Heaviest Smoker?

lennonon · Post by **lennonon** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 4:08 pm

Looking at a recent cache of George photos on a site, lots of stuff I've never seen before, he HAD to be the heaviest smoker in the '62-'67 time period. A least that's the way it seems from photos across many sources. Anyone ever notice? I know it's trivial, but, MAN, those guys could SMOKE.

That's cigarettes, btw.

bassduke49 · Post by **bassduke49** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 4:50 pm

It killed him in the end. Sad. :^(

revolver323 · Post by **revolver323** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 3:11 am

Smoking was the norm at the time. Part of the bad boy image started in the '50s. After spending 30+ years playing clubs and being a non-smoker yet having my clothes and equipment reek of smoke, I'm glad things have changed.

simer4001 · Post by **simer4001** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 6:35 am

I think they all smoked pretty heavily. I share your feelings Paul...sad indeed.

rickfan63 · Post by **rickfan63** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 1:32 pm

That's the bad part about playing in club bands...the alcoholics and the smokers. I don't drink or smoke so I've pretty much stayed off to myself during breaks when doing a gig. Most of the time, I've gone outside if the weather permits. I wish George could have kicked the habit like Paul did. He might still be with us.

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Wed Apr 12, 2006 2:02 pm

Two clips come to mind. One during Let It Be (might be on outtake only in the Anthology) where Billy Preston has his first day on the job. During the hellos George is smoking heavily. Then, there was a clip on some TV show of him and Ringo in recent years, both dragging on ciggies. Ringo says "this one's for (and names some town or something)" and takes a big drag on the Marlboro or whatever it was. I could only think when George died if Ritchie quit. Tom Petty, another friend of George's, is reputed to be a heavy smoker, too. I always wondered how people who made their livings as singers, in a young man's business no less, could not quit. But then again, I never started. Lastly, when I did my Beatles places tour in July '97, I walked past George's House on a brilliant Sunday morning. I was stunned to read later that George reported that he was out gardening one day in July, '97, when he noticed a lump on his skin. I guess there's about a 1 in 30 chance it was the day I passed by. It was a beautiful day for gardening but I hope it wasn't that day, not that it makes any difference to George now. He made that famous quote about the Beatles "giving their nervous systems" to Beatlemania. He seems to have had the least agreeable constitution to fame. That may have made it harder to quit.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 3:04 pm

When I see the scene in AHDN of George and Ringo smoking between the train cars, I want to scream out... "No, George, DONT DO IT!"

I just watched AHDN again the other night. I think that makes 2,345,721 viewings.... and I STILL notice new things every time.

drathbun · Post by **drathbun** » Thu Apr 13, 2006 6:00 pm

"It is a Malaboro with a Microny Finger! A big smoke for a big man!"

mgauction · Post by **mgauction** » Fri Apr 14, 2006 4:29 pm

John might have had them all beat. At the end he was smoking those unfiltered french cigarettes - Gitan. I tried one of those in the early 80's. There was never a stronger american cigarette.

kog · Post by **kog** » Fri Apr 14, 2006 10:11 pm

I just got the DVDs of the Dick Cavett interviews of John & Yoko. The first show was from September, 1971, and it is SO odd to see them both sitting there smoking like chimneys, lighting one after another. Cavett even brings it up, and Yoko makes a comment about being a chain smoker. I know it was the "norm" back then, people on talk shows just smoked, period. But it looks so strange today. It had only been 1970 when cigarette ads were "outlawed" on TV.

Interestingly, though, in the third show they appeared on around May, 1972, neither of them touched a cigarette.

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 2:51 am

Supposedly, when John and Yoko separated, his heavy smoking of foreign cigarettes was an issue.

Otherwise, yes today they say 25% of Americans smoke (which still seems exceedingly high...for the 21st Century anyway. The main reason I never started is because 30 years ago it seemed to me to be an anachronism.)

My friend was telling me there's a Sports Illustrated with one of our old Chicago White Sox players on the cover and he's smoking in the dugout (and also used to drink beer during the game out of Coke cups.)

Ahh the days when substance abuse was the norm and not the exception. Maybe it's why rock 'n roll was better?

mgauction · Post by **mgauction** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 4:24 am

In fact, Glenn, there are numerous advertisements from the 1930s to early 50s with current sport stars of the day promoting different brands with a cig dangling from the side of their mouths!

webhead · Post by **webhead** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 4:58 am

Even the Flintstones promoted ciggies...

stubby · Post by **stubby** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 5:15 am

As an archivist, I once processed a collection of portraits of prominent North American business leaders in the 40s and 50s. These were commissioned portraits, very "official." In these portraits, probably 75% of the fellows were posing with a cigarette prominently figuring in the photo. I remember how incongruous it looked to more modern sensibilities and the ciggies really caught my eye. Times have changed indeed.

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Sat Apr 15, 2006 8:11 am

As an ad copywriter, I used to have a collection of old TV commercials on VHS and it had that Flintstones ad on it. Not only were they in the ad, it was the days when an entire show was sponsored by one main sponsor and it was, you bet, Winston. Fred even sang the jingle. And yes, there were tons of other celeb smoker ads on it (none bigger than Fred, though.) Anyway, it puts Joe Camel print ads to shame.

There's an outdoor ad campaign running here in NYC now that's aimed at shaming Hollywood for all the ciggie industry money they take (and therefore put cigs into actors hands.) Of course, the trouble with that is, smoke just looks great on film.

Far as times changing, I remember the show Dallas, which is only as old as 1978, and it seemed the main characters all had bars in their offices. Someone would walk into JR's office at 11 a.m. and he'd be like "so, what'll you have?"

I entered the work force in the mid 80s, or the tail end of the three martini lunch. There were still old timers coming back to the office crocked at two in the afternoon.