Chewing tobacco companies show their marketing zeal

Pinkerton Tobacco was founded in 1887 by John W. Pinkerton when he bought controlling interest in the Worstall Cigar and Tobacco company in Zanesville, Ohio. He launched Red Man Chew in 1904, and signage began to appear on barns throughout the region.

 

One of those barns sits on a 300-acre former dairy farm near Tyrone, Pa. Today, the structure has been “repurposed” as a family-owned events center known as The Barn on Pennington Road. The “RED MAN: AMERICA’S BEST CHEW” sign on the side of the barn facing the road has appeared in countless wedding album photographs.

 

During World War II, sugar rationing limited the amount of sugar available to flavor Red Man Chew. The founder’s grandson, Sherwood Pinkerton Jr., was now president of the company. Trained as a chemist, he discovered a way to maintain the taste of Red Man by using sugar substitutes from natural fruits. 

Marketing tie-ins with rural and outdoor sports have been a hallmark of the Red Man brand.

Chewing tobacco became popular among baseball players as it was a way for them to keep their mouth moist while on the field during long games, as the field is dry and dusty, according to one baseball historian. 

From 1952-55, Red Man produced a series of baseball cards, featuring Major League Baseball players.

 

Each set included 50 of the top players from that time – names like Richie Ashburn, Yogi Berra, Dom DiMaggio, Larry Doby, Bob Feller, Nellie Fox, Monte Irvin, George Kell, Ralph Kiner, Gil McDougald, Sal Maglie, Minnie Minoso, Willie Mays, Stan Musial, Pee Wee Reese, Robin Roberts, Red Shoendienst, Bobby Shantz, Enos Slaughter, Duke Snider, Warren Spahn, Vic Wertz, Ted Williams and Early Wynn. 

Red Man is no longer. The brand was permanently changed to “America’s Best” in 2022.

As early as 1904, Queen City Tobacco Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio, received a product endorsement for its Red Devil brand of chewing tobacco from one of the star players from that era. He was Cleveland’s captain and manager, Napoleon “Nap” Lajoie.

 

Large yellow posters proclaimed: “Nap Lajoie Chews Red Devil. Ask Him If He Don’t.” Sports author Al Stump said Lajoie’s chew was “big as a hockey puck.”

 

Also during the 1904 season, Lajoie received a suspension after he squirted tobacco juice into the eye of umpire Frank “Blinky” Dwyer. 

The Beech-Nut brand of chewing tobacco was rolled out in 1915 by P. Lorillard Company of New York City, and it enlisted the services of brothers Jay “Dizzy” Dean and Paul “Daffy’ Dean in 1934 to pitch Beech-Nut. The Deans set a professional baseball record that year, one that may never be equaled again. The Dean brothers combined for a total of 49 victories (30 for Dizzy and 19 for Daffy) while pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals.

 

After his playing career, Dizzy Dean entered the broadcast booth. There, he became a philosopher, uttering words of wisdom, such as: “I never keep a scorecard or the batting averages. I hate statistics. What I got to know, I keep in my head.” 

He also extended his comments beyond the baseball diamond with observations like: “It puzzles me how they know what corners are good for filling stations. Just how did they know gas and oil was under there?”

Dizzy Dean and broadcast booth partner Pee Wee Reese.

 

Lionel, the toy train company, introduced its “Tobacco Railroad” series” of three boxcars in 1976, rolling billboards for Beech-Nut chewing tobacco as well as Camel cigarettes and Prince Albert pipe tobacco. Six more boxcars, followed in 1977-78, promoting six other tobacco products.

 

No “Tobacco Railroad” series cars were found in Lionel’s 1979 catalog, however, prompting one collector to proclaim: “Lionel kicked the habit.”