British American Tobacco, Park

Brown & Williamson entered the gay market in 1996 and this gay vague ad showed up in OUT two years later. It appears that the two men in the background may be a couple walking their dog together, and the man in foreground seems to offer a cruisy, come-hither invitation.

Philip Morris debuted Parliament as the first tobacco brand to advertise in American gay media in 1994. In 1996 competitors R.J. Reynolds and Brown & Williamson added their Carlton, Lucky Strike, Moonlight Tobacco Co. and Red Kamel brands to the market, as Phillip Morris also delivered Merit. Since then, Camel Lights, Kool and Salem have followed for a niche market that smokes at a higher rate than the general population.

Despite a now crowded tobacco category in the gay market, only Parliament has committed to creating gay-specific ad creative, even if it is gay vague at best.