PERSONNEL: Consumer's Report

In 1933, when Arthur Kallet co-authored a bestselling exposé of dangerous drugs hidden in popular products (100,000,000 Guinea Pigs), advertisers turned apoplectic and many a consumer turned pale. Kallet, a dark, intense young M.I.T.-trained engineer with a talent for pricking advertising humbug, had learned much of his lore by working with co-author Frederick J. Schlink's Consumers Research, Inc. which reported on the quality of consumer products.

After a break with Schlink, Kallet in 1936 formed his rival Consumers Union, which eventually outdistanced Consumers Research to become the best-known tester of consumer...

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