Patrick Reynolds
Encyclopedia
Patrick Cleveland Reynolds (born December 2, 1948, in Miami Beach, Florida
) is an American
anti-smoking activist and former actor
.
He is the grandson of the tobacco company founder, R. J. Reynolds, and speaks of how he believes his family business has killed millions, including his own father (Richard Joshua Reynolds, Jr.) and brother (Michael Randolph Reynolds). He is a frequent speaker on the dangers of smoking, and founded a non-profit organization dedicated to anti-tobacco campaigning.
and testifying before a congressional subcommittee at the invitation of Packwood, to the dismay of his family. He had already sold his tobacco stock in 1979, and tried to get hired by RJR Nabisco Inc. from 1983–85, in an attempt to get the company to divest their tobacco holding. Reynolds was himself a smoker for 10 years until he quit in 1985 after five years of trying. He has appeared on many national television programs.
In 1989, Reynolds founded The Foundation for a Smokefree America. That same year, Reynolds published The Gilded Leaf with Thomas Schactman, chronicling three generations of his family and its tobacco business, a book he had been working on since 1980. The book was re-issued in 2006 (ISBN 0-595-83831-6).
Former Surgeon General
, C. Everett Koop
M.D., called him "one of the nation's most influential advocates of a smokefree America." He continues to speak regarding tobacco control to groups, with a focus on high school and elementary school audiences. In 2009, he advised the Greek government on anti-smoking measures.
. His parents separated when he was three and he did not meet his father again until he was nine. His father died five years later from emphysema aged 58, leaving a will that disinherited Patrick and his brother and four half-brothers. He received $500,000 from his father's fourth wife in agreement not to contest the will. He inherited $2.5 million from his grandfather in 1969, when he was 21. He studied drama at the University of California
. He recorded three unsuccessful pop singles in 1982. He married his first wife Regina in Ofterschwang, West Germany in July 1983, and briefly began working for her father's international bus company before landing his role in Eliminators. His mother died in 1985.
He lives in Los Angeles
with his wife Alexandra and their son, born in October 2009.
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter which separates the Beach from Miami city proper...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
anti-smoking activist and former actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
He is the grandson of the tobacco company founder, R. J. Reynolds, and speaks of how he believes his family business has killed millions, including his own father (Richard Joshua Reynolds, Jr.) and brother (Michael Randolph Reynolds). He is a frequent speaker on the dangers of smoking, and founded a non-profit organization dedicated to anti-tobacco campaigning.
Social activism
In April 1986 Reynolds, a Republican, went with a friend to a meeting with Senator Robert Packwood, where the issue of a proposed cut in tobacco tax was raised. Outraged, Reynolds stood up and asked why tobacco taxes were so low. By June 1986, Reynolds had become an anti-smoking activist, appearing in adverts for the American Lung AssociationAmerican Lung Association
The American Lung Association is a voluntary health organization whose mission is to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease.-History:...
and testifying before a congressional subcommittee at the invitation of Packwood, to the dismay of his family. He had already sold his tobacco stock in 1979, and tried to get hired by RJR Nabisco Inc. from 1983–85, in an attempt to get the company to divest their tobacco holding. Reynolds was himself a smoker for 10 years until he quit in 1985 after five years of trying. He has appeared on many national television programs.
In 1989, Reynolds founded The Foundation for a Smokefree America. That same year, Reynolds published The Gilded Leaf with Thomas Schactman, chronicling three generations of his family and its tobacco business, a book he had been working on since 1980. The book was re-issued in 2006 (ISBN 0-595-83831-6).
Former Surgeon General
Surgeon General of the United States
The Surgeon General of the United States is the operational head of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government...
, C. Everett Koop
C. Everett Koop
Charles Everett Koop, MD is an American pediatric surgeon and public health administrator. He was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and served as thirteenth Surgeon General of the United States under President Ronald Reagan from 1982 to 1989.-Early years:Koop was born...
M.D., called him "one of the nation's most influential advocates of a smokefree America." He continues to speak regarding tobacco control to groups, with a focus on high school and elementary school audiences. In 2009, he advised the Greek government on anti-smoking measures.
Personal life
His mother was his father's second wife, an actress who starred as Marianne O'Brien in the 1940s, contracted to Jack WarnerJack Warner
Jack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California...
. His parents separated when he was three and he did not meet his father again until he was nine. His father died five years later from emphysema aged 58, leaving a will that disinherited Patrick and his brother and four half-brothers. He received $500,000 from his father's fourth wife in agreement not to contest the will. He inherited $2.5 million from his grandfather in 1969, when he was 21. He studied drama at the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
. He recorded three unsuccessful pop singles in 1982. He married his first wife Regina in Ofterschwang, West Germany in July 1983, and briefly began working for her father's international bus company before landing his role in Eliminators. His mother died in 1985.
He lives in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
with his wife Alexandra and their son, born in October 2009.
Partial filmography
- Civil WarsCivil Wars (TV series)Civil Wars is an American legal drama that aired on ABC from November 1991 to March 1993. The series was produced by Steven Bochco, known for his work on NYPD Blue, L.A. Law, and Hill Street Blues.-Synopsis:...
- Santa Barbara (TV series)Santa Barbara (TV series)Santa Barbara is an American television soap opera, first broadcast in the United States on NBC on July 30, 1984, and last aired on January 15, 1993. The show revolved around the eventful lives of the wealthy Capwell family of Santa Barbara, California...
- Pumping IronPumping IronPumping Iron is a 1977 docudrama about the world of bodybuilding, focusing on the 1975 IFBB Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia competitions and the 100 days leading up to them. The film was inspired by a book of the same name, written by Charles Gaines and George Butler...
- All My ChildrenAll My ChildrenAll My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
- EliminatorsEliminatorsEliminators is a 1986 film directed by Peter Manoogian. The plot concernes a "Mandroid" constructed by an evil scientist from the body of a downed pilot, who teams up with the scientist responsible for android technology, her pet robot Spot, a riverboat guide, and a martial arts warrior...
(1986) - Olivia Newton John Physical (Olivia Newton-John song)Physical (Olivia Newton-John song)"Physical" is a song by Australian pop singer Olivia Newton-John, released in September 1981. The song was an immediate success, shipping 2 million copies in the United States, being certified Platinum, and spending 10 weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately becoming Newton-John's...
music video