Card Number 250, Miss Butler, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-2) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Cross Cut Cigarettes 1880s

Editor: Okay, next up we have a rather curious artifact: "Card Number 250, Miss Butler," from the Actors and Actresses series. It was created in the 1880s by W. Duke, Sons & Co. as an advertisement for Cross Cut Cigarettes, believe it or not. It looks like a drawing that’s been printed, housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I find the whole composition a bit... bizarre, almost theatrical. What do you make of it? Curator: Bizarre is the perfect word! It throws you, doesn't it? Think of it as a tiny window into a bygone era, a sliver of popular culture preserved on cardstock. It's a calling card, a pin-up, a collectible all rolled into one. The almost cartoonish Miss Butler with her lasso... but made of cigarettes?! She's like a stage magician, only her trick is selling tobacco! What do you notice about the way she's framed? Editor: Well, she's front and center, very posed. The “Cross Cut Cigarettes ARE THE BEST” text seems crammed in and slightly obscures part of her figure. And the background—is that supposed to be classical statuary? Curator: Exactly! We've got high art mingling with low culture – or at least, the *aim* of high art clashing with everyday life, aggressively sold. And what about Miss Butler herself? What does she tell us about ideals of beauty at the time? Editor: The tiny waist definitely speaks volumes. It’s intriguing how this little card manages to say so much about advertising, entertainment, and even social ideals all at once. I'd never think to look for so much depth in what appears at first glance to be just a simple advertisement. Curator: Precisely! It’s those little, unassuming treasures that often hold the most compelling stories. Now, next time you see an ad, you might ponder, what hidden message is it broadcasting?