It wasn't until the late 1970s that many US movie theaters began to ban smoking in the cinemas. For example, here's a 1976 New York Times article about the American Lung Association giving a special award to the General Cinema Corporation for making people extinguish their butts before putting their other butts in the chairs. As the prohibition spread, lighter company Bic grabbed the opportunity to create a clever pre-show ad and admonition.
Nope, you "can't flick your Bic in the thick of the flick."
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