Tobacco speaker not blowing smoke

GRANGER, Wash. -- Next time you warn kids to not smoke, try holding a frozen human brain in your hand.

That's what Victor DeNoble did Tuesday while speaking to Granger Middle School students about the dangers of smoking. In fact, with a mad-scientist grin, the former researcher for the Philip Morris Tobacco Co., brought out three brains -- one from a rat, one from a chimpanzee and one from a person -- as he described the addictive properties of cigarette nicotine.

The brains got the attention of the 344 students between grades 6-8, who went from quiet listening to excited applause with each new sample.

DeNoble, 59, considered the first "whistleblower" on the U.S. tobacco industry's infamous attempts to cover up nicotine addiction, talked about what it's like to work inside the industry during his visits to four schools in the Yakima Valley.

On Tuesday, he visited Granger Middle School, Mabton Junior and Senior high schools and Selah High School. Today , he'll stop by West Valley Junior High.

DeNoble did not preach against smoking: "I did not come here to tell you what to do," he said.

He instead shared his saga of secret laboratory experiments, corporate cover-ups, FBI agents and federal litigation. The story served as inspiration for the 1999 movie "The Insider," starring Russell Crowe as a former tobacco executive and Al Pacino as a "60 Minutes" producer.

Philip Morris, the makers of Marlboro cigarettes, hired DeNoble in 1980 to develop a cigarette that was less damaging to the human heart. His experiments on the brains of lab rats, chimpanzees and a man demonstrated that nicotine is addictive, something industry leaders would not admit publicly, he said.

The brain he showed the students belonged to a long-time smoker, who died of lung cancer at age 65 in the early 1980s. The man's wife gave DeNoble permission to study the brain but not release the man's name.

Philip Morris fired DeNoble for conducting those experiments, he said.

He went on to testify before Congress, playing a crucial role in lawsuit settlements, in which the industry agreed to pay several states, including Washington, more than $200 billion toward medical costs associated with cigarette smoke, public service announcements and education programs.

In fact, those settlements ultimately paid for DeNoble's Yakima Valley visit. His $2,000 speaking fee and travel expenses were paid for by Educational Service District 105 and the American Lung Association, using state tobacco preven-tion grant funds from the settlements.

DeNoble visited area schools about three years ago, including Granger Middle School. He speaks to about 350,000 middle and high school students per year and 100,000 college students a year.

The California resident has never smoked himself, he said in an interview after the speech, though he grew up with parents and a sister who did.

Several students said DeNoble's story will help them steer clear of cigarettes and warn their friends to do the same. They were particularly moved by stories about how nicotine temporarily paralyzed lab rats, how long it takes for a brain to return to normal after nicotine exposure and the monetary cost of a smoking addiction.

"If it's going to paralyze the rat, it's going to paralyze you," said Sebastian Landeros, a sixth-grader.

Many students said they have tried cigarettes, emulating older friends or their parents.

Seventh-grader Anselmo Cantu said he tried a cigarette once about three years ago after watching his parents smoke.

"I wanted to do it, too, so I could look cool," Cantu said. "It tasted nasty."

It doesn't surprise Principal Lisa Rosberg, who grew up with a father who quit smoking after many years.

"I would say a majority of kids, they try something," Rosberg said.

* Ross Courtney can be reached at 509-930-8798 or rcourtney@yakimaherald.com.