<P> The period (full stop) after Dr was used intermittently in Dr Pepper logos until the 1950s, when, after some debate, it was discarded permanently, for stylistic and legibility reasons . A logo that debuted at that time had slanted text, in which Dr. resembled Di: . </P> <P> In 1951, Dr Pepper sued the Coca - Cola company for US $750,000, asserting that nickel Coca - Colas were sold below cost and were a restraint of trade . </P> <P> In 1972, Dr Pepper sued the Coca - Cola company for trademark infringement based on a soft drink marketed by Coca - Cola called "Peppo". Coca - Cola renamed their beverage Dr. Pibb, which was also determined to violate the trademark . The soft drink was later renamed Mr Pibb . </P> <P> Dr Pepper became insolvent in the early 1980s, prompting an investment group to take the company private . Several years later, Coca - Cola attempted to acquire Dr Pepper, but was blocked from doing so by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Around the same time, Seven Up was acquired from Phillip Morris by the same investment company that bailed out Dr Pepper . Upon the failure of the Coca - Cola merger, Dr Pepper and Seven Up merged (creating Dr Pepper / Seven Up, Inc., or DPSU), giving up international branding rights in the process . After the DPSU merger, Coca - Cola obtained most non-US rights to the Dr Pepper name (with PepsiCo taking the Seven Up rights). </P>

What came out first mr pibb or dr pepper