“foolish looking or silly acting blacks to draw attention to its product”

The silliness of blacks hunting reminded me of some of the images from this post:
http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2008/01/06/equal-opportunity-gun-ownership/

I'm confused. Who are these adds trying to cell cigarettes to?

I'm with Shale. I... don't get it.
To my modern eye, these ads are fascinatingly inexplicable.
I'm trying to think of them within their c.1900 context, but still.
I absolutely do not understand the first one, in particular. The second one doesn't make much more sense, except that at least it depicts "three generations."

I suppose we must assume they were primarily targeting white people, but I'm so used to the target consumer being portrayed in advertising. It's sort of the main tenet of modern advertising: the consumer needs to see himself using the product. So it's quite bizarre to see these "coon" caricatures. [The Coon Stereotype c.1900: "A lazy, easily frightened, chronically idle, inarticulate, buffoon... not happy with his status... coons were increasingly identified with young, urban Blacks who disrespected Whites. Stated differently, the coon was a Sambo gone bad." (http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/coon/)] I guess these were seen as "amusing"?

And then you consider that if Bull Durham was the Marlboro of its day, then black people almost certainly used the product, and this is what they had to see. (Among other things.) Nice. Puttin' them (and keepin' them) in their place, at every opportunity.

Out of curiosity, I went looking for other Bull Durham ads from around the same period. Seems most of their ads showed only a bull, or baseball stars of the time. But here are a couple that show people using the product; note how people of different races are depicted:
Native Americans http://tinyurl.com/yzu3pyu
Caucasians http://tinyurl.com/yzbpaay

How did the movie get that name?

Interestingly, Bull Durham Tobacco, "Briteleaf tobacco", was grown and manufactured in Durham, NC.

During the early 20th century, Durham was a prominent African-American town, with one of the largest communities of African-American owned businesses and, consequentially affluent African-Americans.
Durham is the home to the first state African-American college, North Caolina Central University, founded in 1910.
Durham was also the site of significant Civil Rights campaigns. This includes the famous Greensboro, NC sit-in which brought Martin Luther King Jr down to Durham to give a speech.

The city and the African American community began to decline, at least financially, during the mid to late 1900s with the close of textile mills and competition from other tobacco companies.

Interesting to imagine how the community, with all its history, perceived these ads at the time.

I have the 3 rd. print of the Bull Durham poster. It depict a heavy set mammie on the front porch of a General Store along with a young black girl on the porch eating a slice of watermelon, in the ground is the well know bull which is fenced in, with a young black child standing on the fence looking at the bull. Needles to say the the format of this poster is the same as the images posted. I will try to display these images a little laster. The 3 posters I have were purchased some 25 to 30 years ago from a small antique shop just off the town square in Columbia, Tennessee.

I have the an original poster as the one posted Dec 09(Pete) I am looking to sell it, its been in a box for 15 years that i know of..I just cannot see it setting there any longer

William C. Mulholland, sr
mulhollandservices@yahoo.com

i have what i think is a reprint of the "without a match" ad and its hard to find what it might be worth i got it from my grandma but havent been able to find a website that will tell me a value for a reprint

How much would these posters posters be worth today?

I have the "Three Generations" and "General Store" posters in relatively good condition and would like to know the value.

how old are these

I have a metal sign of the 3rd picture and would love to know it's value

I have recently purchased a tin sign of the Bull Durham "Without a Match" sign and am wondering what the value would be. It is a bit rusty on one corner but otherwise in good shape.

Maybe we should check with "Pawn Stars" in Las Vegas!

HELLO,i have several of these same original Bull DURHAM POSTERS OBTAINED WHILE, AN AUCTIONEER IN THE 50'S i ALSO HAVE MANACLES OF CIVIL WAR AND SLAVERY DAYS. ANY INTEREST E-MAIL ME
THANKS JERRY

Please give an idea of what the mammy on the porch Bull Durham ad poster might bring

thats not racist. just the typical portrayal of the time.

I have the pitcure with 2 blacks kissing under the umbrella, which I have had
for over a century. I would like to know how much it is worth.

If any body would like to buy the pitcure leave a comment. It is the original! www.proof7272@yahoo.com Thank you..

Some people would do anything to scream racisisim

my grandmother owns the third one and when reminded her that visitors may find it racist she said that black people can just deal with it i wasn't really expecting that from her iv'e also noticed she has a wooden figure of a blackface girl eating watermelon i think but i'm not sure that she has the second one in her back room i may check next time i visit and don't get the wrong idea she's not racist (or at least i think) she says that she keeps the pictures because there old and she doesn't want to give them up

I think the part that blacks today don't like about images of the past (Outside of the truthful parts that hit too close to home) are the ridiculous characatures.... I have never seen a black person in my entire life that looks like most of the characatures of that day. Those two hunters look like they're wearing bright red lipstick. The Mammy and kid on the porch look like they're wearing white lipstick. Black people's lips are brown like their skin... Sure there are plenty of examples of white characatures drawn humorously but not EVERY time.... Like the classic buck tooth "ching-chong" face for asian characatures....

I have these ads and a few more in possession
Ig: alphamale856 take a look

Anti-black ephemera seems particularly prone to forgery. Almost all black-related postcards, posters, and advertising signs have been counterfeited. Cream of Wheat advertisements, Coon Chicken Inn hand fans, Bull Durham posters, and Aunt Jemima ephemera have all been reproduced in great numbers. The counterfeit items are often put into smoke houses to color the paper, thereby giving the appearance of being aged. There are numerous counterfeit "Whites Only" and "Colored Served In Rear" signs offered for sale by Internet auction houses. These paper signs show brown edges, but the centers of the signs are not discolored.

Just like to say none of this is racist this is history so if you got something to say keep it to yourself I am straight and forward person and I am not racist

So because it is his story it's not racist???? Thought provoking comment.

I own the last one because I collect old advertisments. The reasons the others are racist is the broken english, ebonics
"My shure am tastin sweet" Implying people of color cant talk or spell. It todays times that is considered racist because most people who speak that way are people of color and this ad seems to poke fun at that

The lips are the only problem I see that a white person would like and make them purchase these posters and more tobacco.

Oh, and none of the creatures are watching the Bull.

I have a copy of the hunting poster. If anyone is a collector please message me. Thanks!

Hi Hi I have one of these my dad had had in his antique shop. He has passed way for it's been years now and I have some pictures that I kept and I would like to sell them. If anyone is inarrested in purchasing these. I would like to chat with you because I have others also

Do these advertising posters have any collectible value or are they just remnants of a time that's been passed by?

I have 2 of them, I'm black, and I love these posters because I'm not affected from the racism back in the day, my white male friend gave them to me, his mom had a antique store back in the day. I would like to have the one of the two kissing 💋 under the umbrella, awsome 😍 but mine is represented on cardboard.