Details - Public Health Image Library(PHIL)

ID#:

7190

Caption:

This 1963 photograph shows Communicable Disease Center’s (CDC) Wellbee, a cartoon character, who was created to personify public health at Fenway Park with Boston Red Sox Team members, pitcher, (left to right) Bill Monbouquette, relief pitcher, Dick “The Monster” Radatz, and shortstop, Eddie Bressoud. CDC used Wellbee in a comprehensive marketing campaign that included newspapers, posters, leaflets, radio and television, as well as personal appearances at public health events. Wellbee’s first assignment was to sponsor Sabin Type II oral polio vaccine (OPV) campaigns across the United States. Later, Wellbee’s character was incorporated into other health promotion campaigns that included diphtheria and tetanus immunizations, hand-washing, physical fitness, and injury prevention. This artifact can be viewed, by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) David J. Sencer CDC Museum, located in Atlanta, Georgia.