  Kiefer Sutherland, left, Mel Gibson, centre, and Lindsay Lohan, right, all light up on a full-time basis. (WENN/Keystone Press file photos)
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LOS ANGELES -- One of the most health conscious cities south of the border has a dirty little secret.
Without exaggeration, the majority of yoga-stretching, wheat-grass drinking, vegan-eating movie stars SMOKE CIGARETTES.
I witnessed first-hand stars smoking like chimneys when I attended the Governor's Ball, the chi-chi party that followed the 2005 Oscars.
A merely opportunistic smoker myself, I started up a conversation with Heath Ledger (who won for Brokeback Mountain), who had a pack of Camel Lights, and the smell of his lighted cigarette mesmerized Terrence Howard (ensemble Oscar for Crash), Jennifer Aniston, Leonardo Di Caprio, George Clooney and Owen Wilson, all of whom crowded around to bum one, too.
I had about six cigarettes that evening, and I'm not even a smoker, but I had a notebook full of great quotes. That night, smoking was the sexy thing to do, I was the only one unsexy enough to fear how my throat would feel in the morning.
So no wonder 19-year-old Shenae Grimes, who just moved here from Toronto to film 91210, finds herself surrounded whenever she goes out to clubs by the beautiful people -- die hard smokers such as Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Brandon Davis.
It's a little disconcerting to see such a cutie pie as Grimes puff-puff-puffing with the Hollywood set and she acknowledges her fans probably don't like it.
"I started smoking at about 16. I'm sorry if you don't like it, but this is who I am," she said in her most recent blog.
Grimes is still young enough not to hear the rasp in her voice. But watch out for next season of the hit series, 24. I've heard some of its star, Kiefer Sutherland's, dialogue and it almost sounds as if he's swallowed a frog.
Always a smoker, the Canadian Sutherland doubles his quota while he's working, sources on the set say.
Although he's not allowed to smoke inside any of the studios, he often takes long cigarette breaks. And after a day of filming, he'll go to the nearest bar that has an outdoor patio so he can smoke.
"Kiefer's up to three packs a day," said a waiter who serves him at one of his favourite restaurants in Hollywood.
Last week, Sutherland spent five hours after work at Madeo's restaurant dining on the outside patio (where smoking is permitted.) While he stuck to just a few glasses of white wine, he chained smoke a half a pack while drinking each drink.
As he got up to leave, he grabbed his chest and croaked-laughed to his friends, "Gotta gargle before I say my lines tomorrow." He tried to laugh, but the laughter erupted into a hacking cough.
There are only a few episodes of 24's Season 8 left to film, so here's hoping when he's done, Sutherland hops on a fishing boat off the coast of Nova Scotia and does some deep breathing of the clear ocean air for a few months.
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