The all-American puddle of goo

Who knew that bread and gravy was America's "favorite dish"?

Or that March was once National Bread and Gravy month? (For all I know, it still is, though Google seems never to have heard the phrase.)

That crusty old guy for once isn't the revered founder of the company (Wilson & Co.); he's George Rector, their "food consultant," and his "recipe" tells you how to make gravy by, basically, making gravy, and then adding Wilson & Co.'s product, B-V.

I'm guessing B-V is short for "Beef-Vegetable," since the fine print reassures us that B-V is a delicious blend of concentrated meat extract and selected vegetable flavors. The label, however, cautions "artificially flavored."

Wilson & Co. also produced Mor, which, like Treet, was routed from the canned meat-like substance field by Spam. But I like the legend (which I've just realized I cropped out of this scan) "The Wilson label protects your table" (in almost illegible cursive at the bottom). All the cans look like a little aluminum army ready to defend Good Old Bread and Gravy from the yellow peril of fresh vegetables and lean fish.