1/29/2011:
We can all picture the Smiley Face that became so popular back in the late 60s, early 70s. They probably would have fit in well with a campaign that began in North Dakota during this week in 1918. The Smileage Campaign came out of a plan to finance the entertainment services for military training camps. Local committees were asked to sell Smileage Books, which consisted of coupons that allowed a soldier admission to Liberty theaters, Liberty tents and auditoriums that had been set up in National Army cantonments or National Guard camps. 20 coupons were one dollar, and they came in books of 20 or 100. A goal of selling one million dollars worth of Smileage Books was set, but as the promoters stated, if one million smiles are good for our boys, won’t two million be better?
Dakota Datebook written by Jim Davis
Source:
The Bowman County Pioneer January 24, 1918