Mar 10 2025 34 mins 2
Show Notes Episode 313: I Would Smoke 500 Miles, And I Would Smoke 500 More (Redux
This week Host Dave Bledsoe wakes up coughing from what he is sure is just cat dander and allergies, and proceeds to light the first smoke of the day! (We’re sure everything is fine!) On the show this week, we open up that one drawer in the kitchen with all the menus and a phone book from 2001 to see how many Marlboro Miles we can find in there! (25 miles, only 400 packs of Marlboro Reds to go to get that awesome windbreaker!)
Along the way we learn of Dave’s formative years using an addictive chemical to give him the illusion of being cool. (Cigarettes, not alcohol.That came slightly later.) From there we dive into the history of cigarette advertising in the 80’s and 90’s after Nixon kicked them off the television. (Someone must have failed to contribute to Dick’s campaign!) We learn how the Brands needed something new and exciting to capture that youth market, and cowboys were NOT cool in 1992! (Except for you Garth Brooks!) We go on to talk about Marlboro Miles, the Marlboro Old Country Store and how you could spend $500 bucks on a ten dollar igloo cooler! Then we spend some time with the Camel that Kills, Joe Camel. (Joe didn’t kill kids, but he DID help kill big tobacco!) Finally, we explain that advertising isn’t what made kids smoke, it was the stress of life lived with Baby Boomers.
Our Sponsor this week is Cancer Cash, the smoking loyalty program that earns money for your future cancer treatment! We open the show with the Merchants of Death and close with Brian Schmidty explaining the distance he and his friends will travel to pass out on your doorstep!
Show Theme: Hypnostate Prelude to Common Sense
The Show on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whatthehellpodcast.bsky.social
The Show on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthehellpodcast/
The Show on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjxP5ywpZ-O7qu_MFkLXQUQ
The Show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatthehellwereyouthinkingpod/
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/kHmmrjptrq
Our Website: www.whatthehellpodcast.com
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast
The Show Line: 347 687 9601
Closing Music:https://youtu.be/VBkVhBBQ2ME
Buy Our Stuff: https://www.seltzerkings.com/shop
Citations Needed:
Cigarette brand loyalty in Australia: findings from the ITC Four Country Survey
https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/23/suppl_1/i73.info
THE MEDIA BUSINESS: Advertising; The Marlboro Man Is Missing in Action in New Campaign
THE MOST SINISTER CIGARETTE PROMOTION OF ALL TIME
https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/the-most-sinister-cigarette-promotion-of-all-time
Joe Camel (1974-1997)
https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/bcoppola/2017/09/17/joe-camel-1974-1997/
Joe Camel, a Giant in Tobacco Marketing, Is Dead at 23
Joe Camel Video ABC https://abcnews.go.com/Archives/video/july-10-1997-end-joe-camel-ads-10616510
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
