33 Fun Facts About Dr Pepper

Dr Pepper was created in the 1880s in which Texas city?

Waco it was: before the drink had its famous name, customers at the soda fountain there ordered it by asking for 'a Waco'.

What was the profession of Charles Alderton, who formulated Dr Pepper?

Pharmacist Charles Alderton cared more about filling prescriptions than selling soda, so he left the store's owner and a beverage chemist to develop his drink.

Which American Idol alumnus played the tiny crooner 'Lil' Sweet' in Diet Dr Pepper commercials from 2015?

Justin Guarini, Idol's first runner-up, had already co-starred with Kelly Clarkson in the 2003 musical From Justin to Kelly.

Dr Pepper was introduced to a national audience at which 1904 event?

The Louisiana Purchase Exposition gave the drink a national stage, yet for decades afterward Dr Pepper sold mostly in Texas and the South.

According to the brand, Dr Pepper is a proprietary combination of how many flavors?

23 flavors is the brand's pitch, a blend Charles Alderton hit on after numerous experiments mixing fruit flavors at a soda fountain.

A persistent rumour since the 1930s claims Dr Pepper contains what ingredient?

Prune juice was never an ingredient: the company insists it isn't in Dr Pepper now and never has been.

According to one famous promotion, 'Dr Pepper Time' came at which three times of day?

10, 2 and 4 came from research finding people's energy slumps around 10:30, 2:30 and 4:30, so the ads urged drinkers to 'Drink a Bite to Eat' then.

Which unusual way of serving Dr Pepper did the company push in the late 1950s and 1960s?

Hot, with lemon slices: the company pitched warm Dr Pepper as a winter alternative to cold soft drinks.

Dr Pepper Girl Donna Loren appeared in which 1960s movie series?

The Beach Party films: in her first, Muscle Beach Party, she sang a duet with Dick Dale.

In which film does the hero drink 15 Dr Peppers at the White House before meeting President Kennedy?

Forrest Gump: when Kennedy asks how he feels, Forrest blurts out that he has to pee, and the president repeats it.

Which actor fronted the dancing 'Be a Pepper' commercials of the late 1970s and early 1980s?

David Naughton sang and danced as the lead Pepper from 1977, and while the campaign ran on he became the star of An American Werewolf in London.

What was the Atlanta rival's 1972 Dr Pepper imitation 'Peppo' renamed after Dr Pepper sued?

Mr. Pibb was the new name, adopted in 1972 after the trademark lawsuit; the drink was reformulated in 2001 as Pibb Xtra with a stronger cinnamon note.

Dr Pepper tied itself to 1960s rock and roll through the host of which TV music show?

American Bandstand's Dick Clark became a Dr Pepper ad icon, and the brand's 'Dr Pepper Girl' even co-hosted a TV special with him.

Which British company bought Dr Pepper/Seven Up in 1995?

Cadbury Schweppes, the chocolate-and-mixers group, ran Dr Pepper until 2008, when it spun off its American drinks business as a separate company.

Dr Pepper's American parent company from 2008 to 2018 was named after Dr Pepper and which iced-tea brand?

Snapple dropped out of the company's name in 2018, when a merger gave the business its new title.

Which coffee-pod company acquired Dr Pepper's parent company in July 2018?

Keurig paid Dr Pepper's shareholders a special dividend of $103.75 a share, yet they kept 13% of the combined Keurig Dr Pepper.

In 2024, Dr Pepper drew level with which brand as America's second best-selling soda?

Pepsi was drawn level after years of steady gains for Dr Pepper, helped by heavy marketing and a run of new flavors.

What did a 1960s US court ruling about Dr Pepper let rival soft-drink bottlers do?

Sell it with their colas: once a court ruled Dr Pepper was not a cola, bottlers whose deals barred rival colas could carry it too.

Dublin Dr Pepper, made in Dublin, Texas, was famous for refusing to switch from cane sugar to what?

Corn syrup never went into Dublin's bottles: its owner kept cane sugar, and diehard fans made pilgrimages to the small town to buy them.

When Dr Pepper's owner sued the Dublin, Texas, bottler in 2011, what did it accuse the bottler of?

Selling outside its territory was one charge; the January 2012 settlement ended Dublin Dr Pepper, and the plant carried on as Dublin Bottling Works.

In 2008 Dr Pepper promised everyone in America a free can if which band released its long-delayed album?

Guns N' Roses' former guitarist Buckethead was excluded from the offer, even though some of his playing is on the album.

How did Dr Pepper's 2008 promise of a free can for every American turn out?

The online coupons proved inadequate: the website crashed on release day, and the singer's lawyer demanded full-page apologies in four national papers.

Which basketball great joined Dr. Dre in Dr Pepper's celebrity 'doctor' ads?

Julius Erving, 'Dr. J', told viewers the soda tastes better sipped slowly, the pitch the campaign sold as 'Doctor's orders'.

As of 2025, which soda brand shares a parent company with Dr Pepper?

Canada Dry: Dr Pepper bought it in 1982 but sold it in 1984 to pay down buyout debt, and the two brands later came back under one owner.

As of 2025, Dr Pepper's parent company has its Texas headquarters in which Dallas suburb?

Frisco: the company moved its Texas head office there from Plano, into The Star, the Dallas Cowboys' headquarters campus.

At which drugstore soda fountain was Dr Pepper first served?

Morrison's Old Corner Drug Store, owned by Wade Morrison, was where Charles Alderton served the first Dr Pepper at the soda fountain in the mid-1880s.

Which rock star appeared as 'Dr Love' in Dr Pepper Cherry commercials?

Gene Simmons suited the ads' doctor theme thanks to Kiss's song 'Calling Dr. Love', which he wrote and sang lead on.

Which candy maker produces an official Dr Pepper-flavoured bean?

Jelly Belly sells an official Dr Pepper jelly bean, one of several licensed spin-offs alongside Dr Pepper Lip Smackers balm and a Dr Pepper Slurpee at 7-Eleven.

At college football championship games, Dr Pepper's halftime contest lets students win what?

The Dr Pepper Tuition Giveaway, run since the late 2000s, has finalists throw footballs into an oversized Dr Pepper can at halftime of conference championship games for $100,000 in tuition.

Dr Pepper's 'Drink it slow' celebrity ads ended with each star saying what line?

Trust me. I'm a doctor, said stars whose only link to medicine was a nickname or a TV role, spoofing real doctors' endorsements.

Which movie monster appeared in Dr Pepper's 1980s 'Out of the Ordinary' commercials?

Godzilla fronted a Dr Pepper campaign for the US release of Godzilla 1985, and the soda was written into the film's new American scenes.

Which singer-songwriter co-wrote the 1970s jingle 'The Most Original Soft Drink Ever'?

Randy Newman co-wrote it with Jake Holmes, and the voice on it belonged to Barry Manilow, then a jingle singer years before his pop stardom.

Dr Pepper's WWII-era radio show, named after its slogan times, starred which Western singing group?

Sons of the Pioneers had been co-founded in 1933 by Leonard Slye, who left in 1937 to become singing cowboy star Roy Rogers.