Italians on Italians
Beyond Toscano

Hot off the press – how cigars made the news

Like many industries, publishing has had an interesting relationship with cigars over the years. With writers, editors and...
Il Sigaro della Sera
Like many industries, publishing has had an interesting relationship with cigars over the years. With writers, editors and artworkers often burning the midnight oil to meet deadlines and get papers to press, a cigar was often seen as a reward to work towards, or a stimulant to help keep them awake while the rest of the city sleeps.
 
In Italy, that relationship was even closer, with several titles actually going to press thanks to cigar companies. Newspapers were often sold by tobacconists on the city streets, where customers would buy a paper, and their favorite cigar. But when times got busy, the act of fumbling for the correct change would slow things down and sometimes led to lost sales if people didn't have time to wait in line.
 
So in Florence, in 1885, a newspaper went on sale to help speed up transactions. Called 'Il Resto al Sigaro' (the change for a cigar), the title was priced at exactly the amount of change customers would get from buying a cigar with a note or coin of the closest denomination. They got their cigar and newspaper, and the newsagent spent less time counting change.
 
The idea proved popular, with the title of the paper changing to simply 'Il Sigaro' (The Cigar). A similar paper also launched embracing this idea. 'Il Resto del Carlino' was named after a popular coin used to buy cigars - the Carlino. The change from buyng a cigar with a Carlino would be 2 cents, exactly the price of this newspaper. While the paper known as The Cigar is no longer, Il Resto del Carlino, based in Bologna, is still going strong and is one of Italy's oldest newspapers.