B-movie cinema has always known how to capitalize on human morbid curiosity. In fact, if you're not a complete psychopath, the only images of bestial murders you should have in your head are those created by a special effects team, at a director's request. But morbid curiosity, like many other nice things in life, also breeds habituation.
The first time you see a severed head you might be impressed; the tenth time, surely not. That's why, in an era when blood-and-guts cinema saturated theaters with productions that often left much to be desired, some pioneers found an excellent way to stand out from the rest: giving away 'vomit bags'.
These bags were part of the film's promotional material, rather than serving any practical purpose, and played on people's morbid curiosity. How vomit-inducing can a film be to need bags like these? Well, you'll have to pay to find out, friend. Pure bait.
They were usually made of cheap paper bags, like those many people use to carry their lunches, on which a stamp was printed with images and legends such as: CAUTION! Due to the intense nature of this film, stomach discomfort may occur. Use this 'Vomit Bag' while viewing 'When the Screaming Stops'. Do not reuse.
There is no very rigorous archive that allows specifying which was the first film to use 'vomit bags' as promotional material, but in the gallery below you have a true relic from 1963. The last film to use them? Easy: RAW (2016). Or at least that's what reports say, because I haven't been able to get any image of the aforementioned to include here.
Gallery: Vomit Bags Through the Years
