Let's have a go at identifying this box of cigars, shall we, from Peter Jackson's Get Back documentary of the Beatles - Episode 3

[JohnS]

Hi everyone,

I've had an immensely fun time going over these three episodes over the past two weekends of the restored footage of the documentary series covering the Beatles rehearsing new material (at the time) for the Get Back project in January 1969. I mean, I just can't get over how the film looks now. It's amazing because this was shot on 16mm! Anyway, as you may know, director Peter Jackson (yes, the same man who gave us the Lord of the Rings trilogy) had to discuss allowing instances of smoking and casual swearing on the final cut with Disney executives. Thank God he did because there's a number of shots that include the original director Michael Lindsay-Hogg smoking cigars and Paul McCartney smokes quite a few too.

Michael Lindsay-Hogg got the gig for Get Back in 1969 because he shot the Beatle videos for television for songs such as Paperback Writer in 1966 and Hey Jude and Revolution in 1968. Below are some stills captured from Episode 3 of the Get Back documentary. Let's go through them, shall we?

This shot was taken on the day that Linda McCartney (nee Eastman at the time, she married Paul two months later in March 1969) with her daughter Heather having a rest in the Apple Studios in the basement of their headquarters at 3 Savile Row, London during rehearsals for the final Rooftop performance a few days later. Notice the Partagas box in the background behind her?

I am assuming here that Paul McCartney is smoking a Partagas cigar from the box. I'm also thinking that it's probably a standard (for the time) 42 ring gauge (or two-thirds of inch diameter). None of the cigars in the documentary series are banded but I'm confident they are from the same box.

The length of the cigar suggest something like 6 to 7 inches. Have a loom at the following stills showing director Michael  Lindsay-Hogg smoking what I think is the same cigar...

Or is it possible that Michael Lindsay-Hogg is smoking Partagas Lusitanias throughout this time and Paul McCartney was smoking something else? What do you think?

[Habana Mike]

Please drop the hog and spell my name with an e not an a..... that's a Carlota

[Ryan]

I haven't watched the documentary yet, I'm saving it for Christmas.

Michael Lindsay-Hogg lived and worked in Dublin in the 1960s, he worked for a while as floor manager for a talk show here.

It's no big secret at all here that he is the son of Orson Welles. That is now discussed on the airwaves here.

For a long time he has had a sizeable collection of cigars in Dublin and London, probably elsewhere. As far as I know, he still enjoys cigars. Por Larrañaga Magnums were a favourite when they were available. He still has a few boxes.

 

[99call]

5 hours ago, JohnS said:

42 ring

I would say McCartneys RG is lower then 42,  more like 38

The guy in the suits cigar looks like a 46/48 to me

The black writing on the partagas box, whilst not legible, looks to be quite a long name, so maybe not standard stuff. 

By the depth of the partagas box, I would hazard a guess that its holding 46/48 cigars

McCartneys probably just smoking dirty hamlets ha!

[99call]

I think this might be the offending article when it comes to Pauls 'cigars' . A little 5 pack of dirty dutchies. 

Hey.. they were drinking terrible bourbon and beer, why not terrible cigars. 

Playing around with the other image of the cigar suggests it is actually banded, and gold/mauve colouring would suggest Dunhill Selecction Suprema, This would also make sense of there being a long name in black on the right hand side of the box

 

[joeypots]

3 hours ago, Ryan said:

It's no big secret at all here that he is the son of Orson Welles.

I was baffled about how Lindsey Hogg got the gig to film The Beatles.  A famous father will do much for a son. It looks like he's smoking DCs, Paul is smoking coronas and lonsdales if I'm watching closely enough. But who knows.......I had to watch a lot of TV to get the gems in the first two episodes. John and Paul in the cafeteria talking about George was amazing. 

[TobaccoRoad]

Watched 1 & 2 but not Ep. 3 yet. I was curious as well. I agree that Paul's cigars look like a smaller vitola than Hogg's.

[JohnS]

Excellent observation @Ryan There are times across the series when Michael Lindsay-Hogg was smoking what looked anachronistic (i.e something that is out of it's time and place) because of its large ring gauge. After all, in 1969 the only Habanos parejo cigar that was even 50 ring gauge in diameter was the Por Larranaga Magnum (if my memory serves me correctly it was discontinued in the year of my birth...1972). The thought crossed my mind that he might have been smoking something like this at times.

Well observed @99call. Yes, I think Paul McCartney was smoking something smaller now, like you say, around 38 ring gauge.

[riderpride]

Well it's after they met Dylan, so Paul likely had what's left of Bob's stash.

[Fuzz]

Since it is Peter Jackson.... he probably digitally added it in to the story. I'm guessing Old Toby Pipe-weed.

[Ryan]

Cigar Aficionado did an interview with Michael Lindsay-Hogg. Por Larrañaga Magnums get a mention.

https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/the-long-and-winding-smoke

[bassistheplace]

i watched get back this weekend. unreal. and lots of cigar smoking! glorious. true musical genius on full display