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Tube hype has been with us about as long has tubes have.
These is but a small sample of old advertising (including ads for radio, TV, railroads, buses, airlines, and beauty products) from 1915 to 1955 that you can find at Duke University Library's Ad*Access site.

• Arcturus, the original blue glass tubes. 1929.
• Ceco was an old time tube distributor who merged with Richardson in the 1980's.
• Champion Tube Works, announcement of Power Pentode tubes (179kb jpeg). 1931
• Cunningham, 1928. Cunningham was absorbed by RCA.
• DeForest not only invented the vacuum tube, he invented vacuum tube hype as well. (378 kb jpeg) 1929
• Eimac has been making industrial & broadcast tubes since the late 1930's.
• Ergon Tubes. "Forward March to Better Radio Reception!" (113 kb jpeg) 1931
• Hygrade Lamp, "Millions upon millions of lamps and tubes you can trust!" (79 kb jpeg). I believe Hygrade merged with Sylvania not long after this ad was printed. 1931
• The Jefferson Tube Rejuvenator. (217 kb jpeg) Should still work if you use tungsten filament DHT's.
• JRC tubes, 1930.
• Ken-Rad, 1930. Ken-Rad was later purchased by GE (1952) and became GE's main tube making facility.
• A World War II Ken-Rad advertisement.(187 kb jpeg) The building pictured (on Sixth St in Owensboro, KY) is still in existence and microwave tubes are made there by MPD, Inc.
• Majestic, 1930.
• National Union tubes, brought to you by the Davega Song Birds. 1930.
• Paramount Tube Sale. '50's weren't cheap even then, $11 list was a fair chunk o' change in 1930!
• Perryman Radio Tubes, "Stop and Think While You Listen (63 kb jpeg) 1930.
• Raytheon, 1946.
• RCA, 1929.
• Sonatron, the "Quality Tube That Makes Every Set Better" (56 kb jpeg)
• Speed Tubes, 1930
• Sylvania, 1930
• Tung-Sol, 1930
• Most of us know Western Electric made tubes, but did you know they made tube hearing aids (57kb jpeg) as well?
• Westinghouse, 1930