'Bloody Mary a La Milo' in the 1951 Ted Saucier cocktail book titled 'Bottoms Up' (page 45), appears to be the first published cocktail recipe that includes vodka, tomato juice, clam juice, and Worcestershire sauce. Ted Saucier Credits the recipe to Milo J. Sutliff, Publisher, New York. This pre-dates the version at the Polonaise nightclub in Manhattan by at least 2-3 years.
The original cocktail of vodka with seasoned tomato and clam juice made its debut at the Polonaise nightclub in Manhattan in November 1953. The drink was introduced as the "Smirnoff Smiler" by owner Paul Pawlowski. In December 1953, columnist Walter Winchell reported that the drink was seasoned with "a dash of Wooooshhhtasheer Sauce".
In 1959, cartoonist and creator of The Addams Family , Charles Addams (employed by the New Yorker magazine, a few blocks from the Polonaise nightclub in Manhattan) claimed he invented the "Gravel Gertie", a cocktail of clam/tomato juice and vodka seasoned with Tabasco sauce.
In 1962, Carl La Marca, bar manager at the Baker Hotel in Dallas, invented the "Imperial Clam Digger", adding a basil garnish and dash of lime to an existing version of the "Smirnoff Smiler", called the "Clam Digger".
In October 1968, Seagram president Victor Fischel and Mott's Clamato marketer Ray Anrig claimed to have invented the seasoned tomato/clam/vodka cocktail, the "Clamdigger" earlier in 1968, in Manhattan. Seagram, headquartered 2 blocks from the Polonaise nightclub, filed a trademark application on the name "Clamdigger" claiming first use on May 31, 1968. From late 1968 to the end of 1969, Seagram and Mott's ran a major advertising promotion of the "Clam Digger" cocktail recipe in national magazines.
The Caesar was invented in 1969 by restaurant manager Walter Chell of the Calgary Inn (today the Westin Hotel) in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He devised the cocktail after being tasked to create a signature drink for the Calgary Inn's new Italian restaurant. He mixed vodka with clam and tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, and other spices, creating a drink similar to a Bloody Mary but with a uniquely spicy flavour.
Chell said his inspiration came from Italy. He recalled that in Venice, they served Spaghetti alle vongole, spaghetti with tomato sauce and clams. He reasoned that the mixture of clams and tomato sauce would make a good drink, and mashed clams to form a "nectar" that he mixed with other ingredients.
According to Chell's granddaughter, his Italian ancestry led him to call the drink a "Caesar". The longer name of "Bloody Caesar" is said to differentiate the drink from the Bloody Mary, but Chell said it was a regular patron at the bar who served as the inspiration. During the three months he spent working to perfect the drink, he had customers sample it and offer feedback. One regular customer, an Englishman, who often ordered the drink said one day "Walter, that's a damn good bloody Caesar".
First appearance in Café Royal Cocktail Book published in 1937 by William J. Tarling
The Cobra's Fang was one of many drinks with theatrical names placed onto "The Beachcomber"'s menus, going along with the likes of the Shark's Tooth and Nelson's Blood and meant to evoke a sense of faux-danger as part of the exotic tropical mood he set for his bars. As shown on a 1941 Don the Beachcomber drink menu the Cobra's Fang cost $1 and was served in a tall curved glass.
Some feel the use of fassionola syrup was particularly important to the drink, which Beach may have brought along with him from his youth in New Orleans. Some claim fassionola was invented by Beach. Others believe that is unclear.
First appearance in Hawai'i: Tropical Rum Drinks & Cuisine By Don the Beaschcomber by Donn Beach