Be a Pepper Trivia Quiz

Answer: Morrison's Old Corner Drug Store

Alderton's primary work at the drug store involved the mixing of medicine, but he liked to experiment with carbonated drinks as well. Inspiration came from the smell of the drug store, the combination of fruit syrup aromas. Attempting to create a drink that replicated that smell, Alderton kept a log of his experiments, and after many tries he finally came upon a satisfactory mixture.

He first offered his creation to shop owner Morrison. Morrison liked it, and after many sample tastings, the beverage was offered to some of their customers.

Answer: Waco, Texas - 1885

Word of Alderton's concoction soon got around to other customers of the soda fountain, and to order it they asked him to shoot them a "Waco". Morrison gets the credit for the moniker "Dr. Pepper" but, although many different stories have been told, the reasons behind that name are unknown. One legend states that Morrison named it after the father of a girl he was once in love with.

Dr Pepper was making quite a hit, and the demand for it from other soda fountains soon rose above Morrison's production capabilities. A beverage chemist named Robert S. Lazenby, who was impressed with the drink, became partners with Morrison to develop Dr Pepper further. In 1891, Morrison & Lazenby formed the Artesian Manufacturing & Bottling Company in Waco (later, the Dr Pepper Company).

Answer: St. Louis World's Fair (1904)

The 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, taking place on a 1,200 acre site and lasting for seven months, was also known as the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, as it celebrated the purchase's centennial. While speculative and untrue rumors abound regarding food products that were supposedly invented at the World's Fair, many items were indeed popularized there.

In addition to Dr Pepper, hamburgers & frankfurters served on buns, ice cream cones, cotton candy, and iced tea gained much popularity from the St. Louis Fair, though not actually invented there as some have claimed.

Answer: No

"Dr. Pepper" was, originally, the proper spelling of the product. However, this was changed in the 1950s to "Dr Pepper". Reportedly, this was done because the logo was undergoing a font change: with the new blockier letters, "Dr." came out looking like "Di:". Throughout the various logo incarnations, it has since remained "Dr Pepper".

Answer: Old Doc

"The King of Beverages" had many mascots over the decades. There's "Old Doc," a country doctor who wore a top hat and monocle. Also in the 1930s, Dr. Pepper produced calendars, an inexpensive form of advertising, that featured a rather provocatively dressed young lady on the top. In February of 1941, Pretty Peggy Pepper came onboard the Dr Pepper advertising team, though by 1942, war-themed ads took her place. Frosty Dog (officially named Big Boomer) took the Dr Pepper industry from 1956 until the early '60's. He helped to make popular the phrases, "Frosty pep," "The Friendly Pepper-Upper, and "Frosty, man, frosty!"

Polar bears are used in the advertising of Coca-Cola, Bibendum is better known as the Michelin Man, and Nipper is the RCA dog.

Answer: The times of day a person experienced a drop in energy, and needed a sugar boost

A study performed at Columbia University showed that an average person's blood sugar was lowest at 10:30, 2:30, and 4:30 - thus, these were prime times to drink a Dr Pepper in order to prevent a drop in energy. For several decades, Dr Pepper sold clocks, signs, & other products with these times highlighted on them, to provide customers with a friendly reminder to drink Dr Pepper at these times of the day.

In 1945, soft drinks were classified by U.S. legislators as a food, due to the energy and nutrition one received from the drinks' sugar content, hence the odd phrase, "Drink a Bite to Eat."

Answer: True

Consumers were really digging that crazy drink, Dr Pepper, in the 1950s, its cost rising to about $0.15. The year 1950 saw Dr Pepper's sponsorship of a nationwide sweepstakes, which gave away a role in the John Wayne film, "Jet Pilot." The only soft drink to have a measure of success as a hot beverage, the idea of a heated Dr Pepper, served with a slice of lemon, was introduced in 1958. Dr Pepper Company chairman Wesby R. Parker first made this soft drink variation in his home kitchen.

A retro sign invited people to try the "Devilishly Different" hot Dr Pepper.

Answer: Plastic bottles were used for soft drinks (1961)

The tagline, "America's Most Misunderstood Soft Drink," was used in the 1960s, the decade when, in 1963, the United States Fifth District Court in Dallas declared that Dr Pepper was not a cola, lending it even more uniqueness. Also in 1963, Diet Dr Pepper was introduced, although it was not the first diet soft drink. That honor goes to the "no-calorie" beverage of 1952. Aluminum cans were first employed in 1957, but the plastic bottle innovation wasn't until 1970.

Answer: Dublin Dr Pepper

Dublin, Texas was home to Dublin Dr Pepper from 1891 to 2012. Sam Houston Prim, who established Dublin Dr Pepper, was the first to bottle Dr Pepper. Though other Dr Pepper bottlers switched to using inexpensive corn syrup in the 1970s, Dublin's unique franchise continued to use pure cane sugar, until it was forced to close down in 2012 following a trademark dispute with the main Dr Pepper Snapple Group.

Answer: Authentic blend of 23 flavors

Some of Dr Pepper's slogans over the years have been, "The Most Original Soft Drink Ever" (1970s); "Be a Pepper. Wouldn't you like to be a Pepper too?" (1977-1985); "Hold Out for the Out of the Ordinary" (1986-1997); and, "Dr Pepper. It makes the world taste better." (2000) Other ads of the 2000s decade have focused on Dr Pepper's 23 unique flavors.

The words, "Authentic blend of 23 flavors" appear on Dr Pepper's product packaging. So, whether you like to drink your Dr Peppers at 10, 2, 4, or some other time of day, made with pure cane sugar or corn syrup, would you like to be a Pepper, too?