Judge, 1928-07-07 · page 36 of 36
Judge — July 7, 1928 — page 36: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **cigarette advertisement** disguised as celebrity endorsement, not a political cartoon. It features Charlie Chaplin (the famous silent film comedian) participating in a "blindfold test" where he supposedly smokes four leading cigarette brands and chooses Old Gold. The ad's humor relies on several period details: 1. **Celebrity endorsement as "proof"**: Using a famous actor's preference to market cigarettes was standard 1920s-30s advertising. 2. **The "blindfold test" gimmick**: Framed as objective, scientific evidence of superiority—a marketing technique that would be considered deceptive today. 3. **The joke about his dogs**: Chaplin quips that his dogs Strongheart and Rin-tin-tin are "the only" stars who don't smoke—implying even animals would smoke if they could. 4. **Health claim**: "Not a cough in a carload" was an actual Old Gold slogan, falsely suggesting cigarettes were safe. The page exemplifies how openly cigarettes were marketed to the public before health warnings became mandatory.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Presenting. a CHARLIE CHAPLIN in the blindfold cigarette test Mr. Caaptcin was asked to smoke cach of the four leading brands, clearing his taste with coffee between smokes. Only one question was asked: “Which one do you like the best?” Ie chose OLp Goin. \ . - ) ; I amous star selects OLD GOLD Hou does ‘ “ONE cigarette of the four I smoked in the blind OLD GOLD fold test was like shooting a scene successfully J lo it? . : PE eee do tt after a whole series of failures. It just ‘clicked and I named it as my choice. It was OLD GOLD. ; Tue answer is very Which clears up a mystery, for the supply of OLD Ss £ simple. Only heart-leaf me 7 7 é tobacco is used in Ovo GOLDs in my Beverly Hills home is constantly Pi Gowns. No coarse top- being depleted. It seems that Strongheart and : leaves of the tobacco plant... no withered Rin-tin-tin are the only motion picture stars who ground-leaves. That's don’t smoke them.” a. OP. Lecilland Co., Eat. 1760 why OLp Goins are so ew, ZZ Made from the heart-leaves of the smooth .. why you can tobacco plant. pick them in the dark SMOOTHER AND BETTER—'NOT A COUGH IN A CARLOAD” QUAORI-COLOR CO. JAMAICA, N.Y. comicbooks.com