10 years ago 1997
Joe Camel is having a bad day. Washington Attorney General Christine Gregoire led successful efforts to force tobacco companies to change marketing tactics and pay states for the health care costs of smoking diseases. At the urging of City Council member Donna Wright, city staff is exploring ways to further keep Marysville teenagers from smoking and chewing. Until recently, efforts have been directed at those who sell tobacco products to teens. Most stores now require tobacco buyers to prove they are 18 years old and the state works at ensuring clerks ask for identification. State law prohibits selling tobacco to anyone under 18. Wright attended meetings of a local anti-smoking organization and learned about efforts by the county and other cities in the region to curtail teenage smoking. The cool kids [are] going in and telling the younger kids about the dangers of smoking, said Bob Conroy of Tobacco Free Washington. Conroy also works for the Snohomish County Health District who sends underage people to try to buy cigarettes to ensure teenagers arent able to buy tobacco products. There are no state laws addressing teen smoking itself, said Grant Weed, Marysville city attorney. Cities can pass their own laws, he said, and his staff has been collecting information from around the state. Conroy said police can stop smokers long enough to get their age and can confiscate cigarettes. He said some cities are fining underage smokers. Meanwhile, Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man are the targets. Council member Donna Pedersen, who sits on the county health board, said officials in King County have convinced a major billboard company to pull all tobacco advertising by the end of the year. Snohomish County also petitioned AK Media to remove all tobacco billboards from unincorporated areas. Pedersen urged the City Council to write a similar letter or to take action. Snohomish County has significantly higher numbers of smokers than the state and the nation. Twenty-five percent of country residents are smokers, according to the 1995 Snohomish County Health Report. The rate for Washington is 21.8 percent and the nation is 22.5 percent. Conroy said 1,800 teens start smoking every month in Washington. One in eight high school students smokes at least five cigarettes per day, according to the state Survey of Adolescent Health Behavior.

25 years ago 1982
Home brew talent Jim Cull is coming of age with a powerful new voice and an engaging beat reminiscent of Elvis Presley. The 20-year-old Cull, a 1980 graduate of Marysville-Pilchuck High School, recently cut his first record original compositions for his very first single. KKRO told me theyd be playing it when it comes out, said the energetic but soft-spoken Cull. The single has been in the planning stages for several months, but local music lovers already have had a chance to hear and see the noteworthy talents and vibrant charm of this newcomer to the stage. Six years of drama under M-PHS instructor Dick Dale have helped prepare him for the public eye, but that was just a beginning for Cull who first discovered the magnetic strains of Elvis back when Cull was still in kindergarten. Presley, who died five years ago on Aug. 16, still is a big part of Culls life and music, but as he says, I dont imitate him like all those Elvis Presley look-alikes. I respect his music and I respect the fact Im different. To do any more make myself out like Im Elvis is showing disrespect for the man and his music. There is only one Elvis. Cull, whose acts generally are made up of country rock, Elvis and 50s music, with lost of good-time fun, allow the Elvis image to carry over into the stage clothes he will wear. Yea, Ill dress the part, Cull said of his colorful sequined jumpsuits which give room for maneuverability. But I dont make any attempt to slick back my hair, or darken it like Elvis. I have sandy-brown hair and thats the way its going to stay; and I have a moustache. Before he was old enough to even think of school, Cull remembers teaming up with his grandmother for his first serious venture into the world of music. Grandma played the piano, and I would sing Glory, Glory, Hallelujah, he recalled. I started collecting Elvis records when I was in kindergarten. Working closely with father and manager Jim Cull Sr., he came up with a slate of shows which took him to a variety of places such as the Stanwood American Legion, Marysvilles Moose Lodge and the Eagles in Everett. I never really had trouble facing crowds of people, but I was really nervous that day, Cull recalled. I get a high when Im on stage, but I was scared to death. There must have been 12,000 people out there, all looking at me. All it took was to sing that first song; then everything was great. Cull may not have invented the act of table walking, but hes one of the few performers in North America who does it. The first night I ever did it table dancing I ended up spilling four drinks, he said. The customers didnt mind. They all got free refills. I dont do that anymore, I think that was the last time I spilled anything. But, Ive had practice now. An average customer may look up from his table and not find Cull anywhere in sight on stage, but the music and words of another Elvis Presley song are coming through loud and clear. Suddenly, right before his very eyes, on that same table top, Cull could be keeping time with deftly placed feet, the beat mirrored in the tiny ripples in each drinking glass. This cordless mic is great, he said. Now, my manager no longer has to follow me around to make sure we dont get tangled up. Everybody has a good time. Thats what I like to see. I know some of them thought the act was a little strange at first. But it didnt take long to find out what I was all about. I want to see people having a good time. That makes me feel good to see other people feeling good.

50 years ago 1957
After a study of nine different bids, members of the Marysville City Council decided Monday evening to purchase its first garbage truck from Transport Trailer and Equipment Co. of Seattle at a price of $11,075. The new truck will have a Daybrook Power Packer mounted on an International truck chassis. Council members and city employees had been witnessing demonstrations during the week of various types of packers and their mechanical features. During the evening the Council adopted Ordinance 436, which sets up a municipal department to handle the garbage collection business in Marysville. The Garbage and Refuse Department was formed as well as the Garbage Disposal Fund. Generally the operation of the department will provide the same service as now provided to businesses and residents. A rate structure will be set up in a separate ordinance. The new department will start functioning Jan. 1, 1958. Arrangements are soon to be completed with the city of Everett to use that citys garbage dump for disposal. George Gebert, Everett Councilman, was present at the Monday meeting to discuss details. A rate of $50 per month plus $1 per load was agreed upon. It was estimated the monthly cost to Marysville will be from $75 to $85 for the accommodation.