Safety Razors

Happy over winning a Federal court decision, the managers of the International Safety Razor Corp. last week hastened to advertise the sale of their corporate stock. The American Safety Razor Corp. had sued the company for infringement and unfair trade practices because International had advertised that the blades it made would fit "Gem," "Ever-Ready"' and "Star" holders (all made by Ameri-can), and that its holders would use "Gem," "Ever-Ready" and "Star" blades. American Safety Razor was incorporated in Virginia in 1919. William Crapo Durant is one of its directors. It makes 100,000,000 blades a year. Only Gillette Safety Razor Co. exceeds it in output. When American paid the makers of "Gem" $4,000,000 for their business, $3,600,000 was for "goodwill." American also bought "Ever-Ready" goodwill for $4,560,000, and the "Star" trademark for $250,000. The goodwill meant money spent advertising those razors and blades. In six years after buying these brands American Safety Razor spent $4,000,000 more on advertising. Therefore its officials were vexed with International Safety Razor for selling similar products.* They sued and expected to win. But International's lawyers thundered that American did not come into court "with clean hands." In support of this charge, they presented certain of American's advertisements to the court. One advertisement read: "Each is equipped with blades of the keenest edge --Gem Double Life Blades retail 7 for 50 cents." Another read: "Ever-Ready Radio blades possess the keenest cutting edge known to science of Metallurgy--6 for 50-c-." And American's own superintendent, one Mr. Elflam, testified that "Ever-Ready," "Gem" and "Star" blades were made from the same metal and in the same way--that they were in all respects identical except for name and wrapper. American's lawyers said that all this was ordinary business puffing. All this was enough to cause Judge William Nelson Runyan of the New Jersey Federal District Court to throw out the American Safety Razor's case.

* Shrewd, International sells its blades and holders chiefly through chain and mail order stores--F. W. Woolworth; McCrory; J. C. Penney; Sears, Roebuck; Montgomery Ward; American News.