Muriel Cigars

Muriel Cigars is a United States cigar brand associated with machine-rolled cigars and mass-market tobacco advertising. The brand was established in 1912 by the Lorillard Tobacco Company in Jersey City, New Jersey. Its early package and label imagery was produced by a lithographic firm owned by Carl Moehle, whose family was connected to the identity of the first Muriel cover girl. For many years, the woman shown in the brand’s artwork was treated as an unidentified advertising figure, but later accounts identified her as an adult imagining of Muriel Rasmussen Berry, the daughter of George and Emma Rasmussen and granddaughter of Moehle. Muriel developed its strongest consumer following in the 1950s, when cigar advertising was a prominent part of American popular culture. The brand used television, print, packaging, and personality-based promotion to distinguish a relatively standardized machine-made product in a crowded tobacco market. Actress Edie Adams became a notable Muriel spokesperson, appearing in multiple commercials during the 1950s and 1960s. Muriel also ran television advertising during the first Super Bowl in 1966, giving the brand an unusually visible place in the early history of televised sports advertising. Singer Susan Anton was later associated with Muriel commercials. Ownership changed as the American cigar industry consolidated. In 1956, Muriel was acquired by Consolidated Cigar Holdings, Inc. Consolidated continued to market the brand extensively in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s. By 1973, reported annual sales had reached $40 million, while marketing expenditure during the 1970s was reported to have been as high as $2.5 million per year. These figures describe historical sales and advertising investment rather than current financial performance. The brand’s original visual identity became less directly usable as social expectations changed. In the 1970s, Muriel introduced a new model in an effort to keep the packaging and advertising relevant to contemporary consumers. This change marked a transition away from the older cover-girl image while retaining the brand’s established visual heritage. Consolidated later merged with Havatampa in 2000, creating Altadis USA. Altadis subsequently became part of Imperial Brands, and Muriel Cigars was most recently reported as being owned by Altadis, an Imperial Brands subsidiary. Publicly available reference material provides limited information about current production, distribution, corporate management, or present-day market status.

Muriel Cigars was introduced in 1912 by the Lorillard Tobacco Company in Jersey City, New Jersey. It was developed as a machine-rolled cigar brand for the American market, where tobacco companies increasingly used standardized manufacturing, branded packaging, and national advertising to reach a broad consumer base. The identity of the brand was closely tied to its label artwork. The original lithographic work was produced by a firm owned by Carl Moehle, and the first Muriel cover girl was later identified as Muriel Rasmussen Berry, an adult artistic depiction of a child connected to Moehle’s family through her grandfather. The brand reached its greatest popularity in the 1950s. Its marketing reflected the period’s close relationship between tobacco products and entertainment personalities. Actress Edie Adams served as a Muriel pitch-lady and appeared in several commercials across the 1950s and 1960s. Muriel also used television advertising during the first Super Bowl in 1966. Later promotional associations included singer Susan Anton. These campaigns helped give the brand visibility beyond tobacco retailing and made its advertising imagery part of American commercial culture. In 1956, Consolidated Cigar Holdings, Inc. acquired Muriel from Lorillard. Consolidated maintained extensive promotion of the brand in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s, even as consumer preferences and tobacco advertising practices evolved. Reference material reports that Muriel generated $40 million in annual sales by 1973. It also reports that the brand spent as much as $2.5 million per year on marketing during the 1970s. Because the available figures are historical and are not accompanied by a current corporate financial filing in the reference material, they should not be interpreted as present-day revenue or expenditure. Muriel’s original cover-girl image eventually became less suited to changing cultural expectations. During the 1970s, the brand adopted a new model in an effort to remain relevant. This was a visual and promotional adjustment rather than a documented change in the basic product category. Consolidated continued to market Muriel as a machine-rolled cigar brand. A further ownership transition occurred in 2000, when Consolidated Cigar merged with Havatampa to create Altadis USA. Altadis later became part of Imperial Brands. Muriel Cigars was most recently described as owned by Altadis, a subsidiary of Imperial Brands. Available reference material does not establish a current headquarters, current management team, active product list, present distribution footprint, or whether the brand remains in regular production. Accordingly, its current operating status is recorded as unknown rather than assumed to be active or discontinued.

• 2000

  Formation of Altadis USA

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Consolidated Cigar merges with Havatampa to form Altadis USA, the successor organization associated with Muriel.

• 1973

  Reported annual sales reach $40 million

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Historical reference material reports annual Muriel sales of $40 million by 1973.

• 1970

  Brand imagery is refreshed

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Muriel adopts a new advertising model during the 1970s as part of an effort to maintain relevance.

• 1966

  Advertising during the first Super Bowl

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Muriel runs television advertising during the first Super Bowl.

• 1956

  Acquisition by Consolidated Cigar

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Consolidated Cigar Holdings, Inc. acquires the Muriel Cigars brand from Lorillard.

• 1950

  Muriel reaches peak popularity in the 1950s

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  The brand’s consumer popularity peaks during the 1950s, supported by mass-market promotion and entertainment-oriented advertising.

• 1912

  Muriel Cigars is established

  [1]Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org

  Lorillard Tobacco Company establishes Muriel Cigars in Jersey City, New Jersey.

A historically American, mass-market machine-rolled cigar brand positioned through recognizable packaging, broad retail distribution, and highly visible television advertising.

• Machine-rolled cigars · 1912

  Muriel Cigars

  Muriel’s documented core product is a machine-rolled cigar sold as a branded, mass-market tobacco product in the United States. Public reference material emphasizes the brand’s packaging, advertising history, and ownership changes rather than providing a complete catalog of historical sizes, blends, formats, or current stock-keeping units.

• 1970Cover-girl imagery refresh

  United States

  Muriel introduced a new model during the 1970s to update its established cover-girl-centered visual identity.

  Outcome. The change was intended to help the brand remain relevant in a changing cultural and advertising environment.

  Source
• 1966First Super Bowl television advertising

  United States

  Muriel purchased television advertising in the first Super Bowl broadcast, placing the cigar brand among the event’s earliest commercial sponsors.

  Outcome. The campaign gave Muriel prominent exposure at the beginning of the Super Bowl’s advertising history.

  Source
• 1955Edie Adams Muriel advertising

  United States

  Actress Edie Adams appeared as a Muriel Cigars pitch-lady in television commercials, linking the brand with a recognizable entertainment personality.

  Outcome. The advertising contributed to Muriel’s visibility during the brand’s strongest period in the 1950s and 1960s.

  Source

• 2000

  Consolidated Cigar merges with HavatampaM&A

  Background

  Consolidated Cigar was the corporate owner associated with Muriel before the transaction.

  Action taken

  Consolidated Cigar and Havatampa merged to form Altadis USA.

  Aftermath

  Muriel became part of the Altadis USA portfolio and was later associated with Imperial Brands through Altadis ownership.

  Source

• 1970

  Refresh the brand’s cover-girl imageStrategy

  Background

  Muriel’s long-established label and advertising image faced a changing cultural environment during the 1970s.

  Action taken

  The brand selected a new model while continuing to use its established machine-rolled cigar positioning.

  Aftermath

  The update represented an effort to preserve consumer relevance; the available sources do not quantify its effect on sales or market share.

  Source

1. 1Muriel Cigarsen.wikipedia.org