In Search Of The Sons Of Barnum

I recently found some more documentation on some of the first commerical PR stunts of the 1920s, (lest we forget the poster for Decantle, the great exotic dancer!). One of the largest horticultural centres, Lachret Howes, in Montana decided to pay their respects to the President on his visit to Montana by creating the first ever message in flowers.

The company spent thousands of dollars importing the most rare bedding plants in over 30 different shades and colours which had to be planted with such precision to spell out a welcoming message for the President that he would see when he flew over a field adjacent to his private landing strip.

Workers toiled all the daylight hours, working out the times that each plant needed to bloom. They were limited to 48 hours before the plants would grow too unruly with the dense heat. The message was to read “Lachret Howes welcomes our President to Montana”.

Everything was in place and the plants due to bloom, when Montana had one of the rarest storms ever known for that time of the year. Before anyone could rectify the problem, the President’s plane was due to land. The chairman of Lachret Howes was furious as his message was ruined and he’d lost thousands of dollars.

When the President landed, several of his aides investigated what they were calling the hate message in the field. The chairman of Lachret Howes was aghast. What he didn’t realise was that not all of the message had been ruined, but the rain had flattened some plants and left some in tact. The plants, although not clearly visible could be read as: Crash Now President moron.