You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby: Cigarette Ads of 1972

One of the most iconic advertising campaigns of the 1970s, Virginia Slims – “You’ve come a long way, baby.” – had a way of embodying the feminist zeitgeist of the day. This 1972 ad portrays how in the olden days women had to sneak out to smoke. Whereas now you could flaunt your hot pants and smoke out in the open.  Adding the the allure was the fact that they were “slimmer than the fat cigarettes men smoke”. TV and radio cigarette advertising was banned in early 1971, but I can still hear the catchy Virginia Slims jingle in my head: “You’ve come a long way, baby. To get where you’ve got to today. You’ve got your own cigarette now, baby. You’ve come a long, long way!”

“Lady Be Cool.”

KOOL cigarettes jumped on the bandwagon with the merging of length and coolness. With a tall, slim woman laying in a field of green smoking Kool Filter Longs, she was supposed to exude the essence of being stylishly long and tastefully cool.

“Start Fresh With Belair”

Here we have a happy California-blonde couple enjoying a day in the great outdoors smoking their Belair Filter Longs. “With just the right touch of menthol”, it was sure to make your outing more enjoyable. Balancing out all that fresh ocean air with tar and nicotine.

You could even save up all your Raleigh coupons to get a groovy Thermo-Serv Picnic Set. So there’s that.

“This…is the L&M moment.”

Icy L&M Menthol cigarettes: Perfect for when you’re hanging out in a tree limb over a river with your sweetheart.

“Getting to Know You.”

Winston cigarettes are a useful tool in getting to know someone while standing awkwardly on the sandy beach. I guess you at least have smoking in common.

“Winston Tastes Good Like a Cigarette Should” is another catchy jingle that is etched in the files of my vintage brain.

“Spend a Milder Moment With Raleigh”

Because nothing says milder moment more than standing out smoking Raleighs in a dry wheat field with your beau.

She just happens to be wearing a Vendome watch, which you could get free if you collect enough Raleigh coupons.

“The Lady Has Taste”

“Smoke pretty” was what Eve Filter Cigarettes was going after. There were lovely graphics of a woman in a flowery field on both the package and cigarette itself. I always thought it looked very artistic and appealing. Had I been a smoker, I would have definitely smoked these beauties!

~Marilyn