In Europe and the United States, a cigarette girl was an attractive young woman who sold or provided cigarettes from a tray held by a neck strap, a common casual occupation until supplanted by vending machines in the 1950s, especially at nightclubs, but also at restaurants, bars, casinos, and other social gathering places.
[1] The most common uniform is a red and black short saloon-style skirt above the knee dress accompanied with a matching pillbox hat,[2] but different colors and styles are possible.
Aside from serving cigarettes and other novelties, the attractive girls acted as eye candy and were often employed to flirt with male customers as well.
[2] Though largely not seen other than in speakeasies and supper clubs,[2] cigarette girls were frequently shown in Hollywood films and soon became well-established among the general public.
[2] From the end of World War II to the 1950s, cigarette girls further expanded into sporting events and the lobbies of theaters and music halls during intermissions.