Fannie Rice, from the Actors and Actresses series (N145-8) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Duke Cigarettes
Medium
Albumen photograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 3/8 in. (6.8 × 3.5 cm)
Classification
Photographs|Ephemera
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick
Accession Number
63.350.208.145.8.218
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the glittering world of 1890s theater with *Fannie Rice*, a captivating portrait from the *Actors and Actresses* series (N145-8), by W. Duke, Sons & Co. to promote their Duke Cigarettes. Issued around 1891, this tiny albumen photograph captures the of Fannie Rice, a popular American actress known for her stage presence in vaudeville and dramatic roles. These cards were tucked into cigarette packs as clever marketing ploys, turning smokers into collectors and fueling a craze for celebrity ephemera. The albumen process, a hallmark of 19th-century photography, coated paper with egg whi...
About the Artist
W. Duke, Sons & Co.|American Tobacco Company · 1870–1920
**W. Duke, Sons & Co.: Pioneers of Chromolithographic Trade Card Art** W. Duke, Sons & Co., an American tobacco manufacturer, emerged from the entrepreneurial vision of Washington Duke (1820–1905) and his sons in Durham, North Carolina. After the Civil War, Washington abandoned farming in 1874 to join his eldest son, Brodie L. Duke, in the burgeoning tobacco trade, establishing a factory that for...