The Amazing Snuff-Man

Comic books have been a source for promoting everything from politicians, sports, shoes, groceries, cooking, metals, and various other subjects, but during the 50s, the Helme Tobacco Company tried to coax kids into enjoying their glorious snuff products. Snuff-Man was the title given to this 16-page advertisement printed by cartoonist Vic Herman's studio, and it was also the nickname given to snuff salesman George who begins a long conversation with two boys, one of which is Leroy, the younger brother of a George's date Junie was picking up at home. Leroy asks why his sister calles him Snuff-Man as if he was a D-List superhero in a bad parody magazine, so George waxes on about the story of snuff and how it was practically the backbone of human civilization all thanks to Columbus' little boat trip. A ton of laughs are to be had into this revisionist history of snuff, including how weed has medicinal value, how the crown heads of Europe were able to make objective decisions after inhaling a little powder and how it made them avoid the plight of poor, how an accident lead to the creation of Irish Blackguard, plus how snuff is the glue that helps keeps industrial America from failing just by giving hard workers a pick-me-up. Keep in mind, this is a tobacco agent telling this to a pair of children who can't even legally smoke yet! All this is going on in the comic with the bottom panel of nearly each page they run an ad for all the various Helme snuff flavors as if they were ice cream. So, the two boys wish Snuff-Man a good time boning George's sister while the lads went to bed that night with visions of Sweet Scotch Snuff in their heads. Helme had zero scruples when they made this little number in a fit of advertiser depravity that makes Joe Camel look like the Messiah.

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