The Leo Burnett Co.'s Marlboro Man campaign from 1955 onward is ranked as the #3 most influential advertising campaign of all time. Leo Burnett founded the agency in 1935 and created iconic campaigns for many brands. For Marlboro cigarettes, Burnett used American western themes featuring real cowboys and stuntmen, known as the Marlboro Men, to promote the brand's filters as a safer cigarette. The campaign was highly successful, helping Marlboro become the top cigarette brand by the 1970s. However, several Marlboro Men later died from smoking-related illnesses.