Tobacco

THE WINSTON MAN

In the 1960s and 1970s, Alan Landers provided the image of a cool smoker as “the Winston Man” for R.J. Reynolds ads. But after battling lung cancer and other smoking-related health problems, the Lauderhill resident regrets helping to sell what he calls “the only product when used as directed kills you.” Landers, 57, has survived two fights with lung cancer, had three of five lobes removed from his lungs and had multiple other smoking-related surgeries, including heart surgery. He has become a vocal opponent of the tobacco industry. During congressional hearings last May on anti-tobacco legislation, Landers told lawmakers, “I am ashamed that I helped promote such a lethal and addictive product to the children and adults of this country.” Landers, who started smoking at age 9, also has filed a lawsuit against Reynolds blaming the company’s cigarettes for his health troubles. It is scheduled to go to court next April. “It’s a war,” he said. “They’re killers.”

[Times photo: John Pendygraft]