Editing Puff, the Magic Dragon (section)

==Speculation about drug references==
After the song's initial success, speculation arose—as early as a 1964 article in ''[[Newsweek]]''—that the song contained veiled references to smoking [[cannabis (drug)|marijuana]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/puff.asp |title = Puff the Magic Dragon and Marijuana |date = January 19, 2001 |work = Snopes |access-date = December 7, 2011 }}</ref>  The word "paper" in the name of Puff's human friend Jackie Paper was said to be a reference to [[rolling paper]]s, the words "by the sea" were interpreted as "by the C" (as in [[cannabis]]), the word "mist" stood for "smoke", the land of "Honahlee" stood for [[hashish]], and "dragon" was interpreted as "draggin'" (i.e., inhaling smoke). Similarly, the name "Puff" was alleged to be a reference to taking a "puff" on a joint. The supposition was claimed to be common knowledge in a letter by a member of the public to ''[[The New York Times]]'' in 1984.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/11/opinion/l-magic-dragon-s-not-so-innocuous-puff-002871.html |title = Magic Dragon's Not-So-Innocuous Puff |newspaper = The New York Times |date = October 11, 1984 |access-date = December 7, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0946534/bio |title = Peter Yarrow - Biography |work = Internet Movie Database |access-date = February 26, 2019 }}</ref>

The authors of the song repeatedly rejected this interpretation and have strongly and consistently denied that they intended any references to [[Psychoactive drug|drug use]].<ref>{{Citation |url = https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSSYD1071420080306 |title = Just A Minute With: Peter Yarrow |date = March 6, 2008 |publisher = Reuters }}</ref>  Both Lipton and Yarrow had stated, "'Puff, the Magic Dragon' is not about drugs."<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.greatbigstory.com/stories/the-real-meaning-of-puff-the-magic-dragon |title = How 'Puff The Magic Dragon' Came To Be |work = Great Big Story |access-date = April 20, 2017 }}</ref> Yarrow frequently explained that the song is about the hardships of growing older and has no relationship to drug-taking.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/puff.htm |title = Puff the Magic Dragon and Marijuana |website = Snopes |date = September 14, 2016 |access-date = September 27, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |first = Phil |last = Konstantin |author-link = Phil Konstantin |url = http://americanindian.net/kusi/video/yarrow.flv |type = interview |publisher = American Indian |title = Kusi TV }}</ref> He also said that the song has "never had any meaning other than the obvious one" and is about the "loss of innocence in children."<ref>{{Citation |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OiOlnoyljk |contribution = Puff the magic dragon |type = live |title = YouTube }}</ref> He dismissed the suggestion of it being associated with drugs as "sloppy research".<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.chronogram.com/hudsonvalley/puff-still-not-a-drug-song/Content?oid=2169725 |title = Puff: Still Not a Drug Song |work = Chronogram }}</ref>

In 1973, Peter Yarrow's bandmate, [[Paul Stookey]] of Peter, Paul and Mary, also defended the song's innocence in a novel way. He recorded a version of the song at the [[Sydney Opera House]] in March 1973 where he set up a [[Mock trial|fictitious trial scene]].<ref>Released in 1977 on the album "Real to Reel" and distributed by [[Sparrow Records]]</ref> The prosecutor of the trial claimed the song was about marijuana, but Puff and Jackie protested. The judge finally left the case to the "jury" (the Opera House audience) and said if they would sing along, the song would be acquitted. The audience joined in with Stookey and at the end of their sing-along, the judge declared the "case dismissed."<ref>{{cite AV media  | people = Noel Paul Stookey  | date = 1977 | title = Reel to Reel | at = track 4, Puff the Magic Dragon | medium = Audio recording | language = en  | url = http://www.noelpaulstookey.com/03.html  | publisher = Neworld Media }}</ref>

Up to his death in January 2025, Yarrow maintained that the song did not reference marijuana.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/07/entertainment/peter-yarrow-dies-at-86/index.html |title = Peter Yarrow of folk-music trio Peter, Paul and Mary dies at 86 |agency = Associated Press |publisher = CNN |date = January 7, 2025 |access-date = January 7, 2025 }}</ref>