Bison | 1979
«…dreh'ste glatt – ohne hinzusehen.» (…you'd roll it smoothly, without even looking.) In this 1979 ad, a young man at a bar table holds a hand-rolled cigarette, his eyes on the woman next to him.
Bison was a Dutch rolling tobacco: «halfzware shag», half-heavy, a blend between light and dark tobacco. Shag is a very Dutch product, and the Netherlands still exports most of what it makes. We have not been able to identify which company made Bison. If you know, please tell us.
In this ad we can see a whole way of life. Long hair, glasses, a glass on the table, a cigarette in hand, and the price in big letters: DM 2.90 for a long-cut pouch «direkt aus Holland». Rolling your own was cheaper than buying ready-made cigarettes, and in 1979 it was part of a relaxed, young style.
Ads like this one disappeared step by step. Germany had banned tobacco ads on television in 1975; newspapers and magazines followed in 2007, and billboards from 2022. Smoking in bars has also been restricted, and its health risks are now beyond doubt.
Do you remember when the bar table came with an ashtray?
Text in the ad
Bison · Halfzware Shag · Export Quality · Made in Holland
BISON
…dreh’ste glatt – ohne hinzusehen
Der lange Halfzware direkt aus Holland DM 2.90
Translation:
Bison · Halfzware Shag · Export Quality · Made in Holland
BISON
…you’d roll it smoothly – without even looking
The long halfzware, direct from Holland, DM 2.90
- Brand
- Bison
- Year
- 1979
- Decade
- 1970s
- Country
- Germany
- Medium
- Magazine
- Themes
- Tobacco
- Original publication
- Der Spiegel, 1979
