Category: Pop Culture

Comic Book Men

I just finished all 7 seasons of Comic Book Men an Amazon Prime video. It was an AMC television show, podcast, starring Kevin Smith (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II, Tusk) and his employees of Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash. This is a comic book store located in Red Bank, New Jersey. Sitting around a table Kevin Smith, Bryan Johnson (Mallrats, Dogma, Shooting Clerks, Making Fun: The Story of Funko, Impractical Jokers: The Movie), Walt Flanagan (Clerks, Mallrats, Vulgar),

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Alberto Vargas

Alberto Vargas, a renowned Peruvian painter of pin-up girls, was born February 9, 1982 in Arequipa. His father was photographer Max T. Vargas and Alberto started out trying to follow in his footsteps. With his fathers encouragement he turned more to airbrushing and painting, studying in Europe, Zurich and Geneva prior to World War I. A French magazine cover by Raphael Kirchner, on a La Vie Parisienne issue is said to be his main influence.

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Candy Cigarettes

Back as far as 1888 ads can be found for Candy Cigarettes. Those were chocolate cylinders wrapped in cigarette type papers and sold in cigarette type boxes.

In the 1930’s, Cigarettes were not known to be negative and the sugary cigarettes were sold to kids without giving it a second thought. They would even put powdered sugar on the wrappings so you could simulate blowing smoke.

It was in the 1950’s and 1960’s that the health concerns of the real cigarettes became known worldwide but the yummy bubblegum cigarettes were sold in most places . I remember being able to buy them anytime I wanted when I was a kid.

After the 1970 bill consideration to ban them, the word cigarette was removed from most packages and replaced with “sticks”. A lot of countries, and some states, have banned the sale, so some children won’t be enticed to smoke, but you can still buy them today.