The b-pipe

From Bizarro Comics.

Vintage Ad (1947): Lord Davenport pipes

Undated photo, Medico pipes

An undated but obviously "vintage" photo of a liquor store, with a sales display of Medico pipes at the upper left.  From Roger Wilkerson.

Early Kodak camera photos

From 11 Photos Taken With the First Kodak Camera.

Pipe smoker quick fix: Gimli

Or at least a character who certainly appears to be Gimli, by artist Adrian Smith.

And that strange cement pond

From Bizarro Comics.

Anti-suffragette poster, 1908

click to enlarge

From The Appendix:

This 1908 image of women smoking and drinking was intended to be a horrifying glimpse of a post-suffrage future.

I spotted two pipe smokers.  Orignally in Puck Magazine, March 18, 1908.

Pipe Smoker: Joe Williams

Joe Williams (1918 - 1999)

Born Joseph Goreed in Cordele, Georia, his father abandoned his family when Joe was young so his mother moved them both in with her parents, then moved to Chicago alone and worked until she had saved enough money to bring Joe with her.  It was there that he was exposed to Chicago's thriving jazz scene and fell in love with the music.

As a teen he taught himself to play piano and formed a gospel quartet that sang at local church functions.  He later began singing solo with various local bands and began earning a little money.  At 16 he dropped out of school to pursue a career in music, at which time he adopted the last name of Williams as a stage name.

In 1938 he got his first break when jazz musician Jimmie Noone hired him to sing with his band.  He became more and more well-known, eventually being hired as a replacement singer for Lionel Hampton's band in 1942, but then lost that job when the regular singer returned.  But during his time with Hampton, his fame grew in leaps and bounds.

In 1954, he was hired as the male vocalist for the Count Basie Orchestra.  He stayed with Count Basie until 1961.

Williams continued to sing for numerous big names in jazz, and in the 1980s was cast in a recurring role as Grandpa Al Hanks (Heathcliff Huxtable's father-in-law) on The Cosby Show.

He was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1983, next to Count Basie's star.



Links:
Wikipedia
YouTube
Allmusic.com
imdb
Discogs

Pipe Smoker quick fix: Samuel Clemens (again!)

Mark Twain and his dog.

Vintage Ad (date unknown): Knapp-Felt hat

From Found in Mom's Basement.

Vintage Ad (date unknown): Carter Hall

Arab man smoking pipe

Photograph by Félix Bonfils, late 1800s.

Félix Bonfils links:
Wikipedia
Museum Syndicate

Vintage Ad (1942): Kaywoodie Carburetor

Click to enlarge.