Jump to full article: New York Times, 2009-10-19
Author: BROOKS BARNES
Intro: "Land of the Lost" is the gift that just keeps on taking for Universal Pictures.
The American Medical Association Alliance, a volunteer arm of the powerful health organization that focuses on family issues, on Friday released its scorecard for the depiction of smoking in mass-appeal summer movies. Universal was the biggest offender because of "Land of the Lost," the big-budget failure that helped cost the co-chairmen of the studio their jobs this month.
The alliance said it counted 18 shots of Will Ferrell smoking a pipe in the movie, resulting in about 124 million tobacco impressions. (The industry generally calculates an "impression" by multiplying the number of incidences by the film's total gross, then dividing by the average ticket price.)
" 'Land of the Lost' wasn't just a flop at the box office, it was also a real loser for public health," said Nancy Kyler, president of the American Medical Association Alliance.
The group did not name the second- and third-place offenders. A Universal spokeswoman declined to comment.
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