At first, CBS had a hard time finding a sponsor for I Love Lucy, but finally landed a big one. The series was sponsored entirely by what company when it launched?

The cigarette company Philip Morris was the first sponsor of the series, which is why you see a LOT of smoking in the show. In fact, the very first episode of the series opens with a Philip Morris spokesperson yelling “Call for Philip Morris!” and then we see animated versions of Lucy and Desi repelling down the side of a box of cigarettes.

Asked by Tom Cohen · Last updated 5 years ago · 27.9K views