An appeal to Hollywood moviemakers to take a stand against on-screen smoking has been answered by a pair of prominent producers, the Associated Press reported Oct. 24.

Bob and Harvey Weinstein, principals of The Weinstein Co., said they would start putting antismoking PSAs before movies released on DVD, starting this month with "Clerks II."

"As a former smoker, I feel like it's my responsibility to do everything I can to educate young people about the dangers of smoking," said Harvey Weinstein. "We really hope this initiative will have an impact with viewers across the country."

The Weinsteins were the first to respond to a request from a group of attorneys general, who recently wrote to 13 motion-picture companies asking them to take a more active role in preventing smoking.

"These message will fight false film images of healthy and hip smokers with the real hard truth of addiction and disease," said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. "The Weinstein brothers are setting a model for responsible moviemaking."