Life, 1918-01-31 · page 39 of 40
Life — January 31, 1918 — page 39: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **tobacco advertisement** rather than political satire. The illustration depicts "Velvet Joe," a folksy, rural character who encounters a snowman in winter woods. The narrative uses rustic dialect ("shore familiar," "declar' now") to establish Joe as an everyman figure offering tobacco to the snowman—a whimsical personification suggesting the product's universal appeal. The advertisement's core message: Velvet tobacco creates friendship and warmth ("makes good friends of strangers / An' can warm a heart of snow"). The copy emphasizes product qualities—mildness, smoothness, aging in wooden casks—while the rural setting and dialect aim for homey authenticity. The artist is credited as M. Leone Bracker (1917). This reflects early 20th-century advertising strategy: using relatable characters and sentimental storytelling to sell consumer goods. The 1918 dating places this during WWI, though no political content is evident on this page.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
M-LEONE | BRACKER 17 Copyright 1918 Liggett & Myers Tobacco C y?. face is shore familiar— Like a man I uster know— I declar’ now, Mr. Snow Man, Ain’t we met somewhar’ befo’? Glad you’ll join me in a pipeful;— Don’t it do a feller good Just to smell this here tobacco That’s been agein’ in the wood? An’ to smoke it— bless yo’ buttons! Starts a mellow kind of glow That makes good friends of strangers An’ can warm a heart of snow. for And to Smoke VELVET— There’s where you discover VELVET’S goodness. Mildness, 10c tins mellowness, smoothness, coolness and hearty flavor are all in VELVET, 5c bags —put there by Mother Nature through two years of slow ageing in wooden hogsheads. 1b. glass : * humidor A pipeful in the office, at home, on the street or out skating— anyway, anywhere you'll find VELVET the smoothest smoking tobacco. Velvet Joe's Almanac for the year 1918 is now read CCL ape Mame nt ae apap 4 Leggett Myers Totacco Co Areoue, St. Louis, Missouri, and be will mail it to you. comicbooks.com