In the eyes of the general public cigars are usually depicted as a passion of the rich. The image of one smoking a cigar brings to mind a celebration of good fortune such as the birth of a child. There is a habit in some gambling circles to buy and hold a cigar for luck in regards to a particular bet and to only smoke the cigar after winning the bet.

According to history, King Edward VII loved to smoke cigars and cigarettes while his mother, Queen Victoria despised it. According to folk lore from the time, King Edward said to his male guests at the end of a dinner after her death, ?Gentlemen, you may smoke.? Of course, the low end cigars from the United States bear his name.

One important distinction that should be made by the cigar aficionado is to ritualize the act of smoking a cigar and to only smoke expensive cigars in order to reduce the risk of addiction as seen in cigarette smokers. This practice will also reduce health risks such as cancer if they only use the cigar for special occasions. The Native Americans understood and knew this without medical studies to tell them.

Two early Popular Culture Icons known for their constant cigar smoking also died from cancer from abusing the product. Ulysses S. Grant, a known alcoholic was able to stay away from drinking for the entire Civil War, yet was almost never seen without a cigar which resulted in his developing cancer. Sigmund Freud also died from cancer from his passion for the cigar. When challenged about the so called ?phallic? shape of a cigar, it is said that Freud replied, ?Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.?

Moving to more recent pop culture, there were several story lines in season four of the situation comedy, Seinfeld that featured a box of Cuban cigars. In the video game, Metal Gear 3, the main character describes the experience of smoking cigars as ?almost sensual.? There have been many other fictional characters that have smoked cigars including Archie Bunker, Cosmo Spacely, James Bond, Boss Hogg from the Dukes of Hazzard, both Hannibal and Face from the A-Team, and recently Allan Shore(James Spader) and Denny Crane (William Shatner) from the TV show, Boston Legal.

Of course today the most popular public figure known for cigar smoking my well be the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.