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The tobacco industries within the time frame of 1941 through 1968 have made a huge impact on commercial advertising. “They had deep pockets and could afford to gamble on a new advertising medium” (Cigarette commercial. http://www.tvparty.com/vaultcomcig.html). Television becoming the new form of entertainment created the perfect opportunity for product soliciting. Experimenting within the realm of commercial advertising was necessary in creating a sellable model. Much of their advertising was done through sponsorship of television programs. “The cigarette industry provided more than 10 % of the television networks advertising revenue in 1963” (Drinking and Smoking on Television, 1950-1982).With the responsibility of being a commercial pioneer comes regulation and boundaries for those who follow. In 1941 Tobacco advertising were given restrictions as far as what could appear on television. These restrictions were signed off by Heinrich Hunk president of the advertising council. The tobacco industry remained smart in this situation. They discovered several routs of advertising that grew to be so effective it has become the format of advertising still seen today.
Individual marketing has been the strategy for tobacco companies for many years. Creating a relevant product for a type of person allows relatability and therefore making it “my brand” or “your brand”. When a cigarette company realizes there is marketability within a group they take full advantage no matter who it is aimed at. Many cigarette brands have been accused of marketing to children. “Millions of younger children and teenagers watched or heard programs sponsored by cigarette companies” (Ashes to Ashes pg. 279). Some of these shows included The Flintstones, and Beverly Hillbillies both endorsing Winstons cigarettes. When a cigarette brand sponsored a show it was expected that not only the commercial be seen but the characters in the show smoke that brand as well. “If young people see television heroes and heroines drinking and smoking, they are more likely to perceive the culture environment as favorable to these behaviors” (Drinking and Smoking on Television, 1950-1982). Despite the already assuming impressionability with the under 18 year old crowd a combination of intense planning was executed when marketing to this group. Very specific time slots were selected when choosing which programs to sponsor. The intention was to reach as much of this group as possible. In the 50s on a live TV special the Old Gold dancing cigarette pack appeared with a person literally dressed up as an Old Gold pack of cigarettes. A dance number would be performed by the jolly pack. Many notable professional dancers appeared as the dancing cigs including Jeanne Snow, Gloria Vestoff, and Dixie Dunbar all choreographed by Jimmy Nygren. “Cigarette firms sponsored 55 network slots in 1963 children and teens constituted from 24 % to 30 % of the bought network” (Exposure of US youth to cigarette television advertising in the 1960’s). Of course cigarette brands would never admit to this being their intention yet it became almost undeniable. Cigarette brands made visual decisions that created an allure aimed toward young people. “The Chesterfield King and his lovable friends were animated animals that hawked Chesterfield King cigarettes in a stylish set of commercials” (Cigarette Commercials). The cartoon camel for Camel cigarettes, or Kools cigarettes obviously referring to “coolness” were also some examples of cigarette brands that design for under 18 year olds. My mother recalls my grandmother buying her candy cigarettes as a child. It was completely acceptable. It was a preparation or training for youngsters at the time. In 1965 the Cigarette Advertising Code was put into place to create stricter guidelines. “The main purpose of the new code was to blunt the charge that the industry was massively seducing minors to take up smoking at an age when they were indifferent to the possible ultimate consequences of the step” (Ashes to Ashes pg. 279).
Tobacco industries are clever and invested fully in discovering many ways to reach their target buyers. The focus on sex when marketing was an important strategy for the industry. “As smoking was originally taboo for women, cigarettes became associated with sexual daring and sophistication” (Putting on Appearances pg. 130). Women picking up smoking were a strong support for the cigarette brands and therefore much of their efforts were put forth on creating compelling ads targeted to women only. “By 1944, the Gallup Poll could report that 36 % of women smoked” (Torches of Freedom). By the late 50’s early 60’s many advances quickly arose within cigarette advertisement. Filter cigarettes were introduced which provided smokers with the notion they were taking a healthier rout when smoking. This invention was mainly geared toward the preservation of their female costumers. Salem menthol cigarettes claimed to be refreshing for the breath “a breath of springtime freshness” (Cigarette Commercials) was stated in their campaign. In the Salem commercials an attractive couple strolling in a beautiful park while smoking Salems provided a sense of romanticness. This was intended for women that were not regular smokers. They would be lured in by the breath freshener aspect attaching the idea of a cigarette being multi purpose and therefore practical.
“Second wave” of woman’s rights were put into place setting off a chance for cigarette brands to cater to this purpose. The idea of independence and equality was practiced by young rebellious women of the time. Cigarette brands wanted to sell the image that if you buy our brand you can be equal, but an individual as well. It was a tricky procedure but the industry knew just how to execute it. Benson and Hedges, and Virginia Slims produced long slim cigarettes with clean modern packaging. Virginia Slims in particular became successful when producing a women’s brand. Their brand had three main intentions. It will make one more fashionable, thin, and liberated. In the Virginia Slim commercials they always depicted a beautiful well dressed woman holding a cigarette as if it were a fashion accessory. The Jingle “you’ve come a long way baby” indicated that yes woman are progressive independent and successful. It was intended that every time a woman were to light up a Virginia Slim they would be reminded of this message.
Women were not alone when being sold gender identities within their cigarette brand. The tobacco industries had another agenda just for men. The most quintessential male centric commercial of all was that of the “Marlboro Man” commercials. Marlboro made men the true masculine according to the commercials. You see a series of behaviors that would be very gender specified. The commercials indicating that a Marlboro cigarette would be the perfect accompaniment to masculine work. Camel took a similar approach when marketing to male smokers. The commercial I reviewed was very obviously geared to men. The male in the commercial was displaying laborious work by cutting down huge trees amongst a raging river. It showed toughness yet also ease. As though if smoking a Camel would portray rigorousness as effortlessness. It truly puts forth the image that if you were a real man you would smoke this brand. In 1963 Lucky Strikes received quite a bit of attention for their new slogan. “The brand to start with” was replaced with “Luckies separate the men from the boys, but not from the girls” (Promises, Promises). This showed a race car driver just victorious holding a trophy in one hand and a cigarette in another. It is a split campaign one half showing the man with adoring boys on either side of him. On the other side shows him with a beautiful woman looking admiringly at his success. This could be another effort toward gaining under age male consumers. No matter whom the cigarette brand is after their main focus always seemed to be to gain loyalty within that group. The specific brand becomes part of that particular groups identity.
People are influenced in a variety of ways. Commercials are not the only way of getting the product to the public. Product placement is also a common way of sending the message. Sometimes it is not a specific product being portrayed but an action that is being sold. “Media do influence not only individual behavior but also the societal norms and values that stand behind and reinforce this behavior” (Drinking and Smoking on Television, 1950-1982). If an adorned character on television is smoking it could very well affect our personal desires. Plato introducing us to “incidental learning” (Drinking and Smoking on Television, 1950-1982) indicates that if we experience any sort of influences we will subconsciously receive that information. This will now be translated into what the individual wants for themselves.
“CBS television networks, selling itself to advertisers, once proudly proclaimed the television set as the greatest cigarette vending machine ever devised” (Exposure of US youth to cigarette television advertising in the 1960’s). Many television shows used cigarette brands as their primary sponsor. I Love Lucy being one of them sponsored by Phillip Morris cigarettes. In the commercial, you see Lucy retrieving a cigarette for Ricky as she says “you see how easy it is to keep your man happy” (Cigarette Commercials). The act of smoking was not always due to a sponsoring brand. If an actor smoked it could also be due to a personal choice for their character. Actors need business while acting on film. This often was seen in the act of holding a cigarette, or cigar. An actor smoking can completely change the atmosphere their character lived in. It was a quick way to associate the mood of the show. Depending on the sex, age, and culture the character lived in several different feelings could be portrayed. If a character were to smoke a cigar for instance instead of a cigarette it would appear as though they were part of high status or sophistication. The use of smoking as a character choice only could last so long before it became redundant. As television progressed through time a character smoking would appear less and less. It was seen as an easy way out for the actor. There is of course intelligent ways of including smoking as a character choice. “There was that character who would go for a jog and at the end of the jog he’d light up a cigarette. That’s a good character illustration because he was a man of paradoxes. He would do something good on one hand and then something bad on the other. And he did that in his professional life, his romantic life, and in his health life as well” (Hollywood on tobacco).
In 1964 the first Surgeon-General’s report was established making everyone aware of the consequences of smoking. Television had to take that risk into account when deciding if it would be appropriate to portray a character with a cigarette. “The cultural climate had changed from viewing cigarettes as sophisticated to seeing them as unclean and unhealthy” (Hollywood on tobacco).Unlike movies TV had a much stricter hand on what actors could or could not do. “Studios play a much more prominent role, often through formal guidelines. Moreover, in television many of the producers are also writers, which increase their influence in the decision-making process” (Hollywood on tobacco). Sponsorship remained important for the studios therefore as long as cigarette brands were to sponsor the shows cigarette advertising would remain strong.
Cigarette brands used racial specific advertising to in order to reach a variety of different cultural backgrounds. This was true in many aspects and could often be demonstrated in a prejudice manner. Racial segregation was included in every aspect in the 50’s and 60’s. Advertising was no exception in the matter. Tobacco industries partook in the exploitation of racial groups using racial pride within their advertising. They did so by segregating who was chosen to represent their brand. “Using only blacks to sell to blacks and only whites to sell to whites” (Separate, But Not Equal). Tobacco companies denied any blame of advertisement that focused on any particular racial group. Interestingly “The president of a black-owned ad agency commented that marketing a cigarette for blacks wasn’t insulting, but ignoring the black community would be” (Separate, But Not Equal). Cigarette brands offered the black community sponsorship which was irresistible at a time when the struggle for equality was at hand. “The black community has enjoyed Kool Jazz Festivals and Achiever Awards, More’s sponsorship of Ebony’s traveling fashion shows, and Phillip Morris’ patronage of the arts. Sponsorship and support is also extended to group such as the United Negro College Fund” (Separate, But Not Equal). Phillip Morris’s “Free Speech” campaign included black endorsers such as the actor James earl Jones, former congresswoman Barbara Jordan, and Artistic Director of Alvin Ailey dance Company Judith Jamieson. Many cigarette brands also used professional athletes as spokesmodels. Athletes such as “Jackie Robinson (Chesterfield 1950); Roy Campenella (Lucky strike 1955); Hank Aaron and Ernie banks (Camels 1956); and Howard Elston (Kool 1960) endorsed the brands. Other means of getting advertising across without using ethnic specific models were used. “In 1963-1964 Marlboro portrayal of the cowboy made ethnically ambiguous in Ebony with visual tactics like a hand in a glove with no visible flesh, a pen and ink drawing rendered in brown inks, and a figure silhouetted against a setting sun” (Separate, But Not Equal).Old Gold in the form of the dancing cigarette pack remained racially unidentifiable appealing to both black, and white consumers. “Cigarette advertising and promotion, if well managed, should recognize and address the black ethnic market by both media choice and the use of ethnic models in the art direction” (Separate, But Not Equal).
Art direction is the most important element no matter who the cigarette brands were intended for. The evolution in art was well reflected on advertising of the time. What people found visually stimulating mirrored what was happening with fashion, and art. “Advertising is as a profoundly important art form… Advertising is substituting for product, because the consumer today gets his satisfaction from the ad, not the product” (Spots, Kurtz, pg. 8). Cigarette buyers will not necessarily buy their first pack based on what smoking has to offer, but rather the visual appeal it provides. This is most importantly was showcased through the models they chose to endorse it, the packaging and the set or mood portrayed within the commercial. Lucky Strike hired modern artist Thomas Hart Benton to design a campaign outside the curing Barn (TV by Design, Spigel, pg. 34). Guy L. Smith IV a highly known publicist in the late 60’s was hired by Phillip Morris to reintroduce cigarettes to the public. He took a broad approach creating sponsorship of a wide variety of events such as “high-art, avant-garde, exhibitions and performances to reach the monied and educated elite who ran much of society or shaped its opinions” (Ashes to Ashes, Kluger, pg. 618). The need to reinvent the sexiness or the glamorized view of smoking was necessary for attracting new costumers who were now well aware of the health concerns. “According to Art Direction, television advertisers especially used modern art in commercials aimed at sophisticated audiences who had prior experiences with modern painting and visual forms” (TV By Design, Klugler, pg. 618).
The 1960’s were a perfect time for cigarette brands to reinvent themselves due to so many different societal backlashes occurring during the time. A “counter culture” was now much more aware of what they were buying. This meant if cigarette brands were to follow the trends they would accept the fact that their product is unhealthy. They had to make it appealing regardless of the health problems. They created a “who cares” approach to their marketing. They worked hard on replacing negative connotation of their product with visual attractiveness.
Cigarette advertising in commercial form was coming to an end in the late 60’s. By 1971 they were banned completely from television. “As a new medium of visual communication, television came to play a major role in this battle between modern and conventional copy” (TV By Design, Kugler, pg. 60). Cigarette brands stepped outside the box of conventionality and made advertising what it is today. ”Cigarette firms have consistently been bold pioneers in both their use of new media and their targeting of other segments, even when controversial” (Separate, But Not Equal). The need to plant seeds in as many consumers as possible created several controversies among the individual cigarette brands. “Programme forms specific to television carry implications for inconological analysis in that they sometimes rely particularly heavily on prior cultural knowledge in order for the full intended meaning to be understood” (Visual Culture, Howells, pg. 215). The constant revenue cigarette industries received allowed for innovation to occur. The brands almost always specify the content toward who exactly their target was aimed at. All targeted groups responded differently depending on what was being addressed. Children responded to visual elements pertaining to animation, and maturity. Women responded toward practicality, attractiveness, and independence. Men were generally triggered toward classicness, confirmation of male identification, and easily recognizable taglines. Minorities responded toward relateability, weather or not someone they identified with was representing the product. Much of what the cigarette brands strived for in general was to keep costumers loyal to their product. The tobacco industry over the years invested great sums of money toward advertising introducing the original commercial concepts to the American public. Through this they were able to take artistic strides within advertising. “More than any other medium of visual communication, television is characterized by the present tense. Conditioned by the expectations of live programming, of which no other visual medium is capable” (Spots, Kurtz, pg. 91). Cigarette advertisers took full advantage of the television medium to send relevant visual sensory responses to their market. Through that they were able to slide through the narrow crack of unacceptability into a fountain of success. So much so they had to be stopped.