Novelty: Prohibition Era Corkscrews

What many believe to be corkscrew caricatures of Senator Volstead, author of the Prohibition Act of 1919, are actually, according to research done by Corkscrew Addict Donald Bull, based on the work of Rollin Kirby, a political cartoonist at the New York Morning World. Kirby drew his caricature -"tall, sour, weedy", as he later wrote - to depict the "canting hypocrisy" and "quasi-ecclesiastical" stance of the Prohibitionists.

Three-fourths of the states had approved the Eighteenth Amendment by January of 1919, and Prohibition went into effect in 1920. Until its repeal in 1933, vicious underworld gangs engaged in bloody conflicts over liquor markets, and thousands of men and women defied the law in speakeasies and at private parties. To our great joy, certain Americans saw a chance for merriment, with some of the results depicted on this page.

"Alas, Poor Mr. Prohibition. Born July 1919. Passed away...?"
Thus lament the liner notes for this humorous corkscrew celebrating the demise of Prohibition. Patented by Horace Bridgewater in America in 1932, this Corkscrew in a Casket "Combination Bottle Opener and Dispensing Apparatus" ingeniously combines the following: a corkscrew hat; a jigger for the body; a cork stopper in the lower body; and a bottle opener formed by the turned up shoes.
Do you eschew modern corkscrews? Consider this further writing on the packaging: "Price Complete in Mailing Carton ONE DOLLAR".

Old Snifter, with a "tale" to tell. The worm is concealed and protected, until you turn the head. Then, the old prohibitionist acquires a most unusual "tail"!

Patented in 1934 by John Suchuchardt of New York, USA

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