Tonight's episode of the Travel Channel's "Mysteries at the Museum" will feature Baltimore's own National Museum of Dentistry.
The "mystery," according to a news release from the Travel Channel? How one ad man got a nation of people with no concept of dental hygiene (and many gaps in their teeth) to start brushing. When Claude Hopkins got the account of new Pepsodent toothpaste around the turn of the 20th century, Americans generally didn't brush -- they already figured they'd eventually lose their teeth. The episode features one of those early boxes of Pepsodent, so critical in literally changing the face -- or at least the smile -- of America.
The episode airs at 9 tonight.