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The ultimate anti-smoking hero that changed smoking forever.
When faced with pitching American Medical Association with an anti-smoking campaign we decided to change the strategy from “You get cancer if you smoke.” to “It’s evil to lure children to start smoking.” We came up with a anti-smoking hero that we called “The Extinguisher”. His motto was : “Kick Butts.” The hero changed as we faced various focus groups. He lost his original quirky look and turned increasingly more heroic and serious. The Extinguisher’s side kick was a smart woman named Dr. Who.
The Extinguisher comic books were distributed nationwide at AMA anti-smoking meetings for children and young adults. AMA hired several actors who performed at these meetings teaching kids about the dangers of smoking. The campaign ended up in the news in such prominent places as USA TODAY.
The campaign went far beyond expectations. The strategy “It’s evil to lure children to start smoking.” has been used to legislate against cigarette advertising targeting children in cities, states and federally. It has been used to legislate smoking in public places or anywhere secondhand smoking occurs. The same strategy has been used to discuss legislation for drugs and smoking in both states and federal legislation proposals. It’s still rolling forward.
Elsewhere in the NEWS:
Anti-Smoking Superheroes Help Youths Kick Butts.
The Extinguisher promotes anti-tobacco awareness to help protect kids from the dangers of tobacco and misleading tobacco advertising. The goal is not only to get kids to quit, but to prevent them from ever starting the habit. The Extinguisher is a positive, antismoking role model for young children.
There are several actors dressed up as the Extinguishers who go from city to city performing and communicating the anti-smoking message to youth. The Extinguisher has performed at rallies and special events, and provided a “super” hand during national anti-smoking campaigns across the country. The Extinguisher visits schools and make special appearances at shopping malls and other events where youth meet.
While the tobacco settlement with 46 states represents a significant victory over the tobacco industry, there are sober facts that demand continued attention:
• An estimated 5 million children and adolescents smoke cigarettes.
• Every day, 6,000 kids puff their first cigarette.
• More than half of them will become regular smokers
• And more than 1,000 will eventually die from a tobacco-related disease.
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The original Extinguisher storyboards made for AMA were developed for TV commercials and to be printed as comic books but instead were used for focus group discussion.
During focus group testing, the Extinguisher changed in appearance, look and personality as focus group attendants gave us their input about their children’s interests and role models. Compare these original storyboards with the one on top of the page. The original Extinguisher was more goofy with a lot of slap stick humor while the final version was more serious. The change was influenced by parents who were afraid that their children would start smoking. That is not seen as a laughing matter.
As the project developed, the AMA took the unusual approach to hire actors and arrange events throughout the USA, talking directly to groups of children and young adults about the dangers of smoking. Printed comic magazines of the strips on top of this page were distributed at these events as part of a real theatrical engagement with children. In the end this was a powerful approach in limiting the number of children who start smoking and attracting attention from media both locally and nationally.
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