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Quiz about Television and Cigarettes A Bad Combination
Quiz about Television and Cigarettes A Bad Combination

Television and Cigarettes: A Bad Combination Quiz


At one time television carried commercials for cigarettes. Competition for customers produced some amazing claims. Glamorous celebrities made them even more appealing. This quiz explores these claims but does not endorse them. Questions are U.S. based.

A multiple-choice quiz by TAKROM. Estimated time: 7 mins.
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Author
TAKROM
Time
7 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
267,309
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Difficult
Avg Score
5 / 10
Plays
1645
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. In the late 50's and into the early 60's, "The Flintstones" actually sponsored one brand of cigarettes. Barney, Fred, Wilma, and Betty could be seen smoking at the end of the show. Which brand did they choose? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. "I Love Lucy" often showed Lucy and Ricky smoking. Lucy and Desi would also do commercials for a certain brand, which aired during the show's intro. This cigarette company made the claim, "Smoke for pleasure today. No cigarette hangover tomorrow." Which brand are they talking about here?

Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. School teachers were up in arms when one company claimed ______________ tastes good like a cigarette should. They weren't upset about health issues but about bad grammar. This lead the company to come back with a new ad asking, "What do you want, good grammar or good taste?" Fill in the above blank. Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Jack Benny had successful radio and televisions shows. One of his sponsors was Lucky Strike. In some of the commercials an auctioneer rambled incomprehensively through a tobacco auction but always ended by clearly saying, "Sold American". Other ads had someone repeatedly saying "LS/MFT", an acronym that Lucky Strike wanted on everyone's lips. LS stands for Lucky Strike. What does MFT represent? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. There was no bigger celebrity in the heyday of cigarette commercials than John Wayne. In 1952, while filming "Big Jim Mclain", the Duke served up this pitch for his favorite cigarette, "Mild and good tasting pack after pack. And I know, I've been smoking 'em for over twenty years." Which brand had his loyalty? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Topper was a popular television show about an aristocratic gentlemen haunted by two ghosts that only he could see. The stars, Leo G. Carroll, Anne Jeffries, and Robert Sterling often followed the show with chatty commercials about their favorite cigarette, Camel. To show the "human" side of their sponsor, Anne Jeffries once informed the audience about which of the following kind gestures instituted by Camel?
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Eventually, companies wanted to acknowledge customer loyalty rather than celebrity endorsement. One brand, Taryton, started a campaign with their faithful patrons stating, "I'd rather fight than switch." These battle-worn loyalists were shown with cigarette proudly in hand and what on their face? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Companies made many claims to make their product sound the best. Which of these was NOT used?

Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Humor was often used to get people to buy. Companies began to focus on the length of the cigarette with Benson and Hedges leading the pack touting the 100mm size in 1967. Their commercials depicted the 'disadvantage' of these long, long, cigarettes showing them bending when you picked up the phone or turned your head in the car and hitting the window. Not to be outdone after the success of this campaign, another company started bragging about their product being 101mm long. Their jingle boasted: "a silly millimeter longer" (to the tune of La Bamba), and soon everyone was humming along. Which brand got the old foot tapping? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. The very medium that made cigarettes mainstream had to yield to public pressure as the health hazards of this product became more pronounced. Johnny Carson's Tonight Show holds the distinction of airing the very last television commercial for cigarettes on Jan 1, 1971 at 11:59 P.M. Which brand got the honors? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In the late 50's and into the early 60's, "The Flintstones" actually sponsored one brand of cigarettes. Barney, Fred, Wilma, and Betty could be seen smoking at the end of the show. Which brand did they choose?

Answer: Winston

The series was originally written to appeal to adults, not children. When it started airing earlier in the evening, more children started watching. By the time Pebbles was born, Winston was no longer interested in sponsoring the show. "The Flintstones" started pitching Motorola, Welch's juice, and today vitamins.
2. "I Love Lucy" often showed Lucy and Ricky smoking. Lucy and Desi would also do commercials for a certain brand, which aired during the show's intro. This cigarette company made the claim, "Smoke for pleasure today. No cigarette hangover tomorrow." Which brand are they talking about here?

Answer: Phillip Morris

People also loved their other commercials where a young bellhop ran through a hotel paging, "Call for Philip Morriiiisss". His delivery was distinctive and he gave a wink to the audience, which always got a chuckle. No one seemed to question why cigarettes could give you a hangover feeling.
3. School teachers were up in arms when one company claimed ______________ tastes good like a cigarette should. They weren't upset about health issues but about bad grammar. This lead the company to come back with a new ad asking, "What do you want, good grammar or good taste?" Fill in the above blank.

Answer: Winston

Winston not only used celebrities but a catch phrase as well. The phrase was put into jingle form with a happy tune that would stay in your head. No company wanted you to forget their product.
4. Jack Benny had successful radio and televisions shows. One of his sponsors was Lucky Strike. In some of the commercials an auctioneer rambled incomprehensively through a tobacco auction but always ended by clearly saying, "Sold American". Other ads had someone repeatedly saying "LS/MFT", an acronym that Lucky Strike wanted on everyone's lips. LS stands for Lucky Strike. What does MFT represent?

Answer: Means Fine Tobacco

The folks at this company wanted to be sure everyone knew it used American grown tobacco of the very best quality. Only then could the smoker be assured of the finest tobacco any manufacturer could use.
5. There was no bigger celebrity in the heyday of cigarette commercials than John Wayne. In 1952, while filming "Big Jim Mclain", the Duke served up this pitch for his favorite cigarette, "Mild and good tasting pack after pack. And I know, I've been smoking 'em for over twenty years." Which brand had his loyalty?

Answer: Camel

John Wayne died of lung cancer about 27 years after this commercial aired. In some of his last few commercials he was asking people to stop smoking.
6. Topper was a popular television show about an aristocratic gentlemen haunted by two ghosts that only he could see. The stars, Leo G. Carroll, Anne Jeffries, and Robert Sterling often followed the show with chatty commercials about their favorite cigarette, Camel. To show the "human" side of their sponsor, Anne Jeffries once informed the audience about which of the following kind gestures instituted by Camel?

Answer: They were donating free cigarettes to injured servicemen in veterans' hospitals around the country.

It was far better for the bottom line to give away cigarettes rather than cash. Our servicemen always deserve recognition but in this case would have been better served with money.
7. Eventually, companies wanted to acknowledge customer loyalty rather than celebrity endorsement. One brand, Taryton, started a campaign with their faithful patrons stating, "I'd rather fight than switch." These battle-worn loyalists were shown with cigarette proudly in hand and what on their face?

Answer: A black eye

The "black eye" was a very distinct half-circle, quite black, and placed perfectly under one eye. They usually had a defiant look in their eye, daring you to try and make them smoke anything else.
8. Companies made many claims to make their product sound the best. Which of these was NOT used?

Answer: Kent, for smooth sailing and smooth taste.

Camel was making the pitch for customer loyalty. Salem's pitch also assured you of a breath of springtime freshness. Old Gold had a dancing cigarette pack circling in front of a curtain while the announcer made the claim in the background. Kent cigarettes were advertised in a parody of the Ray Conniff Singers' song "Happiness is" (a song that listed what makes various people happy).

Their reply was: "to a smoker, it's a Kent."
9. Humor was often used to get people to buy. Companies began to focus on the length of the cigarette with Benson and Hedges leading the pack touting the 100mm size in 1967. Their commercials depicted the 'disadvantage' of these long, long, cigarettes showing them bending when you picked up the phone or turned your head in the car and hitting the window. Not to be outdone after the success of this campaign, another company started bragging about their product being 101mm long. Their jingle boasted: "a silly millimeter longer" (to the tune of La Bamba), and soon everyone was humming along. Which brand got the old foot tapping?

Answer: Chesterfield

1 mm is about 39/1000th of an inch or the thickness of a dime. It was a very successful campaign with about $15 million dollars dedicated to getting the word out. Chesterfield also used to brag that its product was for people who like a mild smoke but not filters. Future president Ronald Reagan endorsed Chesterfields and it was Rod Serling's ("The Twilight Zone"s creator's), preferred brand as well.
10. The very medium that made cigarettes mainstream had to yield to public pressure as the health hazards of this product became more pronounced. Johnny Carson's Tonight Show holds the distinction of airing the very last television commercial for cigarettes on Jan 1, 1971 at 11:59 P.M. Which brand got the honors?

Answer: Virginia Slims

Virginia Slims was touted as women's cigarette, slim and elegant. It was believed that removing these commercials on television would devastate sales. The immediate loss in revenue was over $220 million a year. Companies still spend over $12.5 billion a year today to advertise. While overall sales dropped 5% from the year 2000 to 2002, over 2000 children start smoking every day. There's a long way to go to make smoking history.

Some celebrity endorsement information and the statistics was found at tvparty.com. Information on the 101 mm cigarettes is from at time.com.
Source: Author TAKROM

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Beatka before going online.
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