Percobarb ad
Contributed by Florian Hardwig on Aug 20th, 2023. Artwork published in
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Source: www.villagevoice.com License: All Rights Reserved.
A 1969 double-page ad designed by Milton Glaser for Percobarb, Endo Pharmaceuticals’ brand name for oxycodone, an opioid used medically for treatment of moderate to severe pain.
When headache is severe enough to ask for help
The illustration can be read as a pained variation of Glasers iconic “Dylan” poster (1967), with the multicolored hair transformed into ominous thunderclouds from which lightning flashes. “Percobarb” is set in the North Shaded style of Glaser’s own Eightway, designed together with George Leavitt. The tagline is in Advertisers Gothic, with small copy set in Futura.
This work, along with numerous others, is included in Milton Glaser: Pop, a recently published monograph edited by Steven Heller, Mirko Ilić, and Beth Kleber.
