Dorri Partain
Contributor

Pocket-sized sports schedules are a handy way to keep track of when the hometown team is playing and how to buy tickets, as well as an advertising tool for various sponsors.

Folded, most schedules measure 2.5 by 3.75 inches, then unfold to show a complete team schedule inside, with the outside devoted to advertising. This 1976 Kansas City Royals schedule was sponsored by Falstaff Beer, and claimed with this slogan it was, “Not just another pretty beer. It’s a little lighter, a little more delicious.”

Falstaff Beer was created by the Lemp Brewery of St. Louis, Mo., in 1903. The brewery was founded in 1840 by German immigrant Johann Adam Lemp (1798-1862), who passed the brewery to his son William Sr., named for William Shakepeare’s character Sir John Falstaff, he envisioned Falstaff as a brew for “manly men.”

Jolly and rotund, Sir John Falstaff appeared in three of Shakepeare’s plays, “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” and parts 1 and 2 of “Henry IV.” Early ads depicted the character hoisting a mug and the asymmetrical shield logo that represented the character’s knighthood.

The Lemp family’s involvement with the brand ended in 1922, when William Jr. sold the brewery to the Griesedieck Beverage Company and the Lemp Brewery became the Falstaff Corporation. After a series of acquisitions, Falstaff ended up being owned by Pabst by 1990, which last produced and distributed Falstaff in 2005, but still owns the name.

As a small nod to the celebration of America’s Bicentennial that year, potential game attendees were invited to “Catch the Spirit of ‘76 with Bicentennial nights every Monday. $4.00 View Level seats available for $2.00.”