CC&S Fox Deluxe 8 oz Can: 1937-1938

 

This month let's look at an odd-ball can, the 1937-1938 Fox Deluxe 8 oz opening instruction can. As breweries began canning beer there were four major can companies trying to sell their cans to breweries. As noted elsewhere on this site, American Can went first, with a 12 oz flat top can. I showed one of their early examples last month. Continental Can went next with a cone-top 12 oz can. National Can followed with their own 12 oz flat top can, which was a dud, probably due to problems with the lining (see my December 2009 COM for more). Crown Cork & Seal tried a number of different types and sizes finally settling on the crowntainer 12 oz conetop in 1940. This Fox Deluxe was one of CC&S's types that did not catch on.

As it turned out, CC&S was just a bit ahead of their time. In the early 1950s 8 oz cans did catch on, but for selling high-alcohol Malt Liquor, although it was also used for other beers and ales. See my COM's for January and April 2007 for more on the later 8 oz cans.

Crown Cork & Seal Cans

Crown Cork & Seal promoted a number of different can shapes and sizes in brewery trade journals aimed at the brewers themselves. These ads were designed to sell cans to the breweries, not to the average consumer, so they illustrate what types of cans the can companies are promoting and what selling points they believed their cans have for the breweries. Here is a timeline of ads from Crown Cork & Seal showing the different types of cans they were trying to sell, including the 8 oz can shown above.

	July 1937: CC&S begins promoting the 8 oz. can specifically with this ad. Note how they claim that people wanting a smaller serving size were "a market within a market...and a mighty interesting one too."
	August 1937: A different approach at the same idea, that there is a market out there for brewers of customers who want a smaller serving size. In this case the ad plays on the stereotypical "thrifty" Scot.
	November 1937: CC&S have abandoned their promotions aimed specifically at the 8 oz size and are promoting all four can sizes and types. The tall conetop they started with is gone and has been replaced by the j-spout cone at the bottom left of the ad. The other three cans include the 8 oz, a regular 12 oz can (the same dimensions used by American Can and national Can.) and the taller, skinny 12 oz can (shown here at the back left). Since the j-spout and the 8 oz flat tops cans are prominently displayed in front, my guess is that these two types are the ones CC&S are most interested in promoting.
	February 1939: The j-spout is now the prime focus of the ads. The 8 oz appears to be gone, leaving only the two 12 oz cans left at bottom left. Much diminished in size by the j-spout, they will also soon be gone.