The Forgotten Vigilante: Henry Brown's Crusade Against Tobacco Henry Brown's story stands out as a testament to the power of ordinary people to effect extraordinary change.
A court reporter by day and a self styled "Mandrake the Magician" by night, Brown donned a cape and top hat to take on the tobacco industry in 1990s Chicago.
Brown's crusade was sparked by his observation that billboards promoting smoking were disproportionately concentrated in Black neighborhoods like the South Side.