Card 1040, "See my Kittie!", from the Actors and Actresses series (N45, Type 2) for Virginia Brights Cigarettes 1885 - 1891

This is a trade card from the late 19th century, made by Allen & Ginter for Virginia Brights Cigarettes. The card depicts an actress holding a cat, with the caption "See my Kittie!". These cards were inserted into cigarette packs as a marketing strategy. By the 1880s, actors and actresses had become celebrities and there was a growing public fascination with their private lives. This card provides a glimpse into the social and cultural values of the time, reflecting idealized notions of femininity, domesticity, and the role of women in the entertainment industry. What we see here is the commodification of celebrity culture and the marketing strategies employed by tobacco companies to appeal to consumers. Images like this one shaped public perception and the institutional development of the entertainment industry. Historians of art, media, and consumer culture can use trade cards like this as primary source material to analyze the complex interplay between art, commerce, and society in the late 19th century.