Perhaps more than with any other actor working today, the cigar has found its way into the hands of Armand Assante's big- and small-screen characters, but for Hollywood's tough guy, a cigar is not just a cigar nor is it just a prop. In the April 2008 issue, Cigar Aficionado traveled two hours outside of Manhattan to Assante's farmhouse in Cornwall, New York, to kick back for a countryside smoke and hear more from the whiskey-voiced leading man on cigars, drumming, family, career and life. Also in this issue, David Savona interviews cigarmaker Ernesto Padilla, and James Suckling sits down with Mexico's cigar king, Max Gutmann. Plus, inside the worldwide counterfeiting industry, the provocative photography of Helmut Newton, the PGA's cut-ups, March Madness at the sports books, embracing the off-road ride, home sound systems and the rare bespoke shoe. Also, ratings and notes on 75 cigars. That -- and much more -- is in the April issue of Cigar Aficionado.
