchohol, about the same as wine. It had some B vitamins thrown in but the rest was sugar and other fillers. Apparently, it was nasty stuff to drink, but that didn't prevent many people, especially in areas that were "dry" at the time, from taking a good stiff "nip", because it was for "medicinal" purposes. I read that Hadacol was a popular drink in colleges at the time. The name "Hadacol" was an abbreviation for "Happy Days Company" with an "L" at the end for Senator LeBlanc, the supposed inventor. LeBlanc himself is a fascinating character, one of the few Louisiana politicians to challange the Huey Long political machine that dominated the state's politics for so long. In searching the internet I am amazed at the amount and tactics of the advertising and come-ons associated with this quack nostrum. There was even a "Captain Hadacol", a hunky, greasy haired Superman wannabe! |
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Blake Hawkins Member From: Land O'Lakes, Florida |
posted 21 January 2006 09:11 AM
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When the Hadacol Caravan came to Augusta, Georgia on a Saturday in 1949, I was a 12 year old kid interested in country music. Hank Williams was on the bill, but he was not there that night,'cause he had to be on the Opry. Bill Lister was filling in. I went on stage while the band was setting up and met Sammy Pruitt and Don Helms. They were both very nice to me and answered my questions. Later, I saw Sammy at the refreshment stand and he bought me a coke. I always remembered these guys and their kindness. Bill Nettles also had a recording of "The Hadacol Bounce." Not as big a hit as "The Hadacol Boogie." I have a 78 rpm record of "Bounce." Hadacol's advertising was intense and didn't miss anything. They had it on the radio and in billboards all over town. Yep, it was "snake oil"..some of the best. Blake |
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Barry Blackwood Member From: elk grove, CA |
posted 21 January 2006 11:24 AM
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There's a picture of Captain Hadacol up for auction on ebay right now .... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7581581773&category=108740 |
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David L. Donald Member From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand |
posted 21 January 2006 06:22 PM
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So that name... HAD A COLd but now I'm too drunk to care? |
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Jennings Ward Member From: Edgewater, Florida, USA |
posted 21 January 2006 10:34 PM
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I HATE TO ADMIT IT, BUT MY MOTHER MADE ME DRINK THAT STUFF WHEN I WAS A KID,,,FOR ASTHMA, COLDS, ECT: ROTTEN STUFF.. I GREW UP IN W.VA. AND JUST ABOUT ALL THE RADIO STATIONS TRIED TO SELL THAT STUFF...I LIVED NOT TOO FAR FROM BECKLEY, AND ON COLD WINTER NITES, WE COULD PICK UP CLEAR CHANNEL RADIO, TEXAS, IOWA, ILL. WISC. LOUISEANA, ALA. MISS. NEW MEXICO. FLA... MOST ALL SOLD IT.. I ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS FUNNY WHY THE LADIES LIKED IT SO MUCH... I HAVE EVEN SEEN SOME LADIES TAKE IT TO CHURCH WITH THEM AND TAKE A SWIG DURING SERVICES.....LATER I LEARNED WHY, AND LIKE BLAKE, THE TAST GOT BETTER..HEHEHEHE JENNINGS ------------------ |
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Walter Stettner Member From: Vienna, Austria |
posted 22 January 2006 01:08 AM
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OK, let's hear the music. Here is Bill Nettles with the "Hadacol Boogie"....
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Brandin Member From: Newport Beach CA. USA |
posted 22 January 2006 09:47 AM
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12% alcohol?! Now that's what I call medicine.  GB |
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David L. Donald Member From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand |
posted 22 January 2006 07:38 PM
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Jennings... this explains a lot.  Bet your posum buddy had mor'in a few drafts his self! |
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Jennings Ward Member From: Edgewater, Florida, USA |
posted 22 January 2006 08:14 PM
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THANKS WALTER, YOU MADE AN OLD MAN HAPPY AND BROUGHT BACK LOTS AND LOTS OF MEMORIES... IF I AM NOT MISTAKEN, TOWARD THE END OF THEIR ERA, HADICOL HAD AN "EXTRA STRENGTH " TYPE.. AROUND 18 OR 20 % ALCOHOL... WE USED TO SPIKE GRANNYS' WITH A LITTLE OF GRAMPS CORN SQUEEZINS.. GRANNY STAYED HAPPY ALL DAY, COULD NEVER FIGURE WHY SHE AWOKE WITH A HEAD ACHE EVERY MORNING.. JIMMY DICKENS DRANK A WHOLE BOTTLE WHEN HE WAS 3 AND SEE WHAT IT DONE TO HIM......HEHEHE,,, JUST KIDDING. THANKS WALTER AND ALL.... JENNINGS;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ------------------ |
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Dave White Member From: Fullerton, California USA |
posted 22 January 2006 10:28 PM
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That "Hadacol Boogie" sure sounds a lot like "Move it on Over" by Hank Williams, Sr. That stuff must have been Lucille Ball's inspiration for her famous "Vitameatavegamin" bit on "I Love Lucy," a bit she rehearsed for six weeks in front of a mirror before the filming. I think it's one of the funniest things she ever did. |
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