No Smoking!

Attorneys General from no less than 24 States in the US have written a letter to MPAA president Jack Valenti demanding a clamp down on smoking in the movies. This crusade against cinematic ciggies was Inspired by a June study by Dartmouth Medical College that stated teenagers were three times more likely to take up the habit when exposed to screen icons puffing away on screen. Far be it from us to advocate the curbing of basic freedoms but they do have a point. Just think about the legendary stars (Bogart, Bacall and Eastwood to name but a few) who routinely whipped out a packet of fags and proceeded to light up before an audience of impressionable souls. Come on, admit it, the first time you tried a cigarette, you so Thought you were The Man With No Name. Anyway, according to James Sargent, lead investigator of the study, a simple R rating on films that feature smoking could have a significant impact on the health of our younger generations. A spokesman for the MPAA stated that the letter would, of course, be read and considered but pointed out that "smoking is, if you'll recall, a legal activity". Stewart however, responded that, while legal, smoking has potentially far more detrimental effects for children than many other R-rated activities. "Half a million people die a year from smoking. If a movie contains the f-word it gets an R rating, and I don't know of anybody that's been harmed from profanity." Thanks to The Guardian.