In 1962, J. Walter Thompson, the country's largest advertising company, ran a contest to create a jingle that the Oscar Mayer Co. could use to advertise hot dogs. Richard Trentlage, a Chicago ad man, won the contest with a tune called "The Wiener Song" whose lyrics were:

Oh, I wish I were an Oscar Mayer Wiener,
That is what I'd truly like to be-ee-ee.
'Cause if I were an Oscar Mayer Wiener,
Everyone would be in love with me.

Trentlage's jingle appeared in commercials that reached an estimated 49 million families. In its long career, "The Wiener Song" has been aired in 19 countries, featured on a Hallmark card, and become ubiquitous in American popular culture. To view more information, including the musical score and detailed background information, visit our Curators' Favorites page on Trentlage and his jingle.

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