Anticipating those infrequent occasions, he would hoard his last smoke, lighting it only to celebrate a victory or console himself over a setback.įrom an impromptu singing gig in a candy store at the age of seven, to his enduring partnership with Gracie Allen, to solo stand-up comedy acts into his late 90s, Burns kept American audiences in stitches through most of the twentieth century. "I was conscious that I had not permitted myself to smoke anymore, but I was still enjoying it in my sleep." Years earlier, when Castro and the rebels were plotting how to topple the Batista regime, the only time he did without cigars was when he ran out of them. "Even in my dreams I used to think that I was doing something wrong," he said in a 1994 Cigar Aficionado interview. He would occasionally dream that he was smoking a cigar, though he would admonish himself for doing so. Just because he abandoned a pastime that he had relished for 44 years doesn't mean he doesn't still think about cigars. Only a rising national concern over the health risks of smoking would lead to Castro's unequivocal decision to stop smoking cigars, even in private, to set an example for his people. Until he gave up the habit in 1985, the man who has ruled Cuba with an iron fist for 40 years was synonymous with cigars. Kennedy then signed the embargo, and Cuban tobacco has been off-limits to Americans ever since. The press secretary didn't let him down, as he managed to scrounge up 1,200 cigars. ![]() But before Kennedy could act, he needed Salinger to complete his assignment. The embargo was born of a nasty spat that the United States was having with Cuba and its fears that Fidel Castro represented a growing threat to America's security. He was about to sign an embargo prohibiting any Cuban products from entering the country, including his beloved cigars. Short notice for such a big request, but then JFK had a pressing reason for procuring the stash in such a timely fashion. He gave his press secretary, Pierre Salinger, less than 24 hours to round them up. What the 35th president wanted in early 1962 was a bunch of Cuban cigars, 1,000 Petit Upmanns to be exact. When you're the president of the United States, you can get just about anything you'd like. Rather than submit to the king's wishes, Churchill pointed out that "my rule of life prescribed as an absolutely sacred rite smoking cigars and also the drinking of alcohol before, after and if need be during all meals and in the intervals between them." The king was convinced. ![]() On another occasion, Churchill hosted a luncheon for King Ibn Sa'ud of Saudi Arabia, who did not allow smoking or drinking in his presence. As the story goes, the prime minister requested that a special mask be created that would allow him to smoke while airborne. Not even the necessity of wearing an oxygen mask for a high-altitude flight in a nonpressurized cabin could prevent Churchill from smoking. The man for whom the imposing Churchill cigar size is named smoked eight to 10 cigars a day, primarily Cuban brands. Throughout his long life, Churchill nourished England with his battlefield bravery, political courage and prolific writing, and nourished himself with the best food, drink and cigars he could find. Regardless of their status, everyone on the list shares one trait: the love of a good cigar ![]() And then there are aficionados who aren't necessarily household names but nonetheless have left their mark on the world, people like Al Lerner and Paul Volcker. Some well-known personalities are more private about their cigar smoking, such as Harrison Ford and Clarence Thomas. Many of the people on the list are practically inseparable from a cigar, people you automatically picture with a smoke, such as Groucho Marx and Alfred Hitchcock. ![]() Of our top 10 picks, at least half were prodigious cigar smokers, lighting up 10 or more sticks a day, and one person, Mark Twain, was thought to smoke more than 20. So, how did we decide who deserved to be inscribed on a list of the century's most notable cigar smokers? Some of the choices were obvious. From the moment that King Edward VII uttered his famous proclamation in 1901, cigar smoking has been a pleasant diversion, often an ingrained habit, for politicians, movie stars and a host of other famous partakers. Great men and great cigars have always gone together, so it's no surprise that some of the century's most influential and popular figures have embraced this time-honored pastime.
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