Painless Parker
Eccentric Cupertino Dentist
Edgar R.R. "Painless" Parker (1871-1951) was a flamboyant street dentist and huckster. He attended Philadelphia Dental College which would become Temple University dental school, and began his practice as a street dentist in New York City. He went on to manage a combination traveling circus/dental clinic, promoting "painless dentistry". At one point he claimed to have pulled 357 teeth in one day, which he strung on a necklace. He legally changed his first name to "Painless", when he was accused of breaking a false advertisement law by claiming that his dentistry was truly painless. In the end, Parker ran about 30 West Coast dental offices, employing over 70 dentists, and grossing $3 million per year.
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Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Painless Parker Exhibit 2023
Born Edgar Randolph Parker March 22 1872 in Tynemouth Creek, New Brunswick, Canada
At the age of 14 in July 1884 Edgar went to sea as part of a fishing crew before he entered Acadia college. He left from the Harbour at St. Martins in New Brunswick. He loved to sail his entire life, and swore he would someday own a boat of his own.
"On May 28th 1892 I Edgar R. Parker and 4 other classmates all received our diplomas from Philadelphia Dental College by the skin of our teeth so to say" - Painless Parker's Scrapbook
"I asked myself 'if it is possible to preach the word of the Gospel to the accompaniment of a cornet and a drum why would it be unethical to hold a public dental demonstration'" - Painless Parker's Scrapbook
"A circus is one of the greatest places to study human nature" - William Beebe
"For your benefit and enlightenment Dr. Parker will deliver his celebrated world famous educational lecture on dental hygiene! Pay close attention to this vital subject!"
This flatiron shaped building at the intersection of Flatbush and State streets in Brooklyn was purchased by Painess for $60,000. Shortly after this a subway was constructed underneath and the building had to be closed for over two years. This was the catalyst for his move to California.
"By 1913 dozens of circuses were being driven out of existence by the emerging film industry. One day reading the paper I came across an actual bankrupt circus for sale. The lease on the outskirts of L.A. was about to expire and I paid only $50,000 for the entire operation including lions, trapeze artists, sword swallowers, dancing girls...and Four Indian elephants."
"I called it The Parker Dental Circus and we staged performances up and down the California coast. I placed my picture inside a huge molar, set up my tent between the tattoed lady and the living skeleton and called it "The Painless Parker Medical & Dental Clinic". It was fully staffed with 4 each of dentists, physicians, and nurses. I designed thousands of dollars of portable equipment."
"Wearing my bullet ridden top hat, cutaway coat, striped trousers and at least 15 Carats of diamonds. At the appropriate moment I would bound into the ring and give the audience grisly descriptions of the vicious little micro organisms that were boring holes into their tooth enamel undoubtably at that very moment! I then urged the people to follow me into the tent for treatment!"
They were known for huge signage that was sometimes several stories tall.
They were known for huge signage that was sometimes several stories tall.
She devoted most of her adult life to managing the E.R. Parker Systems business paperwork and correspondence. She also acted as Painless' personal assistant, keeping his calendar and schedule.
Seth C. Maker DDS started as the publicist for the E.R. Parker system in 1921. He created and was the voice of the Parker University Radio Show starting in 1922 out of KFON Long Beach. Shortly after it was heard on 30+ Pacific Coast radio stations. Being a dentist himself he could speak knowledgably on the subject.
Married August 2 1896 Brooklyn NYC
Fremont Older was the crusading editor of the San Francisco Bulletin who single handedly fought graft & corruption in the Bay Area. He & his wife Cora were the Parkers neighbors in Cupertino. Older published Painless' biography "Outlaw" in serial chapters in the newspaper to great popularity.
Back row: Dorothy age 16, Rover, Frances age 37
Front row: Jane age 10, Bud the dog, Dr. Parker age 41, Ned age 2, Helen age 13
Oldest child Dorothy and Dr. Parker about two months before her car accident.
Painless finally found his dream ship. He bought her for 86K in S. California and sailed back up the coast. The IDALIA was a 75 food 34 ton schooner crafted by the celebrated yacht builders George Lawley & Sons of Boston in 1906
Dr. Parker & Frances celebrated their 47th wedding anniversary quietly on August 2nd 1943. Frances had suffered a series of strokes starting in 1940. She was very weak. Two weeks later on August 16th Frances died in a San Jose hospital. She was buried in Madronia Cemetery in Saratoga where Painless would be laid to rest beside her seven years later.
Four days after the death of Dr. Parker, his son in law George Hewson DDS sent a letter to all west coast clinics informing them he was the new General Manager and that every step would be taken to carry on business as usual. However, within six weeks of his death the CA State Dental Board ordered that ALL Painless Parker advertising signs must be removed. By February 1953 the last sign was taken down in the state of California. Over the next few years other states followed. Each office had to be sold as a separate entity to the individual dentists. Sometimes the offices were simply abandoned. By mid-1954 individual state board degrees removed all E.R. Parker System operations. It took many years to settle Edgar and Frances' estates as he had never pre arranged for an orderly succession of leadership.
Painless Parker
Eccentric Cupertino Dentist
Thanks to Henrietta Marcotte, a founder of Cupertino Historical Society and Cupertino Museum, the story of Painless Parker saw the light of day many years ago in a Cupertino Scene "Roots" article. Parker's story is the stuff of unbridled hyperbole but as the inimitable humorist Dave Barry used to say" am NOT making this up!"
Painless Parker was a real person and he really lived in Cupertino in the early 1900's. Born in New Brunswick, Canada in 1874, Edgar R. Parker must have been a handful as a child and young adult. His parents decided his loud voice and outgoing demeanor would perfectly suit a Baptist preacher. He was dispatched to a seminary where his escapades did not go well in such a staid atmosphere, and he was asked to leave. Fearing parental displeasure, he went off to sea instead, which only increased his worldliness. Upon returning home, he was again sent to seminary - where his behavior so affronted the educators that once again, he was asked to leave. He then went to dental school - where his academic prowess was not impressive - nonetheless he began to practice dentistry in people's homes, before getting his certificate of proficiency. Once again, he stood in danger of being expelled, but somehow convinced the dean to let him continue and he finally graduated.
His ensuing career is the stuff of Hollywood at its most fantastical. He was not making any money in his new career so he went into the Canadian wilds with his small bag of dental tools and a coronet (a type of trumpet). He went to logging and mining camps, loudly blowing his horn to gather a crowd and then pull teeth for the inhabitants, including ladies of the evening. While in the Canadian wilderness, he once was captured by a local indigenous group and despaired of his life. Rescue came in the form of the tribal chief, an elderly fellow with a horrible toothache. Parker saw his chance. He convinced the chief's tribe that he could cure their chief. Reluctantly, they assented. Parker began to blow his trumpet - which only made the tribal men more agitated and hostile. He explained he was summoning the great spirit of dentistry - which was necessary to his curing procedure. As the men became increasingly agitated, Parker blew with all his might and holding his teeth pulling pliers with his other hand, proceeded to yank out the chief's offending tooth - at which point the man fainted. Parker assured the tribe that the chief had merely fallen asleep, and the great spirit of dentistry would wake him when he felt better. Somehow Parker managed to steal away and lived to pull teeth another day.
It was a happy day for Edgar R. Parker when he met up with Bill Beebe - a former pitchman for Barnum & Bailey circus. Beebe convinced Parker to change his name to "Painless Parker" and claim that he and only he - could pull teeth with no pain. Parker's billboards carried his huge picture with the statement. Of course, a mixture of water and cocaine (hydrocaine) usually rendered the patient insensible during the procedure, though Parker also employed a brass band on his public teeth pulling excursions - to drown out any yelps from his "patients." He became increasingly wealthy using his highly unusual self-promotion methods and incurred the wrath of fellow dental practitioners - necessitating Parker hiring a battery of lawyers to manage the ensuing lawsuits - which only increased his visibility. His huge painted signs on buildings proclaimed, "I am positively IT in painless dentistry." He moved from the east to Los Angeles where his fame and notoriety grew greater. Painless Parker is most assuredly the only dentist in America to have his own circus. Riding elephants from town to town, drawing large crowds wherever he went, he pulled teeth in a horse drawn wagon carrying a dental chair. There is an amazing publicity photo of him filling the teeth of a hippopotamus.
In the early 1900's, Parker, his wife and children moved from Los Angeles to Cupertino. He bought Henry Farr's large home and property on Prospect Road, known as Grandview. While wife Frances and the children stayed in Cupertino, Parker commuted by train to San Francisco, painted a huge sign proclaiming his painless dentistry and flamboyant claims on the sides of the building and set up business. Claiming to have pulled 357 teeth in one day, he wore the teeth in a necklace. Painless Parker did so well in San Francisco that he established twenty-eight franchise dental offices in California, Oregon, and Washington. He bought a yacht and sailed the Bay, enjoying respite from the pressures of his dental practice. Collier's Magazine did a 3-part story on Parker's life. He was the most well known dentist in America for many years but after his death in 1952, his franchises, for the most part, were shut down and every effort was made to more or less erase his name. He and his wife Frances lie at rest under small plaques at Madronia Cemetery in Saratoga. Parker Ranch on Prospect Rd. Is the only reminder of the most flamboyant dentist that ever practiced in America.
Photographs and text on Parker's outrageous life, exploits and the "tooth necklace"(replica!) are on display at the Cupertino Museum. Also on exhibit are a life-size Painless Parker and a Cupertino farmer seated in a vintage dental chair - about to experience "painless" tooth pulling and drilling accompanied by a vintage foot powered electric drill.
Painless Parker Articles and Research from CHSM Archives
The saga of Painless Parker
For more on this topic, go to www.dentaleconomics.com and search using the following key words:
Novocain, extraction, Painless Parker, hydrocaine, preventive dentistry, Dr. Michael DiTolla.
I am a big fan of biographies of successful people from all walks of life. So when I happened to find one floating around on eBay from our profession, “The Early Adventures of Painless Parker” by Peter M. Pronych and Arden G. Christen, I jumped at the chance to read about a dentist who — at one point — was more famous than the president.
Early in my career, I remember working on a female patient who, after a painless extraction said, “Wow, you are a real Painless Parker.” I thanked her for the compliment, but asked her about the expression since I had never heard it previously.
She went on to tell me about Painless Parker, a dentist from the turn of the century, who was world-renowned for performing painless extractions. This made no sense to me. My dad had practiced dentistry since the early 1960s, and he told me how unreliable Novocain was then ? let alone 60 years earlier. Whether his extractions were painless is debatable, but he truly had a passion for bringing dentistry to the working class at an affordable price.
Whether you love or hate his tactics, I don't think you will be bored with the trials and tribulations of Painless Parker. Incidentally, when the dental board of California told him he could no longer call himself “Painless Parker,” he went to court and legally changed his name from “Edgar” to “Painless.” Believe it or not, this is one of the least controversial things he did.
In May 1892, Parker graduated from Philadelphia Dental College with a DDS degree. His graduating class included four other students. After graduation, he decided to practice in his hometown of St. Martins in New Brunswick, Canada.
While he wanted to tell the locals about his skills, he had been taught in dental school that it was unethical to solicit work directly. Parker had been taught that it was acceptable to solicit work by joining clubs, and to never decline an invitation to be seen at a public place.
Six weeks after opening his office, he still had not seen a single patient. Hope finally arrived in the shape of a local sign painter whom Parker knew hated his dentures. Parker offered him new dentures in exchange for a sign for the practice.
The painter wanted Parker to make the dentures first so he could try them, and then he would make the sign. Parker agreed since he had no money. The painter loved the dentures and, with much appreciation, made a huge sign with gold paint for the practice. Parker was somewhat embarrassed by its size, so he instructed the painter to put the sign up at night so no one would see it.
The next day Parker expected there to be a line of patients around his office, but it never materialized. In fact, when Parker showed up to work the next day, he found the sign was missing! Later that day he found the sign: it had been nailed to the train station's outhouse door — most likely by one of the town's other dentists!
Embarrassed to be seen taking the sign down, Parker again waited for the cloak of night to remove the sign and replace it at work. The sign attracted one patient in his first 90 days of practice, a tourist who needed an extraction. Parker removed the tooth and charged him $1 (that's $21 today when adjusted for inflation). Although the patient only had 75 cents, Parker was happy to accept the money. Finally, he had been paid for performing dentistry.
While I certainly wouldn't want to follow in Parker's footsteps, I was drawn to the story of his personal struggles. Parker started his practice with dignity, but soon found that dignity wouldn't pay the bills. Unlike most dentists, he found he enjoyed being a dentist and a salesman at the same time. This drove his decision to take the story of preventive dentistry straight to the people.
Armed with an aqueous solution of cocaine he called “hydrocaine,” Parker shared his message on street corners where he offered painless extractions for 50 cents. He promised that, if the extraction hurt, he would pay patients $5! The first night he extracted 12 teeth and didn't have to give anyone the money. He found this surprising because, after the seventh patient, he ran out of hydrocaine!
Painless Parker is certainly the most fascinating dentist I'm aware of. His story will entertain and educate you. One of the authors, Dr. Christen, still has copies of the book available, even though it is technically no longer in print. To obtain copies, contact Dr. Christen via e-mail at achristen@iupui.edu.
Painless Parker History
"God hates those who do not take care of their teeth." - Edgar Randolph "Painless" Parker, DDS (1872-1952)
Painless Parker was a flamboyant dentist who used show girls, circuses and whatever other distractions he could think of to bring dentistry to the masses. He also fathered the modem concept of a group dental practice, in which all services are available under one roof.
Dancing girls aside, Parker was a 19th century proponent of preventive dentistry, a tireless promoter of dentistry for the working class, and a man who believed in advertising. Attired in a top hat, crisp white coat and a necklace made of teeth he'd extracted, Parker once operated a traveling circus/dental clinic and hired brass bands to play as he extracted teeth. However, in the end he operated 30 West Coast dental offices, employed 75 dentists and grossed $3 million per year. Labeled "a menace to the dignity of the profession" by the American Dental Association, most of his colleagues detested Parker, considering him a quack-whether it was because of the outrageous promotion of his business or because of his success remains unknown.
Canadian by birth, Parker entered Philadelphia Dental College in 1890. The school, now the Temple University School of Dentistry, is the proud owner of a wooden bucket of teeth removed by Painless Parker.
Parker believed that patients avoided dentistry because of pain, ignorance, procrastination and lack of money-and of these, fear was the strongest deterrent. Working with a local druggist, Parker developed hydrocaine, an analgesic that contained cocaine. After testing the drug on himself, Parker took his show on the road-literally. Parker began as a "street dentist," setting up a dental chair on the back of a wagon. He offered to extract teeth for 50 cents, and he guaranteed patients that if they felt pain, he would reimburse them $5. He billed himself as "Painless Parker, the famous dentist," promising to fix teeth at a reasonable price using the "E.R. Parker System," which sometimes meant that he contracted with a bugler who stood behind the patient and let fly with a mighty blast at the precise moment that Parker extracted the tooth.
Parker's bombastic methods did not endear him to his colleagues. The Canadian Dental Association, for example, passed a rule designed specifically to put Parker out of business. Authorities arrested him for practicing without having paid a $2 registration fee, a requirement which had become effective two days before Parker's apprehension.
Parker eventually opened shop in Brooklyn, NY. His public demonstrations often began with fervent dental health sermons and poetry readings. He frequently extracted teeth to the sound of drumbeats, which drowned out any yelps of patient pain. By 1904, Parker was worth a half-million tax-free dollars and owned an estate on Long Island. However, when New York state law forbade dentists the use of an assumed name, he packed his bags and moved to California.
Parker opened shop on a Los Angeles street in 1906, beginning with his usual vigorous lecture on the evils of tooth neglect and the horrors of decay. Within four years, Parker amassed a fortune well in excess of what he earned in New York and earned the ire of his California colleagues.
Attacked as unethical and incompetent, Parker retaliated with a series of advertisements in which he alleged that other dentists charged exorbitant fees, catered to the wealthy and ignored the needs of the indigent. By 1914, with his successful dental circus on the road, Parker's advertisements painted organized dentistry as a trust that would prefer to see an edentulous nation rather than lower its fees. Hauled into court innumerable times, Parker beat every case. However, in 1915, he officially changed his named to "Painless" so that he could use the name "Painless Parker." He founded the California Dental Supply Company, in his wife's name, and every dentist who worked for him had to lease space and equipment from him.
By the time he died in November 1952, Parker, who had diversified into real estate, was app06_14l_portrait multi-millionaire. During his life, he popularized dentistry, convinced people that oral health was important and created the modem group practice concept that became the model eventually adopted by the military during World War II.
He is also the only dentist to have extracted 357 teeth in one afternoon on a vaudeville stage.
Painless Parker Research
Edgar R.R. "Painless" Parker was a dentist who wore a top hat and a tooth necklace. He was a P. T. Barnum-like promoter whose gimmicks included pulling 357 teeth in one day, which he strung as a necklace. Below is a very unusual wooden pail filled with teeth pulled by this remarkable showman:
Just like the showmen who traveled early America in wagons, rolling from town to town with their shows, Parker would arrive in town in a horse-drawn wagon proclaiming that he practiced "painless" dentistry. He would give his patients whiskey and who knows what else, while a hired band loudly played popular music of the day. Apparently, the purpose of the music was to drown out the moans of pain while attracting large crowds of sufferers who might decide to go ahead and get that pesky tooth pulled.
You won't be surprised to learn that the dentists of the day were outraged at his antics. The American Dental Association labeled him as "a menace to the dignity of the profession" and swore they were going to put him out of business. Naturally, this just boosted his fame and attention from the media.
To run him out of the dental business, they accused him of fraud because no dentistry could truly be painless and took legal action to force him to drop his claims. This is where most people would give up - but not Parker. Instead, he had his name legally changed to "Painless". thus foiling his fellow dentists.
The Internet encyclopedia has this to say about him:
"Edgar R.R. "Painless" Parker (1871-1951) was a flamboyant dentist and huckster"
I looked up the definition of huckster and found this:
- One who sells wares or provisions in the street; a peddler or hawker.
- One who uses aggressive, showy, and sometimes devious methods to promote or sell a product.
- Informal. One who writes advertising copy, especially for radio or television
Obviously, #3 isn't appropriate for this clever man, but the first two definitely fit. The result of his marketing skill was a chain of 30 offices and 70 dentists working for him.
So is Painless Parker an admirable character? Maybe or maybe not. But there is no doubt that he was a brilliant marketer and was able to take any situation and tum it to his advantage. I definitely admire his cleverness and creative mind. If I wanted a teacher for Internet branding, I could never do better than him. And neither could you.
And an amusing PS: the bucket of teeth (picture above) is found at the Temple University dental museum. The establishment dentists hated Parker - but the museum was forced to acknowledge him because he graduated from the Philadelphia Dental College, which became Temple's School of Dentistry.