Dr. Bart Ehrman is a James A. Gray Distinguished Professor in the Department of Religious Studies, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

James Alexander Gray, Jr. was, as you well know, a trustee of the Methodist Children’s Home and a philanthropist. He made a series of charitable donations, and in 1947, set up a $1,700,000 endowment fund for the benefit of eleven North Carolina colleges and universities.

But also, in 1919, he accepted the position of vice president of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (abbreviated RJR) and was elected president in 1934. He served in that capacity until 1946. Then he was Chair of the Executive Committee of R.J. Reynolds. He was elected chair of the Board of Directors in 1949 and served in that position until his death.

He modestly said once: “Thanks to the goodness of God, Who throughout the years blessed me far beyond my merit.”

In 2004  the Department of Justice (1) laid out its $280 billion racketeering case against Big Tobacco, claiming the industry orchestrated a half-century scheme to defraud the American public.

“The industry’s impact on the nation’s public health is staggering”, government lawyer Frank Marine said, citing studies that said cigarettes are responsible for one in five deaths in the United States — nearly 500,000 per year.

Scientists began to learn about the health effects of cigarettes in the 1940s when studies first showed a strong link between smoking and lung cancer. In December 1953, several tobacco companies and a public relations firm met at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, where the industry chiefs hatched their scheme. The executives talked about how to keep news about health effects from causing their customers to quit and their bottom lines to shrink, Marine said. (1)

It’s true that James Alexander Gray, Jr. died in 1952 and was not clearly present in New York City but he was present at Reynolds from 1934.

“This case is all about fraud that continues to this day, designed to deceive the public,” government lawyer Frank Marine said.

“The defendants believed that their economic survival depended on their scheme to defraud,” told U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler. The defendants include […] Philip Morris USA Inc.;R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.; Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. (which has merged with R.J. Reynolds) [..].

One upshot from the meetings was the publication by the companies in January 1954 in 454 newspapers across the country of a “Frank Statement” that said the industry considered its customers’ well-being to be “paramount” and included a vow to research the link between smoking and disease.

The advertisement added, “We believe that the products we make are not injurious to health.“

Government lawyer Frank Marine commented, “Well, these statements are lies.”

As evidence of conspiracy, Marine cited one Tobacco Institute document that said the industry titans should work together. Sharon Eubanks, lead attorney for the government, said seven “pillars” made up the scheme:

• […]
• Propagation through the tobacco groups of the “myth” that the industry was researching its products.
• Denial that nicotine is addictive.
• […]

Tobacco company CEOs testified to Congress in September 1994 that each man believed nicotine was not addictive. 

Philip Morris made even a secret effort to produce “an international network of scientists and historians” to write histories casting the industry in a favorable light:

• […]
• Project Lolita was an effort to make a cigarette with a sweet, “fruity cake” flavor. 
• Project Scum was Reynolds‘ campaign to market Camels to San Francisco gays and “street people“. (2)

Thomas Rhett says in his song: 

“When you do somebody wrong, make it right

Don’t hide in the dark, you were born to shine

In a world full of hate, be a light.”

Or if you can’t, light your cigar.

(1) ** you do not have permission to see this link **

(2) ** you do not have permission to see this link **

(3) ** you do not have permission to see this link **