Women Who Buy Bonds Get Doughboy's Kisses

Dr. Jennifer Wingate argues that over time, the term doughboy and the image that it conjured in Americans’ minds became synonymous with “an antidote to radicalism, a sign of vigilance and loyalty, and a reassuring vision of American fitness and manhood.”¹ This was likely a result of their depiction in propaganda, art, and the media. Doughboys were often shown charging out of trenches, standing at attention, and with an air of heightened masculinity. Media sources stressed the physical transformation that American infantrymen underwent while in service, with one source claiming that military service had turned “pasty young clerks into men, and flabby human jellyfish into husky fellows.”²

Companies utilized the positive public perception of doughboys as a way to sell products. The doughboy as a pop culture phenomenon was very recognizable and practically universally beloved. Their recognizability and popularity were used to sell anything from soaps and cigarettes to fountain pens and firearms.³ Doughbuys were also used to sell war bonds. This was usually done by showing the American soldiers fighting, and asking citizens to do their part in the war by buying bonds. A newspaper from Nebraska utilized the doughboy to sell bonds in a particularly interesting way. In a short segment, a reporter retells a story from Philadelphia where a young and dashing doughboy promised to kiss any woman who buys bonds. In a slightly dark twist, the final sentence reveals that the man might have been suffering from shell shock.

Advertisement for Chesterfield-brand cigarettes

LIFE Magazine printed two advertisements depicting doughboys in a periodical from July 3rd, 1919. The first, a cigarette advertisement, shows a doughboy cheerily smoking a Chesterfield-brand cigarette. He is portrayed as the stereotypical young and fit American soldier. This is one of many advertisements that utilize the charming image of the doughboy. Another cigarette advertisement of the time, a Murad-branded cigarette advertisement shown in Dr. Wingate’s article, portrays a doughboy charging out of the trenches with his bayonet pointed forwards. The advertisement proudly displays how its cigarettes are made from Turkish tobacco, similar to the Chesterfield cigarette advertisement. Americans of the time had a penchant for exoticism, so the multicultural exchange that doughboys underwent in Europe helped to sell exotic cigarettes.⁴ 

Advertisement for Colt firearms

The second advertisement in the LIFE article is for Colt firearms. In particular, it is advertising their automatic pistol, which was the government-issued sidearm for the doughboys. It depicts a doughboy speaking to a typical American businessman, saying “we have made your home safe against the danger of the Hun. Now keep it safe against the dangers of the unprotected. Get a Colt.” Advertisements like these show the cultural pull that doughboy imagery commanded.