The Codger Cabin

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):


When I first saw this one, knowing Arthur Godfrey’s story, I had to wince just a little. But also knowing the ‘64 Report, our pipes are not Chesterfields. The former are indeed a faithful companion to so many of us today. Just as they were to our codger forefathers. And especially in 1932.

As we see from this ad and others, times were tough then. But tobacco companies were doing their best to provide good pipe tobacco and good value for those precious few cents. Simple, affordable pleasures, to carry through tough times. Perhaps that uncomplicated message has enduring meaning ...

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[Benzadmiral]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):


When I first saw this one, knowing Arthur Godfrey’s story, I had to wince just a little. But also knowing the ‘64 Report, our pipes are not Chesterfields. The former are indeed a faithful companion to so many of us today. Just as they were to our codger forefathers. And especially in 1932.

As we see from this ad and others, times were tough then. But tobacco companies were doing their best to provide good pipe tobacco and good value for those precious few cents. Simple, affordable pleasures, to carry through tough times. Perhaps that uncomplicated message has enduring meaning ...


View attachment 1250548

Okay, I give. Who is this testimonial from? Alex Gray, who is mentioned in the "Music That Satisfies" blurb? Or was he just "The Guy in Those L & M Ads," the 1932 equivalent of "The Most Interesting Man in the World"?

 

[Columbo]

Okay, I give. Who is this testimonial from? Alex Gray, who is mentioned in the "Music That Satisfies" blurb? Or was he just "The Guy in Those L & M Ads," the 1932 equivalent of "The Most Interesting Man in the World"?

Just guessing ... it’s from an ad agency.

Although some of the upcoming Edgeworth ones have consumer letters in them.

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[Benzadmiral]

Some Carter Hall just now in my Colossal billiard. Perhaps I smoked it a little too fast, or it needed some drying beforehand, but -- while it was a relaxing smoke -- it gave me, unlike with Granger or SWR, a hint of cigarette instead of pipe tobacco. The CH is very easy to smoke faster and harder than you should.

I read somewhere today that CH dates only from the 1950s. Is that true?

 

[Columbo]

Some Carter Hall just now in my Colossal billiard. Perhaps I smoked it a little too fast, or it needed some drying beforehand, but -- while it was a relaxing smoke -- it gave me, unlike with Granger or SWR, a hint of cigarette instead of pipe tobacco. The CH is very easy to smoke faster and harder than you should.

I read somewhere today that CH dates only from the 1950s. Is that true?

Sounds like it went a little too fast, and a little too hot. The big Middleton twins are prone to getting ‘ashy’ later in the bowl when that happens. Try slowing it down next time and see what happens.

Not everyone likes every OTC, and it’s no sin if you find some you like better than others. That’s why they have different brands in the first place.

As far as CH goes, someone else here stated the 1950s a while ago, which was news to me. I was under the impression that CH was one of the older recipes. In a bit of a spoiler, I will say that of all the upcoming ads, covering six decades, only one or two reference it, and they are after 1960. So maybe it is a late entry.

 

[RookieGuy]

Yeah, CH can get kinda cigarette-ish when pushed. Sometimes we'd push Gramps to get up out of his chair, and there was always hell to pay.

This is a really interesting thread, and I'm really enjoying myself. Thanks, Columbo, for doing this.

It got me thinking though. All these great blends no longer with us for a variety of reasons. Tobaccos smoked by the men who beat the Kaiser. At my age, that's my dad's grandfathers. I'm glad I got to have a little of it.

 

[Columbo]

Yeah, CH can get kinda cigarette-ish when pushed. Sometimes we'd push Gramps to get up out of his chair, and there was always hell to pay.

This is a really interesting thread, and I'm really enjoying myself. Thanks, Columbo, for doing this.

It got me thinking though. All these great blends no longer with us for a variety of reasons. Tobaccos smoked by the men who beat the Kaiser. At my age, that's my dad's grandfathers. I'm glad I got to have a little of it.

Thank YOU. Those are very kind words, and make it a joy from my end.

We have barely scratched the surface. There are so many more to come. Hundreds and hundreds ... over 1,300 images now, and growing still by the week ... as we travel the history of tobacco pipe smoking, America, and perhaps our families, across a half century now gone. We’ve barely made it only to 1932. The changes from beginning to end are profound. Hang in there, we’ll eventually see photos and color, I promise. Hopefully, as our parents and grandparents experienced it, as the magazines and newspapers crossed their coffee tables over the years and decades. I hope you enjoy it!

I’ll keep posting three a day (perhaps more), as health and my helpers permit. I’ve set aside some seasonal ones for more special times, such as Fathers Day and Christmas, and hope to post them during those same times of year.

I’ll occasionally add a comment where I think it appropriate, helpful, for some comic relief, or to explain a longer view of it all (the detours and frolics). To the extent it encourages reflection and comments, it makes our little Cabin a gentle retreat for happy fellowship.

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[RookieGuy]

The Edgeworth one, something caught my eye. WJZ is the call letters of our local CBS affiliate. I had to read it again to be sure.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Smoked some Half & Half plus Granger in my new Rigoletto straight pot. Just a half bowl, as I'm trying to break the pipe in -- it's apparently never been smoked. The combo, or maybe just the Granger alone, makes for a great smoke: cool, no tongue bite or throat roughness, and a nutty/cocoa kind of scent.

By the way, I got my Sir Walter Aromatic in the mail today too. I plan to smoke it in my Peterson this weekend. But the pouch note: I love it, but it reminds me of the scent of a cigarette! Not burning, now, but that pleasant aroma as you slide a cigarette fresh out of the pack under your nose.

 

[Columbo]

The Edgeworth one, something caught my eye. WJZ is the call letters of our local CBS affiliate. I had to read it again to be sure.

This WJZ was the radio one out of NYC (Newark, NJ). It is now 770 WABC.

Just a further aside about the radio networks, as we’ll be seeing more references to them. Back then, NBC had two national networks, “Red” and “Blue”. Each had a flagship or originating station, WJZ for the Blue, and WEAF for the Red. Both were out of NYC. The Red was the higher budget premier network that carried the top programs.

After some divestiture, the Red became the modern era NBC, and Blue became the ABC radio network. As mentioned, WJZ is now WABC. And WEAF is now WFAN (660 AM, and a CBS station).

NBC also had an Orange network for the West Coast, which was generally a repeater extension of the Red.

 

[Columbo]

Smoked some Half & Half plus Granger in my new Rigoletto straight pot. Just a half bowl, as I'm trying to break the pipe in -- it's apparently never been smoked. The combo, or maybe just the Granger alone, makes for a great smoke: cool, no tongue bite or throat roughness, and a nutty/cocoa kind of scent.

By the way, I got my Sir Walter Aromatic in the mail today too. I plan to smoke it in my Peterson this weekend. But the pouch note: I love it, but it reminds me of the scent of a cigarette! Not burning, now, but that pleasant aroma as you slide a cigarette fresh out of the pack under your nose.

I think you’re in for a treat with the SWRA. It won’t taste at all like a cigarette.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I think you’re in for a treat with the SWRA. It won’t taste at all like a cigarette.

Well, I wouldn't know, never having smoked the white sticks. My mother was a devotee of Pall Malls for many years, and I smelled enough of that to put me off actually burning them. But the unburnt tobacco aroma of a cigarette is really pretty enjoyable. I certainly don't think the Aromatic is going to taste or smoke like a Pall Mall.

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):

 

[steveclarkus]

Some Carter Hall just now in my Colossal billiard. Perhaps I smoked it a little too fast, or it needed some drying beforehand, but -- while it was a relaxing smoke -- it gave me, unlike with Granger or SWR, a hint of cigarette instead of pipe tobacco. The CH is very easy to smoke faster and harder than you should.

I read somewhere today that CH dates only from the 1950s. Is that true?

I believe I read CH was introduced August 1956

 

[Columbo]

From The Cabin Coffee Table — An occasional look back at what the old Codgers saw and smoked (with a little detour and frolic, here and there):