Juul -- infused with billions by the company that owns Marlboro -- attained its $12.8B valuation by growing faster than any other vaping company, thanks in large part to the children who bought its products, reversing decades of progress in getting teens off nicotine products while simultaneously monopolizing the market for vaping products Read the rest
For two decades, adolescent smoking has been on the decline, but thanks to vaping products like Juul (which has 75% of the market), teen smoking just jumped by levels not seen for 43 years. Read the rest
Photographer unknown. (via r/mildlyinteresting) Read the rest
From the 1920s to the 1980s, the United States was the most smoking country in the developed world. In the 1960s, consumption peaked over 10 a day, per capita. But now it's near the bottom of the chart—only Britain smokes less, among rich western countries.
Don't fret for the health of the Tobacco business, though: China's taking up the slack. Read the rest
DIYer Chris Notap filtered a pack's worth of cigarette smoke through a bag of cotton balls. They turned brown. He's upset by how much his tools and components stink now. Read the rest
Miami lawyer Stephen Gutierrez was in court defending an alleged arsonist when his pants literally caught on fire. However, please don't assume that Gutierrez is a liar, liar. Apparently he had been playing with an e-cigarette in his pocket. From the Miami Herald:
Stephen Gutierrez, who was arguing that his client’s car spontaneously combusted and was not intentionally set on fire, had been fiddling in his pocket as he was about to address jurors when smoke began billowing out his right pocket, witnesses told the Miami Herald.
He rushed out of the Miami courtroom, leaving spectators stunned. After jurors were ushered out, Gutierrez returned unharmed, with a singed pocket, and insisted it wasn’t a staged defense demonstration gone wrong, observers said.
If you walk past this bus shelter ad in Stockholm while smoking, the model on the screen starts to cough. Next, the display shows smoking cessation products sold by pharmacy chain Apotek Hjartat, the sponsor of the ad. From CNN:
Akestam Holst, the agency behind the campaign, created the effect by attaching smoke detectors to the digital advertising screen. They chose a location where people often smoke -- Stockholm's Odenplan square -- and let the coughing begin.
The agency filmed the reactions of smokers -- some express surprise, others react with laughter.
German sculptor Daniel Kühn created the "Light & Cigarette Machine," which plays Candide while lighting and extending a cigarette; it was later owned by Leonard Bernstein, and was auctioned off to a German collector after his death. Read the rest
Stanford historian Robert Proctor amassed a remarkable collection of candy cigarette packaging in Golden Holocaust, like this candy cig marketed as "Just Like Daddy!" Yes, they were evil, but sometimes the best things in life are. Read the rest
Here's a 10-minute video on how to impress your stoner friends next time you're smoking that pot and bad-mouthing America. Six easy tricks: Read the rest
If you were a head in 1974 who happened to enjoy the smell and taste of smoking marijuana but didn't want to get high or busted by the fuzz, or you simply wanted to prank the police, you could light up a Zateeva cigarette! From the April 20 (4/20!), 1974 edition of Florida Today:
The pack of Zateeva says it's "An exclusive smoke that captures the heady flavor and grass-like aroma of Cannabis Sativa. All natural ingredients, non-psychoactive, no tobacco or nicotine..."
"I never heard of it before. If it's a drug that's a close likeness of marijuana, it could pose problems," said Inspector Theo York, commander of the sheriff's headquarters squad.
"It is a problem for law enforcement officers, in that we have to know or be pretty well sure that the substance we have to make an arrest for contains an illegal drug."
More at Weird Universe: "Zateeva Smokes" Read the rest
According to an Australian survey, the shit brown color seen above (Pantone 448C, or "Opaque Couché") is the ugliest hue around, reminding respondents of dirt and death. To deter smoking, Australian officials required Opaque Couché to be the main color and cigarette packages and now the UK is following suit. Apparently, Australian officials first referred to the color as "olive green" but the Australian Olive Association was none-too-pleased. Now, Pantone is grumpy about the choice of Opaque Couché.
"At the Pantone Color Institute, we consider all colours equally,” Pantone's exec director Leatrice Eiseman told The Guardian. "(There's no such thing as the ugliest color."
The new UK regulations also ban the use of logos, requiring a plain font on the packs.
More at Smithsonian: "The World’s "Ugliest" Color Could Help People Quit Smoking" Read the rest
It looks like the Australian government hired rotten.com to design their cigarette packages. [image NSFL] Read the rest
After Donald Ryding, 58, suffered a heart attack, he told his wife Julie that he had quit smoking. He was proven a fibber though when Julie saw a Google Street View image of Donald sneaking a puff on their of their driveway in Merseyside, England. Read the rest
After an accident, British pop singer George Michael began smoking heavily and "has joked about the time he talked in a regional voice totally unconnected to him, saying: 'There’s nothing wrong with the West Country accent. It’s just weird when you’re from north London.'" [Western Morning News] Read the rest
This Zippomobile was created by Joe Griffin of Custom Upholstery in Memphis. He was commissioned by Zippo to reproduce the original 1947 Zippomobile, which toured all 48 states to promote the lighter in the post-war era. There were no plans from the original Zippomobile, built from a Chrysler New Yorkers Saratoga, so Griffin had to wing it, working with a second Saratoga and photos of the original. Read the rest
