9781422272305

1880s and consisted of various color pictures of landscapes, political individuals, sports figures, and animals. Each card was numbered, and consumers were encouraged to buy cigarettes and collect the entire set. As advertising efforts increased, some Americans were also trying to prevent cigarette and tobacco use. As an offshoot of the temperance movement of the late nineteenth century, many anti- tobacco campaigns also appeared. These movements caused three states to temporarily ban tobacco use, and by 1890 twenty-six of the forty-two states had banned tobacco sales to minors. New Possibilities When the United States entered World War I in 1917, American tobacco companies pounced on the conflict as a marketing campaign. They started sending free or subsidized cigarettes to soldiers during the war. Cigarettes were often packed in a soldier’s C-rations , along with their food and other essential items. And it wasn’t just the tobacco companies who started this trend, either. Many people back at home sent soldiers cigarettes in care packages. Groups like the YMCA, Salvation Army, and Red Cross collected billions of cigarettes and sent them to the front. Tobacco companies often donated these cigarettes or sold them at discount prices. Yet, they still profited from these arrangements. Tobacco companies in the United States and Britain began distributing advertisements asking civilians to send cigarettes to soldiers on the front to help them during battle. The ads were targeted in a very emotionally manipulative way, implying that those who did not send cigarettes were unpatriotic. “It is the duty of every man and woman at home to see to it that there is a plentiful supply [of cigarettes for soldiers],” said one British tobacco advertisement.

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Nicotine Advertising and Sales: Big Business for Young Clientele