• The New York Times, Monday, June 16, 2008 10:17 AM

A physician's advocacy group -- A.M.A. Alliance -- is upset that Gen. Thunderbolt Ross, a bad guy in "The Incredible Hulk" played by William Hurt, is rarely seen on the big screen without a cigar in hand. It complains about "gratuitous depictions of smoking" in the Marvel film that opened on Friday and is distributed by Universal Pictures.

Dianne Fenyk, president of the A.M.A. Alliance, is particularly infuriated because the character did not smoke in "Hulk," the 2003 film directed by Ang Lee, though he always smoked in the comic books. Moreover, the editor of Marvel Comics and the film's star, Edward Norton, have both previously criticized portrayals of smoking in popular culture, Fenyk says.

"Hollywood studios should be especially embarrassed for using comic-book movies, which they market to children and know youth will want to see, to promote tobacco," she says. She spent last week encouraging her 27,000 members to alert local media about the matter.

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