Kim Basinger and her Mom, Ann Basinger for Breck Shampoo, 1972

Breck Shampoo is an American brand of shampoo that is also known for its Breck Girls advertising campaign.

History

In 1930, Dr. John H. Breck, Sr. (June 5, 1877 – February 1965) of

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

, founded Breck Shampoo. Advertising that "every woman is different," by the 1950s, the shampoo was available in three expressions, color-coded for easy identity: * ''D'' (red label) "For Dry Hair" * ''O'' (yellow label) "For Oily Hair" * ''N'' (blue label) "For Normal Hair" In 1963, Breck was sold to Shulton Division of

American Cyanamid American Cyanamid Company was a leading American conglomerate which became one of the nation's top 100 manufacturing companies during the 1970s and 1980s, according to the Fortune 500 listings at the time. It started in fertilizer, but added ...

, a chemical company based in New Jersey. Breck was sold to The Dial Corporation in 1990. In 2001, Dial licensed Breck to The Himmel Group and in 2006 it was licensed to

Dollar Tree Dollar Tree, Inc. is an American multi-price-point chain of discount variety stores. Headquartered in Chesapeake, Virginia, it is a ''Fortune'' 500 company and operates 15,115 stores throughout the 48 contiguous U.S. states and Canada. Its st ...

. The Dial Corporation (now

Henkel North American Consumer Goods Henkel Corporation, doing business as Henkel North American Consumer Goods, and formerly The Dial Corporation, is an American company based in Stamford, Connecticut. It is a manufacturer of personal care and household cleaning products, and is a ...

) continues to market Breck shampoo in the institutional market.

Breck Girls

In 1936, son Edward J. Breck (1907–1993) assumed management of Breck Shampoo and hired commercial artist Charles Gates Sheldon (1889 – 1961) to draw women for their advertisements. Sheldon's early portraits for Breck were done in pastels, with a soft focus and halos of light and color surrounding them. He created romantic images of feminine beauty and purity. He preferred to draw "real women" as opposed to professional models. In 1957 Ralph William Williams succeeded Sheldon as the Breck artist. Unlike Sheldon, he often used professional women. Breck advertisements ran regularly in magazines such as '' Ladies Home Journal'', '' Woman's Home Companion'', ''

Seventeen Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine * ''Seventeen'' (Japanese m ...

'', '' Vogue'', ''

Glamour Glamour may refer to: Arts Film * ''Glamour'' (1931 film), a British film * ''Glamour'' (1934 film), an American film * ''Glamour'' (2000 film), a Hungarian film Writing * ''Glamour'' (magazine), a magazine for women * ''The Glamour ...

'', and ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. It was first published in New York City on November 2, 1867, as the weekly ''Harper's Bazar''. ''Harper's Bazaar'' is published by Hearst and considers itself to be the st ...

''. They were most often on the back cover of the magazine. During these years, Breck Girls were identified through the company's sponsorship of America's Junior Miss contests. After Williams' death in 1976, the advertising tradition stopped. It was relaunched in 1987 with portrait artist Robert Anderson. Celia Gouge from Atlanta was chosen as the 1987 Breck Girl. Joanne DeLavan O'Donnell, also from Atlanta, was chosen as the 1988 Breck Girl. In 1988, the then owner of the brand changed the name of the campaign spokesperson to The Breck Woman. The Breck Girls ads are archived in the advertising history records in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. * 1937 Roma Whitney Armstrong at age 17, first Breck Girl * 1937 Anya Taranda (1915–1970) * 1937

Alice Anderson Alice Anderson (born 1972) is a French-British artist who studied Fine Art at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris and Goldsmiths College, London. She currently lives and works in London. Anderson works primarily with copp ...

(1917–?) * 1948 Marylin Skelton * 1962 Marie T. Kelly Hynes * 1963 Ginny Guild * 1965

Patti Boyd Patricia Anne Boyd (born 17 March 1944) is an English model and photographer. She was one of the leading international models during the 1960s and, with Jean Shrimpton, epitomised the British female look of the era. Boyd married George Harris ...

* 1968 Cheryl Tiegs * 1968 Cybill Shepherd * 1971, 1973 Jaclyn Smith * 1972, 1974 Kim Basinger * 1974

Brooke Shields Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress and model. She was initially a child model and gained critical acclaim at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film ''Pretty Baby'' (1978). She continued to model into ...

* 1975

Farrah Fawcett Farrah Leni Fawcett (born Ferrah Leni Fawcett; February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009) was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she playe ...

* 1976 Erin Gray * 1978 Michelle Robin * 1981 Christie Brinkley * 1987 Cecilia Gouge (bringing back the Breck girl after a hiatus with a non-model career woman) * 1988 Joanne DeLavan O'Donnell

References

{{reflist
Breck Girls Collection c1936-1995
by Mimi Minnick, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Charles Sheldon
Grapefruit Moon Gallery

American Art Archives * Goodrum, Charles & Helen Dalrymple, Advertising in America: the First 200 Years, New York, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1990, first ed. Companies based in Springfield, Massachusetts Henkel brands Shampoo brands Products introduced in 1930