One of the original 'Marlboro Men' dies in Wyoming

Mary Bowerman | USA TODAY Network

One of the original "Marlboro men" died in Wyoming earlier this week.

Darrell Winfield of Riverton, Wyo., died at home on Monday, Jan. 12, according to Davis Funeral Home, the AP reports.

The 85-year-old was born on July 30, 1929, in Oklahoma, and later moved to Wyoming in the 1960's with his family, according to his obituary.

He was discovered by the Leo Burnett Advertising Agency when he worked on Quarter Circle 5 Ranch in western Wyoming.

Winfield's obituary says, "He loved horses, rodeo, especially team roping, ranching, and the cowboy way of life."

The "Marlboro Man" was almost a caricature of masculinity. The rugged cowboys were used in magazine and television advertisements from the 1950s to late 1990s in an effort to make filtered cigarettes more appealing to men.

The toughened portrayal of a man having a smoke was officially stubbed out after the Master Settlement Agreement between tobacco companies and state attorney generals imposed restrictions on marketing of cigarettes and prohibited the use of humans or cartoons in cigarette commercials.

In the past few years, at least four former Marlboro men have died after battles with lung cancer, the Los Angeles Times reports.

USA TODAY Network has not independently confirmed the cause of Winfield's death.

Jeff Caldwell, a spokesman for Altria Client Services, which represents leading cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris, offered "no comment" via e-mail response on Winfield's death. "Our condolences go out to his family but we do not have any statements to offer on his passing," Caldwell said.

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