Life, 1905-09-28 · page 24 of 24
Life — September 28, 1905 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **cigarette advertisement**, not political satire. The page appears from Life magazine (September 28, 1905) and promotes Murad cigarettes as a sophisticated, "Metropolitan standard" product. The illustration depicts elegant, formally-dressed urban figures in what appears to be a fashionable setting (Long Acre Square, NYC), establishing aspirational class associations. The ad's language emphasizes refinement—claiming Murad cigarettes possess qualities that won't "offend the finer tastes of the highest critics," suggesting cultural prestige. The pricing structure (10 for 15 cents, with mail-order options) indicates mass marketing disguised as luxury. The distributor, Allan Ramsay of Fifth Avenue, leverages New York's prestigious address. For modern readers: this represents early 20th-century tobacco marketing that associated smoking with sophistication and social status—a strategy now recognized as manipulative advertising that contributed to widespread nicotine addiction without health warnings.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
September 28, 1g05. O become 4 Metropolitan standard, @ cigarette must ss no single characteristic, posse light, to offend the finer however § tastes of the highest critics. MU CIGAR have reached this enviable place possessing a flavor that is full, isi id, an aroma d distinctive, delightful an that is above criticism. 10 for 15 Cents posTPAID—If you can't $F ad Cigarettes from 75c. for fifty, $1-5! dred BY MAIL send 15¢. for ten, ‘Oror one hundr’ ii Fifth Avenue your dealers ALLAN RAMSAY. New York City Long Acre Square Ny. \ Press oO} oH © 4. W. PRATT CO., NEW s YORK. comicbooks.com