picture of the day

Winston

35 Comments

A poster in Tokyo's Ebisu district advertises cigarettes.

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35 Comments
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There should be another ZERO after that 290 yen price.

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this is the least silly of the series. the macho man with fag in mouth strikes all sort of ridiculous poses. the message is smoking makes you lose your hair, take steroids and quite possibly bat for the other team

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Picture of the Day or Advertisement?

You be the judge.

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The most ridiculous marketing poster I have seen in years with possibly the least manly individual they could find. Tut tut to Japan Today for posting this despite its strangeness.

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Sadly no the price is correct.. they are 'new' and so sold like sample packages.. to start the addiction. After the release period then the price will go up.. after a month to addict as many as possible.

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smoking makes you bold ...

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this poster makes me crack up...apparently if you smoke these ciggies you will poof turn into a member of Right Said Fred...or be an 80's era 'bear'. grrrrrrrr

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Interesting how the cigarette industries NEVER use women to advertise their products. I mean, why not have a hussie, or housewife, or school teacher, or police woman with a cig popping out of her mouth? What's the problem?

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That ain't from Right Said Fred, that's Yul Brynner, and we all know what he said about smoking, perhaps a bit too late. Cigarettes are now $16 a pack where I live. But people keep sucking them up regardless.

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Smoking cigarettes gives the smoker a bad image but as bad as it is, it's still better than the habit smoking replaces ... thumb sucking.

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Japanese advertising is about the level that Life magazine was at in 1949 in terms of cigarettes. Apart from skirting the law that a pack of ciggies has to be 300 yen (doesn't it?), they have a guy who is in tip-top shape smoking cigarettes. In a LIFE mag I have from said date, they have almost the same exact thing, except the guy's not bald, and the clothes are quite different. Still, it has him smoking, flexing his muscles, and saying, literally, "Smoking is good for your throat."

Seems that JT (Japan Tobacco, of course) choosing a person with a rather muscular build and appearing quite young is aiming for this kind of moronic sales pitch.

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This picture isn't nearly as hilarious as the one in my Konbini. It's the same guy, doing a classic bicep curl pose like a muscleman. It's ridiculous.

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Darn, Mr. Clean's smoking now?

I remember when they used to pass out samples of cigarettes on street corners to pedestrians, even young adults who were almost certainly HS students in the early nineties. Bad times!

If I remember well, the price then was almost the same as it is now...

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smith is so correct.... Lucky Strike did this macho muscle thing in the 40s.... Newport did something similar with models in the 80s and even 90s....with white teeth, fit bods and nice skin. I have never fully understood why the Japanese associate smoking with big muscles. I am sure evolution has something to do with it... Perhaps we brainwashed them.

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Seems that JT (Japan Tobacco, of course) choosing a person with a rather muscular build and appearing quite young is aiming for this kind of moronic sales pitch.

Look at the name of the brand, it's American.

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i do not know who the model in the advertisement IS.. but i know that it is NOT Yule Brenner. Here is a classic picture of Brenner~san: http://www.pricescope.com/idealbb/files/yul.jpg As Saborichan mentioned this man has other cigarette ads in different poses.. he is clearly NOT Mr. Brenner. The question was asked about why are women not used in the Nihonjin cigarette ads, and actually i have seen some.. but mostly they are the old old old Tengu or Golf cigarette brands. There is fewer and fewer women role-models in Nihon who smoke.. 1 notable exception would be Nana Osaki.. the popular fictional character in manga, music, anime and live movies maybe was never intended as a role-model, but she does smoke, as do members of her band - especially Yasu.. and it a real trademark brand.. even more, the name of Nana's band The Black Stones is derived from that same cigarette, namely the Swisher Black Stone Cherry.

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I noticed this today with the bicep curl pose and the image of this sporty healthy guy with fag in mouth. Shame on the model for even taking the job...but yes definitely made me laugh!

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That is one freaky ad. Lol PeaceWarrior, agreed!

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I hate to be apathetic but who cares. This is not news, it's an advertisement. Get a life people.

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"Darn, Mr. Clean's smoking now?"

Har!

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I think I saw this guy in a gay bar in San Fran back in the early 90s.

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Burakumin - That took guts to admit that. I applaud you. Tee hee!

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Sarge - I went there with a gay friend...I swear! From what I recall the Winston "poster boy" was very popular with the lads...

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Does Winston still taste good like a cigarette should?

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samuraiblue: "Look at the name of the brand, it's American."

Are you suggesting the US owns Japan and the Japanese tobacco market? How about you not cherry pick my comment and acknowledge that this kind of advertising is not legal in the country of the origin of Winston tobacco? Better yet, since you question my comment, show me an American add that shows the same thing, for the same price.

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I wonder, if the name Winston also reminds others of Orwell 1984?

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When will the Japanese join the rest of the civilised world in banning cigarette advertising, and also in cafes and restaurants? This is one of the most stupid adverts I have ever seen. Like another poster already said, the price should have another zero.

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smoking kills. period.

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After I stopped laughing, it occurred that somebody, in some ad agency somewhere, had to put serious thought into this ad and get it approved by his/her superiors and the client. So, at least 3 or more people had to sign off on this ad agreeing it was the right picture to deliver the intended message. Look at the pic; is the cigarette one of the new smokeless types? There doesn't appear to be any smoke. If so, maybe the message is "No shirt, no hair, no sense...No smoke!"

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"at least 3 or more people had to sign off on this ad agreeing it was the right picture to deliver the intended message"

Incredible, isn't it?

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This was the original "Winston Man":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZvHiiWFbBU

"Winston tastes good like a cigarette should!"

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Wow, That's a blast from the past! SiouxChef, what cracked me up the most were the viewer's comments! Unbelievable!!

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My favourite brand of Japanese cigarettes is "Lark". They should start a campaign too - "I lost a lung - what a Lark!"

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Anybody know who this guy is??

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