Camel cigarette ads have been brought before the tobacco using consumer since their introduction to the market in 1913. Camel cigarettes advertisements before the new packs of smokes even hit the stores were done by public appearances of dromedaries, which in a day and age of the amusement fair and the wandering circus were easily enough accomplished. When the new cigarette finally did come out, the Camel cigarette advertisement that came out before the cigarette had created such a buzz that many smokers could not wait to lay their hands on the allegedly exotic tobacco.

It is true that this particular cigarette does incorporate tobacco from Turkey, and thus the claims of the early Camel cigarettes ads were correct. In fact, it was the very lure of the exotic that placed the Camel cigarette ad at the forefront of the public’s mind in 1913. This was the time when Victorian England and the Americas were swept with Egyptology fever – a time when the Valley of the Kings was explored, tombs were unearthed, and several private citizens placed real mummies into their homes as displays and art objects. The goal of the advertisement for Camel cigarettes was to entice the average citizen to see this brand of cigarettes as their tickets to the exotic, the unknown, and thus enable them to at least swipe a slice of the unusual pie in this fashion.

Over the years Camel cigarette advertising evolved, and soon there were Camel cigarette advertisements in magazines and later on also on television. As the Egyptology craze subsided, the brand was nonetheless here to stay, and soon the emphasis was shifted to include a blue and yellow logo that spelled brand recognition without words. A short while later the Joe Camel cigarette ad debuted and this created a veritable firestorm in the history of the Camel cigarette advertisement. Joe Camel cigarette ads were reputed to be aimed at children and even though the creators of the Camel cigarette advertisement campaigns denied this vehemently, the new camel cigarette ads with their cartoon character were soon retired.

Of course, there is also a lot of lore about the Camel cigarette advertisement. While there is precious little circumspection about Camel cigarette advertising today, in the past overeager readers perusing the Camel cigarette magazine advertisements claimed that the swirls in the dromedary’s body looked a bit like a man in his birthday suit with each part of the anatomy clearly visible. Others have seen an image reminiscent of Mae West, while still others claim to have seen animals. Additionally, the Joe Camel cigarette advertisement was at times compared to the more private parts of a man’s anatomy. These somewhat amusing ideas about Camel Light cigarette advertising campaigns and other ads have never truly be substantiated and thus remain in the eye of the beholder.