Fred, Barney and Winston

When The Flintstones first hit the American ABC channel in 1960, it was at prime time and largely directed at an adult audience. Which accounted no doubt for its tie up with sponsor, Winston. Their slogan proclaimed a 'Winston tastes good like a cigarette should'. The clip above shows Fred and Barney taking a relaxing cigarette break, whilst the wives, Wilma and Betty, do all the work ! Winston ceased their asssociation with The Flinstones in 1963 when Wilma fell pregnant with Pebbles. By this time the cartoon series had caught the imagination of younger American viewers anyway, with criticism growing that the advert was a bad influence on children. To me, The Flintstones has always been a kids programme, albeit one with a great attraction for all age groups. Which made this clip all the more incredible when I first saw it. How the world has moved on, thankfully.
Posted by heyharri at 20:56 1 comments