Tobacco Documents Online

o +vi rS /o : March 17, 1977 MEMORANDUM FOR RECORD: MS , SUBJECT: Mr. George Kneeland, Chairman and CEO, St. Regis Paper Company Mr. Kneeland is a member of the National Commission of the American Cancer Society. This commission supposedly makes recommendations to the American Cancer Society's Board. Mr. James R. Peterson and I visited Mr. Kneeland, March 16, 2:00 p.m. in New York. The purpose of this meeting was to learn from Mr. Kneeland his position on the ACS and his reason for being a member of the National Commission. We opened the meeting by stating that we, the tobacco industry, were greatly concerned about the tactics of the ACS and also concerned about business people being a part of the ACS's five- year plan -- which in essence is aimed at putting the tobacco industry out of business. Also, as one businessman to another we needed some help in solving our industry's problem. Mr. Kneeland said that he and eight other people were on a panel at a seminar in Los Angeles. People paid $100 per person to attend the seminar and the proceeds were given to the ACS. Mr. Kneeland said after the seminar he was invited to be a member of the National Commission. He agreed to do this with the understanding that he would be a dissident. He is a smoker, has been smoking for 40 years and has no intention of quitting. He was not familiar with the ACS's five-year plan and said we had told him much more than he actually knew. He then called for his files from his secretary to familiarize himself with the scheduled meetings. Mr. Kneeland does not plan to attend the March 22 meeting in Los Angeles and said he would be willing to help in any way he could. He suggested that we prepare a list of questions that he can use at their next commission meeting. Messrs. Hudnall Christopher, Dennis Durden, and Dr. Murray Senkus will start immediately to prepare a list of questions and get material together as information for Mr. Kneeland. Another member of St. Regis' board is Mr. Baldwin Maull and Mr. Maull is also a member of the ACS National Commission. Mr. Kneeland will talk to Mr. Maull. (Mr. Maull is the former chairman of Marine Midland Bank. ) Another very interesting thing which came out of the meeting very early was that Mr. Kneeland's son is a member of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company's Sales Force in Connecticut. This young man's next door neighbor is Mr. Charles Ebersol, former chairman of the ACS. We may try to develop a contact here. This was a very productive meeting. I think Jim and I got the industry's message over quite clearly as business to business. V" ~ 0 .. ~ r w w w ~o