For decades the smoking hot Marlboro men symbolized rugged masculinity. They inspired countless fantasies among adolescent gay boys and we definitely used to have big crushes on these lonesome cowboys when we were kids. That is, until we learned they were trying to kill us.
Now, one of the original Marlboro men has died, USA Today reports. Darrell Winfield passed away at his home in Riverton, WY on Monday. According to his obituary, 85-year-old Winfield was born on July 30, 1929, in Oklahoma, and later moved to Wyoming in the 1960s, where he was discovered by the Leo Burnett Advertising Agency while working on a ranch. He went on to pose for several ad campaigns for Marlboro cigarettes.
The Los Angeles Times reports that at least four former Marlboro men have died of lung cancer in recent years. The cause of Winfield’s death has not been released. In typical Philip Morris use-once-and-destroy fashion, a spokesperson for the cigarette manufacturer said it has “no comment” on Winfield’s death.
Scroll down for photos of sexy Marlboro Men over the years. And remember, smoking kills.
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Larry
Nothing hot at all about people buying a legal product that kills close to a MILLION people a year in the USA alone. This same product is now being marketed, with slick pictures like this, to elementary kids in most of Asia. How can anyone think this is hot? Even some of these guys in their dying days regretted their images being marketed to kill people.
richg813
I need to start smoking.
jwtraveler
Death, or the risk of it, has always been erotic: Macho warriors, smoking, drinking, near naked boxers and wrestlers, snuff films, bareback “breeding” sex and videos, fast cars, etc. “Death is the ultimate aphrodisiac.”
TampaBayTed
My three aunts who never smoked or drank during their lifetimes all died of lung cancer. Maybe they were huffing radon when I wasn’t looking.
1dizzy1
Nothing erotic about tobacco breath and the stink on smokers’ clothes, cowboys or otherwise. Yuck!
ppp111
I always thought many of the models were ruggedly handsome. I remember our family driving by billboards with these handsome models on it. There was nothing I liked better than casually looking up at the model (usually modeled as a cowboy but sometimes something else) as our family car drove right under it. That being said, it’s sad that many of these guys now regret using their image to promote those cancer sticks. Thank God I never got into smoking. Can’t stand the smell and the stains.
scotshot
@jwtraveler: Not everyone is into dead fucks.
MarionPaige
There were more than enough cowboys on tv to satisfy an gay kids crush back then. Like Chuck Connors and James Garner. Chuck Connors in particular was “smoking hot” in his youth.
Just because someone hires you to be a model in a cigarette commercial, it doesn’t mean you have to smoke yourself to death. It’s like saying Justin Beiber has to go around grabbing basketball players because he modeled Calvin Klein underwear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uV-7D4io1Rs
Horse Lips
I wonder how many of them are still alive and what they look like now.
onthemark
@Horse Lips: This is just a guess, but I bet the ones who are still alive either look like healthy 85-year-olds or very ill 85-year-olds!
Although I’m a pretty fanatical anti-smoker, I think if Darrell Winfield lived to the age of 85, it doesn’t matter much what exactly he died of. I hope we’re not expecting everyone now to live to 100?
jwtraveler
@scotshot: No kidding
Billy Budd
Associating drugs to healthy or idealized lifestyles should be a crime. I have no prejudice against drugs and I want them to be legalized, but the government has the obligation to prevent people from being lured into buying them.
polarisfashion
I regret the day I picked those damn things up and started smoking. I can’t tell you all how many times I tried to quit. The longest I lasted was 6 weeks. My advice to any young person on here is never ever try one of those because once you start it is really hard to quit.
Saint Law
@jwtraveler: “Death is the ultimate aphrodisiac”.
It really really isn’t.
Clark35
Typical queerty glorifying smoking and tobacco. What’s next, showing a group of “hot” gay men that PNP and use drugs?