Event Coverage
Historic Cigarette Ad Exhibit at The New York Public Library
Reviewed by Melissa Minners
Beginning October 7, 2008 and lasting until December 26, 2008, a new exhibition will be showcased at The New York Public Library’s Science, Industry and Business Library's Healy Hall at 188 Madison Avenue in New York City. The exhibit, Not a Cough in a Car Load: Images Used by Tobacco Companies to Hide the Hazards of Smoking, will examine the various and often deceptive ways cigarette companies have used to promote their product. Admission is free. In conjunction with this event, the exhibition’s curator, Dr. Robert Jackler, will provide a lecture on Tuesday, December 9, 2008 from 5:30 to 7:30PM, which will include a presentation of vintage video advertisements for tobacco products.
Dr. Robert K. Jackler, a Sewall Professor and Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, Professor of Neurosurgery and Surgery, and Associate Dean of Continuing Medical Education at the Stanford University School of Medicine, began constructing this exhibit shortly after his mother, a longtime cigarette smoker, was diagnosed with lung cancer. Debuting at Stanford University in January 2007, the exhibition has been shown at the University of California and Harvard Medical prior to its run at The New York Public Library. According to John Ganly, The New York Public Library’s Science, Industry and Business Library's assistant director for collections, "Not a Cough in a Carload takes a look at the power of image and serves as a follow-up to other advertising exhibitions we have hosted. It is also a perfect complement to the great collections at the library that deal with the issues of smoking."
Not a Cough in a Car Load provides an eye-opening look at some of the incredibly deceptive methods used by cigarette companies to sell their product. Ad executives often use celebrities in their promotions to pedal their products and the cigarette industry was no exception. Some of the ads found at the exhibit depict Rock Hudson
, John Wayne
Not a Cough in a Car Load will provide numerous ads in which tobacco companies promoted cigarette smoking as a healthy activity. One such advertisement depicts a doctor, cigarette in hand, accompanied by a declaration that "More Doctors Smoke Camels than Any Other Cigarette." "They used images of doctors to reassure the public, but these characters came right out of central casting and only looked like doctors," explains Dr. Jackler. "The medical profession didn't complain, because the ads made doctors appear noble. And the public were taken in by the ads, because if a doctor smokes, it must be ok." Other displays depict how tobacco companies targeted weight-conscious consumers by declaring that smoking was a better alternative to eating sweets. Still others show ads claiming that certain tobacco brands were endorsed by the Dental Industry as brands that would not stain teeth, that some products could boost the user’s energy, etc. Also on display will be ads in which tobacco companies tried to push off smoker’s cough as a problem caused by partaking in the wrong brand of cigarette. And let’s not forget the time honored ads that claim tobacco use can calm nerves – those ads will be on display as well.
In a separate section leading into the exhibition, The New York Public Library will display documents from the George Arents Collection on Tobacco, actual magazines featuring cigarette advertisements, boxes of candy cigarettes and a research guide culled from various documents at The New York Public Library, featuring government papers, Surgeon General reports and hearings dealing with tobacco advertising. A guest book will be made available, allowing visitors to describe their reactions to the exhibit.
Dr. Jackler’s exhibit offers an explanation as to why generations of individuals continued to smoke long after the Surgeon General warned of the dangers of cigarette smoking. It also offers an excellent examination of advertising techniques which are still used today to persuade consumers of their need to purchase a particular product. Of course, a great many of these ads will seem preposterous to those attending the exhibition, given the current knowledge of the dangers of tobacco usage. Some may even elicit a chuckle or two, but Not a Cough in a Car Load: Images Used by Tobacco Companies to Hide the Hazards of Smoking is definitely an exhibition every person, young and old, should check out. "Due to our current knowledge of the dangers involved with cigarettes, some of the images are actually humorous in nature and while we are having some fun with the exhibition, this is also a compelling story about the way the tobacco industry kept people smoking for generations," said Dr. Jackler. "We are talking about an industry that put profits above all consideration for its customers' well-being. It is still relevant today, because while the ads are much more subtle and constrained, the message and goals are still the same." Not only does this exhibit offer up a bit of history, but it also reminds us that often times companies will choose to place profit over safety when peddling their wares to the public. This is not an exhibit to be missed.
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