A Trivial Pursuit
By John Cornelius

Who was Archie Moulton Andrews? And why would a lighter collector care?

Archie could be described as a shameless promoter and super salesman. And, not universally well liked. Jacob Schick invented the electric shaver and began marketing it in 1931. In 1933, he met Archie and was persuaded to grant him rights to display the shaver at the Chicago World’s Fair along side Archie’s own unique product. They quickly had a falling-out over distribution rights and Archie began producing a dry shaver under the name Packard in 1934, touching off a lawsuit that would last for years and a “war’ between the companies that would outlive both individuals.



Archie Andrews additionally headed Dictograph and briefly was Chairman of the Hupp Motor Car Corporation following a hostile takeover of that company. His contractual relationship with Hupp was ultimately terminated in 1935 by order of a Federal judge who stated that “Andrews' conduct was so bad that it seriously seems necessary to attribute all his conduct to an unbalanced and dishonest mind.”

During his tenure, Archie promoted the Hupmobile through a number of gimmicks including utilizing toliet paper advertisements and…his own brand of Cigarette Lighters.



Archie Moulton Andrews died in 1938, almost exactly one year after the death of his rival Jacob Schick. However, the iconic products that he promoted remain as collector items today.

This article is the property of the OTLS Lighter club.
Reprinted from an official OTLS newsletter with permission.