Celebrities Archives - Cigar Life Guy

Karl “The Mailman” Malone Lives the Cigar Life

Posted on February 28, 2023 by Staff

When the LSU Tigers won the National Championship in 2020, future NFL star and Cincinnati Bengal Joe Burrow and his teammates were nearly arrested for lighting up victory cigars in the locker room. Burrow, well known for his victory cigars, smokes a variety that includes La Flor Dominicanas. However, on that fateful night back in 2020, Burrow was smoking a Karl Malone made by La Aurora. Yes, NBA legend Karl “The Mailman” Malone.

The former power forward, whom many consider the best the NBA has ever seen, prefers to keep a low profile these days. He is a family man, an avid outdoorsman, and a jack of all trades. Since retiring from the NBA in 2004 and moving back to his hometown in Louisiana, Malone has had his hand in various businesses. From car dealerships to fast food franchises, “the Mailman” has been active since his playing days. When he isn’t deer hunting or spending time with family, he can be found at Legends, the cigar and vape shop he owns and runs with his daughter, Kadee.

Here’s a look at the Utah Jazz Hall of Famer, Olympic Gold medalist, and maker of barrel-aged rum-infused cigars by La Aurora.

Early Career

Malone was born in Summerfield, Louisiana in 1963. The youngest of nine children, Malone was raised by a single mother and spent his childhood hunting and fishing. After leading his high school team to several Louisiana titles he played his college ball at Louisiana Tech University. In 1985 he led them to their first NCAA tournament. The team lost in the Sweet 16, and Malone was on his way to the NBA.

NBA Star and Olympian

The Utah Jazz drafted him 13th that year, and so began one of the most prolific NBA careers of all time. Malone, nicknamed “the Mailman” because he always delivered, is third all-time in NBA scoring and led the Jazz to the playoffs every single year of his career.

He was a star immediately upon entering the league, averaged 14.9 points a game, and made the 1986 All-Rookie Team. The Jazz were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs that year, but Malone and teammate John Stockton would become one of the most dynamic duos in NBA history. By 1988 Malone averaged 27.1 points per game and made his first All-Star appearance. He was selected to the All-Star team for the next 14 seasons.

Behind Malone and Stockton, the Jazz were consistent contenders in the Western Conference, and Malone was consistently among the top scorers in the league. However, Malone had the misfortune of playing in an era with Michael Jordan and frequently finished just behind the legendary Chicago Bull. The two became teammates along with other NBA greats Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson to represent the United States in the 1992 Summer Olympic Games. Dubbed the Dream Team, they easily won the gold in 1992 and again in 1996. Many consider it the greatest sports team ever assembled.

Hall of Famer

Despite playing in 1,476 games, scoring 36,928 points, and winning two MVP awards, Malone never won an NBA championship. He lost to Jordan and the Bulls in two straight Finals in 1997 and 1998. Malone had one last shot at a championship in 2004 when he joined the Los Angeles Lakers led by Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. Malone’s hopes were dashed when the Pistons stunned the heavily favored Lakers in five games.

Malone retired after 19 seasons and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010. The Jazz retired his jersey in 2006 and commemorated him and his teammate Stockton with bronze statues outside EnergySolutions Arena.

Life After Basketball

Malone coached at his alma mater and for the Jazz for a time. He owns several businesses, but he prioritizes his family first. After some controversy and paternity suits, Malone reconciled with his children from two women he knew in the 1980s. He has been married to Kay Kinsey since 1990 and has four children. Son K.J. played football at LSU and later coached, which was how those victory cigars ended up in the locker room after the championship.

Deer hunting and fishing also take up plenty of his time. He entered the cigar world after traveling to the Dominican Republic several times. He learned the process of cigar making and worked with Master Blender Manuel Inoa to create his own blend. Malone’s cigars are aged in rum barrels, have spicy aromatic notes, and like the man who created them, are dynamic and complex.

Malone is a long way from the court. Many patrons of his Legends Cigar and Vape in Ralston, Louisiana know him simply as Karl, a hunter. Malone co-owns the shop and lounge with Kadee, but he’s the first to admit she runs the show. The Mailman prefers to kick back and enjoy friends, family, and a fine cigar.

photo credit: Cigar Life Guy

Ed Reed Hall of Famer and Cigar Lover

Posted on February 14, 2023 by Staff

Most people think of the Baltimore Ravens as a dominant defense, like Ray Lewis. However, Ed Reed is a close second. The all-pro safety is not just a hard-hitting ball hawk. He’s a true brother of the leaf.

Reed’s story begins in small-town Louisiana, where he starred in multiple sports. He has said that Michael Jordan was his first hero and a model for excellence. Seeing Jordan celebrating NBA championships with a cigar in hand also had an influence.

Reed is no stranger to the victory cigar. He led the University of Miami to a National Championship and would win the Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens. He started smoking in college, where he and roommate Reggie Wayne, another future NFL star, took the edge off with a cheap smoke. Reed would settle with a cigar and review game film during his final year as a Hurricane. Here’s a look at the man, whom many consider the best safety of all time, a man as dedicated to football as he is to cigars.

Ed Reed’s Beginnings

Not everyone from such humble beginnings ends up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Growing up near New Orleans, Reed was the second of five boys. When he saw he had a chance at the NFL, he buckled down, avoided trouble, and dedicated himself to football. While Lewis and his future NFL teammates on the Ravens were winning the Super Bowl, Reed was a two-time consensus All-American at “The U” and helped the Miami Hurricanes win the National Championship in 2001.

Ed Reed and the NFL

The Ravens drafted Reed in the first round in 2002. He quickly became a starter and began building a Hall of Fame career. Reed played eleven seasons with the Ravens collecting 64 interceptions; seven returned for touchdowns. Reed forced 11 fumbles and returned punts, but he still holds the record for the longest interception returns for a touchdown- 107 yards.

Reed was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the year in 2004, recording 62 tackles and nine interceptions. However, playing in the AFC against Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, getting to a Super Bowl proved difficult. After several great playoff runs, Reed and the Ravens finally achieved the ultimate goal, winning Super Bowl XLVII in 2013.

The game, sometimes called the “Har-bowl” (because it pitted coaching brothers Jim and John Harbaugh against each other), is also known as the “Blackout Bowl.” The Ravens held a healthy lead before a partial blackout delayed play for over half an hour. The 49ers mounted a comeback, led by Colin Kaepernick, but the Ravens held on to win. Reed had five tackles and an interception and finally had the chance to hoist the Lombardi trophy.

Reed retired in 2015 and became a Pro Football Hall of Famer in 2019, the first year he was eligible. Before taking the stage at the ceremony, Reed can be seen with a large cigar perched between his lips.

Cigar Life and Life After Football

Although he was named to the NFL 100 Greatest list and New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick has come right out and said it, Reed shies from the suggestion that he is the greatest safety ever. He insists that football is a team game. That is why he has always appreciated the camaraderie of being a cigar smoker.

Reed has come a long way since smoking economy cigars during his college days. He has cultivated his tastes over the years favoring Plasencias, and Fuentes Opus X. Long intrigued by the process of cigar-making, Reed started exploring the cigar world when planning life after football. He has visited several factories to get an in-depth look -from field to factory- at the cigar-making process. The fascination inspired him to start his line of cigars. The “ER” cigar line has been in the works for some time and will soon hit the market.

Reed is not just a football player. He has given back to the community since the early days of his playing career. He started the Ed Reed Foundation over 20 years ago to provide guidance to underprivileged youth in Baltimore and his hometown New Orleans.

Football is still a massive part of his life. Reed coached defensive backs for the Buffalo Bills in 2016 and served as the University of Miami’s football chief of staff from 2020-22. He made headlines when he was hired to coach Bethune-Cookman University’s football team. When the HBCU did not ratify his contract, Reed criticized the conditions at the school. He later apologized.

If Reed is anything, he is passionate about social justice, football, and cigars.

Photo credit: Cigar Life Guy

Ernest Hemingway and Cigars

Posted on January 19, 2023 by Staff

Before there was Instagram and Twitter, hell, before Hollywood created celebrities, there was Ernest Hemingway. It’s been nearly a hundred years since Hemingway published his first collection of short stories, In Our Time, but his legacy lives on.

Although many consider him one of America’s finest writers, Hemingway’s 22 years in Cuba were the longest he lived anywhere. Perhaps that is why he has long been associated with cigar life. However, the man who would affectionately become known as “Papa” was not an avid cigar smoker.

But, of course, he smoked. It isn’t every day a company like Arturo Fuente names a line of cigars after you. But it was Hemingway’s lifestyle -fishing, hunting, and drinking- and his long connection to Cuba that has made him a cigar world icon.

Here’s a look at a 20th Century titan and a time when popularity consisted of talent and insight into the human condition rather than “likes” and “followers.”

World War I and Writing Life

Ernest Hemingway was born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1899. He would famously call the Chicago suburb a town of “broad lawns and narrow minds.” However, he learned to hunt and fish early on trips to Michigan. These experiences would become the seed material for his famous Nick Adams stories.

He began creating his own myth before he went overseas during World War I. When he tried enlisting, the U.S. Army rejected him due to his bad eyesight. Hemingway exaggerated the details of this circumstance, a habit he continued for the rest of his life. He volunteered to drive an ambulance for the Italian army and arrived on the Western Front in 1918. Soon after, he was wounded by mortar fire and awarded the Italian War Merit Cross.

Hemingway spent six months recuperating from severe shrapnel wounds and fell in love with the attending nurse Agnes van Kurowsky. Unfortunately, she would ultimately reject Hemingway. Nevertheless, the experience would inspire Hemingway’s second novel and one of the greatest war novels ever written, A Farewell to Arms.

Hemingway was only 18 when he was wounded. However, his experiences in the war would define his generation and shape his writing.

Hemingway spent much of the 1920s in Europe with other expatriates like Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald. During those years, Hemingway wrote his first novel, The Sun Also Rises, a masterful depiction of Spanish bullfights and the angst many young men felt following the first world war. Stein, one of Hemingway’s many mentors, would name the young writers and thinkers of the era the “lost generation.”

Hemingway’s first novel captured the world’s attention. His account of the running of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain, added to his legend. He would remain an avid fan of the spectacle his entire life.

By the time he returned to the United States and lived in Key West, he had married his second wife. He would marry four times and father three children.

He experienced as much success as he did failures as a writer. Despite his messy personal life and excessive drinking, he dedicated himself to the craft of writing. An early riser all of his life, he devoted mornings to writing. He spent afternoons fishing or drinking with friends.

A lifelong adventurer and outdoorsman, Hemingway would enhance his myth by taking several trips to Africa to hunt big game. This lifestyle and time in Cuba tied him to cigar life.

The Influencer: Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway’s journalistic style, marked by simple declarative sentences, would influence several generations of writers and countless imitators.

It is difficult for the younger crowd to imagine a writer as a celebrity. Still, during the mid-20th century, Hemingway was one of the most recognizable people in the world. He graced the cover of Time magazine several times. He also was a war correspondent during WWII and penned a novel about the Spanish Civil War, For Whom the Bell Tolls.

In 1954, Hemingway reached the pinnacle of his art by winning the Nobel Prize in Literature. The acclaim came after writing the novella The Old Man and the Sea, which also won the Pulitzer Prize in 1953.

The story of an aging fisherman who does battle with a marlin off the coast of Cuba has become a classic and one of Hemingway’s best-known and most beloved final works.

Although he approved of Fidel Castro’s revolution, the threat of nationalizing America and foreign-owned properties forced Hemingway to leave his beloved Cuba. He moved back to the United States in 1961. His physical and mental health ailing, Ernest Hemingway committed suicide later that year.

Ernest Hemingway’s Legacy

Like any great artist, Hemingway struggled with self-doubt and self-destruction. People knew him for his drinking almost as much as his writing. In the end, the man could not outlive the myth. He gained a reputation as a bully, a neglectful father, a terrible friend, and an unfaithful husband.

His reputation has taken some hits recently, yet his writing lives on, and he continues to fascinate the literary world and beyond. Ken Burns’ recent documentary looks honestly at the man behind the myth. It provides new insights about the man known as “Papa.”

Like a fine premium cigar, Hemingway was complex. That may be why Arturo Fuente honored him by creating a line of cigars in his name. The perfecto Cameroons are a medium to mild blend and come in various sizes and names that correlate with writing (The Short Story & Best Seller).

Reading and smoking make a great combination. So perhaps it’s time to kick back with a premium cigar and enjoy one of Ernest Hemingway’s classics.

Photo Credit: National Archives and Records Administration, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Orson Welles Devoured Cigars

Posted on December 11, 2022 by Staff

The G.O.A.T — Greatest of all time — has become a common designation. Michael Jordan in basketball, Tom Brady in football, and of course, the person who coined the phrase, boxing legend Muhammed Ali. Sports fans love to debate the G.O.A.T., but you don’t see it often in other contexts. However, in the world of film, Citizen Kane has been considered the G.O.A.T. for decades. The 1941 classic was writer, director, and actor Orson Welles’ debut film. The movie launched Welles to stardom. Like most celebrities, Welles lived a luxurious lifestyle, including fine food, wine, and cigars. Here’s a look at the man many consider the greatest filmmaker of all time.

Orson Welles’ Early Career

Orson Welles was born in 1915 in Kenosha, Wisconsin, but moved to Chicago at a young age. The budding genius had lost both his parents by age 15. So he opted out of college, choosing to tour Europe instead. No one knows when Welles began smoking, but he started acting young. When he was in Ireland, he tried convincing the manager of the Gate Theater that he was a Broadway star. Although the manager likely didn’t believe the teenager, Welles began acting in minor roles at the Gate.

A few years later, Welles made another breakthrough, this time in radio. He performed anonymously as The Shadow, a popular radio show in the 1930s. However, his adaptation of H.G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds in 1938 made him world famous. The episode aired on Halloween and is as renowned for Welles’ distinct baritone narration as it is for causing widespread panic. The format, a regular news broadcast that depicted a Martian invasion, led some listeners to believe the Mars attack was an actual invasion. Photographs from that evening show the young Orson Welles clenching a cigar in his teeth and clutching the Mercury Theater microphone. Hollywood came calling shortly after.

Citizen Kane and Hollywood Outsider

Orson Welles co-wrote, directed, and starred in the biopic that still lands in the top spot on movie lists. Citizen Kane is loosely based on newspaperman and later politician William Randolph Hearst. Despite the film receiving critical praise, it was not a box office success, a pattern Welles experienced throughout his career. The film was nominated for several Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. However, it only won the Oscar for Best Original Screenwriting.

Like any cigar man, Welles was an original. Unfortunately, his pursuit of creative control over his projects often blackballed him from the Hollywood studio system. He worked in Europe throughout most of his career.

His innovative camera techniques and nonlinear narrative style made him one of the first film auteurs. Best known for his use of light, deep focus, and long takes, an even closer look shows how Welles loved to capture smoking in his movies.

Perhaps it is how smoke billowed and played off the light in black and white films, but Welles often wrote his favorite habit into his movies. Charles Foster Kane, played by Welles, smoked a pipe, but cigars took center stage in later films. In the noir classic, A Touch of Evil, Welles played the cigar-smoking detective Hank Quinlan. In his last film, the satirical film within a film, The Other Side of the Wind, John Huston constantly puffed on a Churchill. Huston played a movie director in the film. It was a likely stand-in for Welles, but Huston was also an avid cigar smoker.

Orson Welles’ Personal Life

Welles loved women, food, booze, and cigars. He married three times, including a nearly five-year marriage to legendary beauty Rita Hayworth. With fame came affairs with actresses and socialites. Welles was larger than life, but he was also a large man. He stood over six feet three inches and struggled with weight most of his life. The corpulent Welles played Shakespeare’s Falstaff in The Chimes at Midnight, one of three Shakespeare plays he adapted for the screen.

Welles’ opulent lifestyle likely attributed to his obesity late in life; this no doubt included premium hand-rolled cigars. However, no one knows the exact brand of cigar Welles preferred. Some claimed Montecristos. Either way, it’s challenging to find a photograph of the legendary Welles without a long cigar in his hand or between his lips, especially during his later years.

Photo credit: “Orson Welles en la grabación de Campanadas a medianoche (España, 1964)” by Recuerdos de Pandora is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Actor Danny DeVito: Big Affection for Cuban Cigars

Posted on November 28, 2022 by Staff

Cigars are a great stress reliever and a great way to think and relax. Maybe that’s why so many comedians are avid cigar smokers. Comedians and actors spend a lot of time on the road or location and in character. So it’s no wonder why so many comedic actors take their cigars seriously. Actor Danny DeVito is no different.

Like many comedians who came before him, Danny DeVito is a devoted smoker. However, he didn’t use his cigar as a prop on stage like George Burns or Groucho Marx. Compared to his predecessors, who began smoking in their teens, DeVito took up smoking late in life. Here’s a glimpse at the cigar-loving It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star.

Actor Danny DeVito’s Early Career

Actor Danny DeVito was born in New Jersey in 1944 and began his career on stage. Although DeVito measures a modest 4 ’10” (due to a rare genetic disorder), he would become a larger-than-life star of television and the movies.

Reprising his stage role as Martini, he worked alongside Jack Nicholson and Christopher Lloyd in the classic One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. The movie won the Academy Award for Best Picture, but his big break came in 1978 when he took the role of Louie De Palma on Taxi. The sitcom was short-lived but critically acclaimed. He won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his portrayal of the grumpy dispatcher, De Palma. It was around this time DeVito took up cigar smoking. The cast included Tony Danza and Andy Kaufman, primarily men. DeVito has said in interviews that they celebrated holidays and birthdays by sharing a cigar; this was DeVito’s introduction to Cubans, but he still wasn’t smoking cigars regularly.

Danny DeVito: Cuban Cigars and Movies

Young fans might know DeVito from the FX series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, but he had a run of hit movies in the 1980s and 90s. After Taxi was canceled, DeVito focused on his movie career. Terms of Endearment, Romancing the Stone, and Throw Mama from the Train are just a few of his famous titles from that time. Twins, which paired the diminutive DeVito with Arnold Schwarzenegger, is one of the most memorable. It’s also when Actor Danny DeVito took up cigars as a regular habit. Schwarzenegger was primarily an action star at the time but leaped into comedy. The two actors, who play unlikely fraternal twins in the movie, hit it off. Schwarzenegger gave DeVito a box of Cuban cigars, and DeVito was hooked.

The two actors made several movies together with director Ivan Reitman. They often hung out together on the set. DeVito cooked Italian food, and they would smoke a cigar. DeVito recently revealed he once tricked his famous co-star and former governor of California by giving him a cigar laced with marijuana on the set of Junior. Stoned and confused, Schwarzenegger forgot his lines for that afternoon’s shoot, much to the delight of DeVito.

Danny DeVito’s Cigar Preferences

DeVito is a daily smoker. He typically has one after dinner or lunch but smokes more when working. And DeVito doesn’t only act. Over the years, he began to branch out into directing and producing. But, like many writers, comedians, and thinkers, DeVito admits to working better when he smokes.

The world is tough on cigar life, especially these days. Like any great actor, DeVito has had to improvise to squeeze a cigar in on occasion. He told Cigar Aficionado he once convinced an airplane full of people to allow him to light up. He said it was the most enjoyable transatlantic flight he had ever taken.

On the set of Matilda, a film he directed and starred in, the studio complained that his cigar smoking was against fire regulations. So, DeVito’s crew set up a special smoking tent for him.

He has always had expensive tastes. He’s been smoking Cubans for almost 40 years. However, like anyone who has smoked for a long time, he mixes it up. He started with Cohibas but smoked Partagas Serie D No. 4 for a time, as well as Bolivars.

DeVito married Rhea Perlman, the former star of another classic 80s sitcom, Cheers, in 1982. They have three grown children.

The 78-year-old star reunited with his old friend Schwarzenegger for a sequel to Twins called Triplets. Rumor has it Schwarzenegger tried to get back at DeVito for the on-set prank thirty years ago. Either way, the two will enjoy a few cigars on the set.

Photo credit: “danny devito” by Mario A. P. is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Groucho Marx Loved Laughs and Cigars

Posted on November 14, 2022 by Staff

Many young people today might not be able to identify Groucho Marx, but the famed Groucho Glasses remain one of the most iconic costume props of all time. It’s a shame that while the bushy eyebrows, mustache, and glasses are still around, the man who inspired them is fading from memory. Likewise, many might not know that the complete costume includes a large cigar.

For Groucho, the cigar was no prop. Instead, he was an avid smoker who enjoyed his daily cigars. Here’s a look at the man many consider the most remarkable American comedian.

Early Life With Groucho Marx and Vaudeville

Born Julius Marx in 1890, Groucho Marx’s vaudeville and smoking career started when he was 15. Like other era performers, he began as a singer before moving to comedy. His stogie was a valuable prop when searching for a line. Improv and smoking seem to go hand and hand. George Burns also insisted that his cigar was his favorite stage companion when he needed time to think of a quip. Like Burns, Groucho Marx would become famous for his one-liners.

In the early years of their act, Groucho and his brothers adopted various personas. Chico used an Italian accent. Harpo, who didn’t like to talk on stage, wore a curly red wig. Groucho initially used a German accent. However, he dropped the accent when anti-German sentiment spiked at the start of World War I, and his familiar wise-cracking schtick was born.

It was around this time that Groucho began using his signature look. The mustache and eyebrows were actually theatrical greasepaint. Legend has it that Groucho did not have time to apply a prop mustache before a show one night, so he quickly painted one on his upper lip. Whether the story is true or not, the rest is history. The absurd get-up, complete with eyeglasses, would become classic.

Groucho Marx’s Cigars

When he was starting out and short on money, Groucho smoked nickel cigars. Later, when he could afford it, Groucho smoked expensive cigars. La Preferencias, a Cuban cigar, was one of his regular smokes, but the Dunhill 410 was his favorite. His son, Arthur, also recalls him having Belindas in the humidor for special guests. Belinda was a pre-revolutionary Cuban line. They were discontinued in the 1960s but were a prestigious brand in Groucho Marx’s day.

Groucho once said, “Marriage is the chief cause of divorce.” He was probably an authority on the topic. He married three times. When his third wife, Eden, complained about his smoking Groucho responded, “A woman is just a woman; a cigar is a smoke.” She allegedly banished him from the bedroom for six months.

Groucho Marx: Movies and Television

Groucho honed his comedic routine on stage, and like many vaudeville stars, he and his brothers took their act to the movies. The Marx Brothers made 13 movies in all. Many are considered classics. Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, and several others were listed on the American Film Institute’s list of 100 Best Comedies. Nearly a hundred years old, Marx Brothers’ movies remain some of the most influential of all time.

Groucho Marx also wrote books and starred on radio and television. Later, fans may know him as the host of You Bet Your Life, a radio and television game show that aired from 1947 to 1961. The popular quiz show was recently revived with Jay Leno as host.

Bantering with contestants was the perfect platform for Groucho’s comedic talents. However, one interaction of the show was the source of his most debated one-liners.

Groucho Marx’s Most Famous One-liner That Never Was

Groucho is known for his one-liners. He could be self-deprecating: “I would never belong to a club that would have me as a member.” Somewhat political: “Military intelligence is a contradiction in terms.” Considering he was a television and movie star, he could also be self-sabotaging: “I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book”.

However, Groucho’s most famous one-liner is one that some historians insist never happened, and plenty of fans insist they remember vividly. But, of course, it was a cigar quip.

It took place during a taping of You Bet Your Life. Groucho was talking with a contestant who told him she had ten children. When Groucho asked her why she answered, “Because I love my husband.” The quick-witted Groucho replied in kind. “I love my cigar too, but I take it out of my mouth every once and a while.”

In interviews late in life, Groucho denied saying it, but it does appear in one biographer’s account. The debate continues. Many fans claim it was a male contestant. They claim to have heard it live, but the year of the show varies. Others say Groucho would have never been so crass. The show was also pre-recorded. A line like that would have never gotten past censors in that era. Unfortunately, no one has confirmed a recording of the comment, so we may never know.

Still, who else could we attribute such a zinger but Groucho Marx? A man who took comedy and his cigars seriously.

Photo credit: “Groucho Marx 1957,” by McFadden Publications, licensed under CC By 2.0

George Burns and His Love of Cigars

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Staff

You won’t find up-to-the-minute Instagram posts from George Burns. Maybe that’s because he’s been dead for nearly three decades, but no celebrity these days can say they performed in vaudeville, radio, television, and movies. Likewise, not many can say their most reliable stage partner was a cigar.

The cigar between George Burns’ teeth wasn’t just schtick. Burns was a lifelong cigar smoker who lived to a hundred, so he must have been doing something right. Here’s a look at the legendary comedian and a life spent smoking cigars.

Early Life

George Burns was born Nathan Birnbaum in 1896 in New York City. The son of Jewish immigrants, his father died of influenza in 1903. The seven-year-old Burns had to work to support his family. He was “discovered” while working as a syrup maker in a candy shop, and the rest is, as they say, history. He began working in vaudeville as a comedian and singer and adopted the stage name to hide his Jewish identity.

Burns started smoking cigars at 14, and a cigar became his permanent stage partner. The premium cigar industry wasn’t like it is today. Burns grew accustomed to inexpensive cigars. Back then, he preferred a nickel cigar called Hermosa Jose. Like many legendary smokers and similar to Mark Twain and Sigmund Freud, George Burns smoked all day long. Most attest to Burns smoking 10 to 14 cigars a day.

Aside from his cigar, his longest stage and screen collaborator was his beloved wife, Gracie Allen. They married in 1926 and shared success as a dynamic comedy duo. Their act featured Burns as a “straight man” offering his famous one-liners. The two took their routine from stage to radio, providing comedy relief for the big band leaders of the day like Guy Lombardo. Their act evolved over the years and led to radio shows. Eventually, they made movies and starred in a long-running television show.

George Burns’ Favorite Cigar Brand

Burns’ favorite cigars were El Producto Queens, a brand Elvis Presley favored. While this is a cheaper machine-rolled line these days, it was hand-rolled during Burns’ time. Also, they made several sizes back then, including perfectos, Burns’ preference.

One of the main reasons for his loyalty? They didn’t go out on stage when he was performing. Instead, when acting and thinking of his next line, Burns liked to puff his cigar to buy some time. He always knew Queens, or, as he called them, his “little ladies,” would stay lit.

Aside from that, Burns received 300 a month for free. In addition, he shot several commercials, and several print ads for El Producto featured him.

George Burns Career Resurgence

When Gracie died in 1964, George Burns threw himself back into his work. He produced several television shows and still performed live. However, his role in the film adaptation of Neil Simons’ play The Sunshine Boys would solidify his legacy and redefine his career at 80.

Originally, Burns’ lifelong friend, Jack Benny, was cast for the role of an aging vaudeville star Al Lewis. Benny died during pre-production, and Burns replaced him even though he had not been in a movie since 1939. He earned an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his performance. At the time, Burns was the oldest person ever to win an Academy Award. Burns only needed a Tony Award to be in the elite company of EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winners, like Mel Brooks, Tim Rice, Jennifer Hudson, and Whoopi Goldberg.

The success led to several more movies introducing Burns to a new generation of fans. Oh, God! was the first of three films with Burns in the title role as the omnipotent wise-cracking deity that gave him a chance to deliver his classic one-liners. Burns remained healthy his entire life. He exercised regularly and never stopped working. He made several more films and performed stand-up after signing a lifetime contract at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas when he was 96.

Although he reduced his habit to 4 cigars a day, Burns smoked until the day he died. Then, when he was 98, he delivered this zinger for all the smoking detractors, “If I’d taken my doctor’s advice and quit smoking when he advised me to, I wouldn’t have lived to go to his funeral.”

George Burns died a few months after his 100 birthday in 1996. He was buried with three of his “little ladies” in his breast pocket.

Photo credit: Allan Warren, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Sigmund Freud: Sometimes a Cigar is Just a Cigar

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Staff

There were few photographs during the Sigmund Freud era, but you’d be hard-pressed to find an image where this father of psychology wasn’t holding a cigar. If you can’t spot a cigar, look closely. On his desk, amid his cherished statues of Eros, the Sphinx, and other gods and goddesses, are the accouterments of a smoker; ashtrays, matches, and cigar boxes.

Sigmund Freud: Early Life

Sigmund Freud was born in Austria in 1856 and attended the University of Vienna. He earned a medical degree in 1881. The following year Freud began work at Vienna General Hospital and conducted his first notable research. After publishing essays on the benefits of cocaine, he followed up with a study of aphasia, on which he later based his first book. This research led to Freud’s appointment as a head lecturer on neuropathy. Soon after, he went into private practice specializing in nervous disorders and developing his theories of psychoanalysis.

Freud started smoking relatively late. He didn’t smoke his first cigar until 24, but it became a routine for the rest of his life. Perhaps the only smoker who rivals Freud’s alleged 20 cigars a day habit was American humorist Mark Twain. When one of Freud’s nephews refused a cigar, he famously told the young man, “Smoking is one of the greatest and cheapest enjoyments in life, and if you decide in advance not to smoke, I can only feel sorry for you.”

Smoking and Work

Freud was a workaholic. Not only was he an innovative thinker who regularly saw patients, but he was a prolific writer and lecturer. Still, Freud made time for leisure. He went on daily walks, always making a stop at the local tobacconist.

Austria had limited choices of cigars. Freud smoked small locally made Trabuco cigars, but he preferred Reina Cubanas, which he could only get when he traveled. Toward the end of his life, Freud also appreciated Dutch Liliputanos.

Whether at work or on a stroll, Freud smoked incessantly. While they lay on the famous couch, his patients often said the smell of cigars was as distinct as the sound of his voice. Like many artists, writers, and thinkers, Freud felt his ability to work directly related to his smoking habit. He once told his doctor, “I believe I owe to the cigar a great intensification of my capacity to work and a facilitation of my self-control.” Indeed, much of his work encompassed human desires, wish fulfillment, and self-control.

Psychoanalysis and Interpreting Dreams

Freud is best known for his development of psychoanalysis in the 1890s. Inspired by methods of hypnosis his friend and colleague Josef Breuer developed, Freud began cultivating some of his own. One of Breuer’s patients, known as Anna O, would later call it the “talking cure,” a process where the patient spoke freely about symptoms rather than the therapist providing suggestions. Freud would eventually call this free association and believed it could access memories in the unconscious that the conscious mind has repressed. Freud believed these were the sources of neurosis and that talking freely could relieve a patient’s symptoms.

The Interpretation of Dreams is perhaps Freud’s best-known work. First, Freud analyzed his dreams along with his patients’ dreams. Then, he introduced the main ideas, such as the Oedipus complex and dreams as wish fulfillment.

Freud and the Pleasure Principle

For Freud, libido was the primary human drive. He often reduced his idea to sex and sexual repression, particularly the relationship between mother and son and father and daughter, but Freud’s concept was much broader. He divided the psyche into the id, ego, and superego to explain human behavior.

He called the human urge to have basic needs met the pleasure principle; It is the driving force behind all human desires and behavior. This pleasure principle extended beyond sex to include hunger, thirst, and plenty of other primal urges. In simple terms, these urges derive from the id, filter through the superego, and present themselves as the ego.

Oral fixations were a focal point of some of his theories. No wonder he was a lifelong cigar smoker. He believed fixations developed in the early stages of psychosexual development. They manifest later in life as habits such as nail biting, gum chewing, and, yes, smoking. Satisfying the pleasure principle is the aim, and Freud did that daily.

As for the famous line “sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,” we’ll never know whether Freud said it. Nevertheless, cigars provided great comfort and pleasure for the father of psychology.

Photo credit: “Sigmund Freud” by cambodia4kidsorg is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Mark Twain: A True Brother of the Leaf

Posted on August 26, 2022 by Staff

Although he is best known as the father of American literature, Mark Twain was a lifelong cigar smoker. Born Samuel Clemens in 1835 in Hannibal, Missouri, the legendary writer and humorist started smoking cigars at age eight and never looked back.

An Abundance of Tobacco

During the 1800s, tobacco was plentiful in Missouri and throughout much of the United States. Plantations and cigar factories provided all the sticks the future novelist would need. Cigars also were cheap — often costing a few pennies each — so it’s not surprising that Twain developed a taste for stogies. It was a preference he maintained throughout his life. Perhaps that is because Twain was said to have smoked 22 to 40 cigars a day!

Mark Twain: A Smoker of Many Trades

Although Mark Twain became one of America’s most renowned writers, his formal education was scant. He left school after the fifth grade, worked as a printer’s apprentice, and then wrote articles for his brother’s newspaper, Hannibal Journal. At eighteen, he traveled the country. He applied his printing experience in New York and Cincinnati, among other cities. When he wasn’t working, he educated himself in public libraries.

Twain eventually returned to Missouri and the Mississippi River where he trained as a riverboat pilot and drew inspiration for his two most famous novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. His pen name also came from his time on the river. It is a term that refers to water depths.

Mark Twain then headed West and worked unsuccessfully as a miner, an experience he transformed into one of his first and most well-known stories, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” Despite his travels and experience in several trades, journalism and writing were Twain’s destiny. The only other constant in his life was smoking. He wrote that “Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know that because I’ve done it thousands of times.”

Mark Twain on Giving Up Smoking

Twain tried to quit several times. After joining the Cadets of Temperance when he was 15 — a total abstinence society for the youth. He abstained for nearly three months. However, he later wrote of that time as being “consumed with cigar cravings.”

His wife, Olivia Langdon, also disapproved of his smoking habits. When he couldn’t quit entirely, he vowed to limit his smoking to one cigar per day. However, this merely led to increasingly larger cigars. Ever the humorist, Twain said of that attempt, “Within the month, my cigar had grown to such proportions that I could have used it as a crutch.”

Writing and Smoking

Throughout his life, his smoking habits drew criticism and concern for his health to which he responded, “I smoke in moderation. Only one cigar at a time.” And that he did: one right after the other. How else could he consume a legendary 300 cigars a month?

Like many writers, there was a connection between his smoking and his work. He considered cigars “the best of all inspirations.” While writing Roughing It, an autobiographical work about his time out West, he tried quitting again. When he struggled to get words to the page, he resumed his favorite pastime and wrote the book in three months with no difficulty, crediting cigars for his proficiency with the pen.

Besides his many books, Mark Twain was a successful lecturer and earned as much money as he lost through failed business ventures. Throughout his colorful life, he remained a committed cigar smoker. While it’s not known the exact cigar brand Twain smoked, he frequently mentioned his dislike for “Havanas.” He also mentioned favoring Connecticuts over the Cuban variety perhaps because he’d honed his palate on homegrown cigars. However, his tastes often offended his friends and family. Several people who later interviewed Twain described his cigars as long, dark and having an awful odor. Twain’s cigars were more likely a thinner ring gauge. How else could he smoke over two dozen a day?

Although Twain tried the best cigars of the era, he always returned his regular stogies. No one can fault him for that. The premium cigar industry back then was not what it is today. Twain wasn’t finicky and had few preferences, but he was a smoker through and through.

Mark Twain’s Legacy

Mark Twain was born shortly after the appearance of Halley’s Comet and he once predicted he would “go out with it.” He was right. He died on April 21, 1910. The day after Halley’s comet appeared.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has been presenting an award in Twain’s honor since 1998. The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor has gone to Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy, Whoopi Goldberg, Dave Chappelle, Tina Fey, George Carlin, David Letterman, and many others. All are undoubtedly honored to be spoken of in the same breath as the man who once said, “If I cannot smoke cigars in heaven, I shall not go.”

Considering how cigar life has evolved and endured, Twain will be in good company regardless of whether he’s in heaven or hell, or somewhere between.

Photo credit: Creative Commons

The Cigar Scandal That Made Headlines

Posted on August 16, 2022 by Staff

It’s been nearly 25 years since the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky cigar scandal made headlines. Plenty of presidents have been known for extramarital affairs. Most of the public assumed John F. Kennedy’s connection to Marilyn Monroe was more than mere friendship. The lurid details remained as guarded as state secrets until Clinton’s dalliance in the late 90s. The internet age had just begun when the forty-second president’s affair and all the sensational details -as we would say today- went viral.

Cigars were making headlines throughout the decade, and one of Clinton’s cigars would become the focal point of one of the more infamous episodes of the American presidency.

The Cigar Scandal

Clinton’s alleged affair with Gennifer Flowers might have nearly cost him the election in 1992. His encounters with Lewinsky nearly cost him the presidency.

In late 1997, when news broke that Clinton had a sexual relationship with a White House intern, Clinton was already well into his second term. He was riding high with more than a 50% approval rating. Ironically, his approval rating would boost by over 6 points amid the cigar scandal.

Ken Starr, the independent counsel, was already hounding Clinton on matters related to real estate investments and other White House controversies. However, the sexual nature of the Lewinsky scandal would overshadow it all.

In January 1998, Clinton famously denied any sexual relations with “that woman” and Lewinsky initially refused to testify. However, upon the suggestion of friend Linda Tripp, she had saved a piece of evidence that would prove vital: the now famous semen-stained blue dress.

By the summer of 1998, the story heated again. It didn’t take long for the sordid details to come out. We may never know whether they were all factual, but after Starr granted Lewinsky immunity, she agreed to testify. Clinton would admit to a grand jury that his relationship with Lewinsky was “physical” and “improper” and redefine what constituted “sexual” relations.

By December, Clinton would be charged with perjury and obstruction of justice and become the second president in United States history to be impeached.

The Incident

The blue dress is perhaps the most famous evidence, but running a close second was Clinton’s cigar. His love for cigars is almost as well-known as his love for women.

Lewinsky testified she had nine sexual encounters with Clinton from 1995 to 1997. As the story goes, the 49-year-old Clinton used a cigar in a sex act with the 23-year-old intern. The specifics have varied over the years, but you don’t need too much imagination. According to some reports, Lewinsky never testified to the events. The story endures in American history and cigar lore.

Hillary would not allow smoking in the White House, but he smoked when he had the time, particularly on the golf course. During his time in office, Clinton was a “chewer”. According to Lewinsky, Clinton was chewing on a cigar before one of their encounters. She went on record saying, “…I looked at the cigar and I looked at him and said we can do that, too, sometime.” The innuendo was clear, and the rest is history.

The cigar in question was allegedly a Gurkha, a brand the former president still prefers. Clinton smoked their traditional lines but upgraded to Gurkha’s His Majesty Reserve line. Priced at more than $1,000 each, it is a considerable upgrade!

Lewinsky has Tweeted about indulging in an occasional cigarette, but she has never admitted to smoking premium cigars despite her role in the notorious cigar scandal. She did, however, gift the president a silver tabletop cigar holder.

Cigar Scandal Aftermath

In the end, the Senate acquitted Clinton of all charges. He wrote his memoirs and has a lucrative career as a public speaker. Clinton has also appeared at many Democratic Conventions and was a loyal and vocal supporter of his wife Hillary’s political ambitions, including her presidential run in 2016.

History has not been too kind to him. As the “#MeToo” movement took hold following the election of Donald Trump, the public began to look at “Monicagate” through a new lens. Although Lewinsky maintains that the relationship was consensual, Clinton’s role took on a predatory tone.

In recent years, Clinton has largely stayed out of the limelight. At 75, he is a shadow of his former self and makes news for brief hospital stays and bouts of illness. However, he is still often seen smoking a fine cigar.

Lewinsky has gradually altered her image. Following the cigar scandal, she became a pop culture celebrity. After years of public shaming, opinion began to sway in Lewinsky’s favor. She has dabbled in a variety of projects over the years. She has been a spokesperson for Jenny Craig Diet and Weight Loss Centers, designed handbags, and hosted Saturday Night Live. These days, when she isn’t getting into Twitter spats with Beyonce, Lewinsky is producing movies and touring the country as an anti-bullying advocate.

She has also written about her relationship with Clinton several times. Now 49, her most recent endeavor was co-producing a season of FX’s television series American Crime Story: Impeachment. The series traces her time at the White House and Clinton’s subsequent impeachment.

It’s hard to imagine how a story like the Clinton-Lewinsky cigar scandal would play out today. In the social media era, there seems to be a new scandal every hour. Perhaps that’s why this presidential fling has lasting power. It came before the era of cultural fragmentation and the blitz of media outlets. The entire country and most of the world watched as the story unraveled. It may seem tame by some of today’s standards, but it is a lasting legacy of the early internet age.

Photo credit: Pixabay