Posted on 10/11/2004 1:42:46 AM PDT by daylate-dollarshort
Actor Christopher Reeve Dead at 52
Monday, October 11, 2004
BEDFORD, NY — Christopher Reeve, the star of the "Superman" movies whose near-fatal riding accident nine years ago turned him into a worldwide advocate for spinal cord research, died Sunday of heart failure, his publicist said. He was 52.
Reeve fell into a coma Saturday after going into cardiac arrest while at his New York home, his publicist, Wesley Combs told The Associated Press by phone from Washington, D.C., on Sunday night.
Reeve was being treated at Northern Westchester Hospital for a pressure wound, a common complication for people living with paralysis. In the past week, the wound had become severely infected, resulting in a serious systemic infection.
"On behalf of my entire family, I want to thank Northern Westchester Hospital for the excellent care they provided to my husband," Dana Reeve, Christopher's wife, said in a statement. "I also want to thank his personal staff of nurses and aides, as well as the millions of fans from around the world who have supported and loved my husband over the years."
Reeve broke his neck in May 1995 when he was thrown from his horse during an equestrian competition in Culpeper, Va.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
I loved Chris Reeves in Somewhere in Time! I cry everytime i see it. He will be missed. God bless and rest Chris Reeves sole.
Our trainer occasionally leads field trips to the Conyers Horse Park (where they held the equestrian competitions in the '96 Olympics). It's now a general equestrian complex with rings, stabling, and trails. We went out on a trail ride around the old cross country course . . . we thought it would be fun to find something we could school over, just to say "I schooled on the '96 Olympic course" Well, we couldn't find anything SMALL enough to jump! That stuff is B-I-G - five foot fences with six foot spreads - and SOLID. Even after the elements had had their way with the obstacles for four or five years, it was all too large to even consider trying.
Three telephone poles in a pile with a little ditch in front is more my speed . . . < g >
The most important thing here is that you realize an inexperienced rider shouldn't buy an inexperienced horse. Over-confidence and inexperience is a deadly combination.
Sounds like we could swap war stories. I have had many accidents where I could have been seriously injured or killed but by the grace of God was not. I was foxhunting in Ireland(worked for one of the hunts there) and the hunt was galloping down a paved road. The horse in front of me slipped and went down and since we were right behind we fell over it. I jumped up and caught my horse, but the other person had his foot caught in the stirrup and his horse panicked and began kicking him. Luckily his foot came free and he was able to get back on. Neither the horses or us were injured after falling on tarmac at a gallop. I don't even recall that it hurt - probably the adrenaline. I also was hit by a pickup truck after my horse bolted into a road - I went into the windshield, bounced off the hood, landed on the road and walked away without a scratch. So I have been extremely lucky so far. The horse had 5 broken ribs. Since then I am extremely careful about riding near roads!
If you are going to ride, and especially if you jump, you are going to fall off. I think the biggest limiting factor for older riders is fear - kids just aren't as afraid. I know I did crazy things when I was a kid that I would never do now - like riding a cross-country course in Ireland bareback.
See message 129.
So did my dad!
So why can't the principle be extended to the wheel-chair bound??? It seems that a "body-shaped" pad that one would place in the seat/back of the chair, with extensions that could be laced up around the arms and legs (by "lacing up", I don't mean a tight lacing--more like a "U" shape similar to an open cast). Since most wheel-chairs for folks with these kind of conditions are electric-powered, the power supply to handle the inflation/deflation cycle is already available.
WOW!! I was born in 54, and when my dad bought the tv MY first show was Superman!!......then Fury:)
Great pic, DV. I posted a few pics just above my post here .....RIP, Christopher Reeve.
That's all very nice, but you can bet that if a true hero, like Steven MacDonald (NYC policeman paralyzed after being shot by a 14 year old perp) died, the media will make little of it.
Why? Because Detective MacDonald opposes embryonic stem cell research.
And, even if you could find a major media obit for someone like MacDonald, there would be no mention of MacDonald's political views - unlike the fawning treatment of Reeve and his very public endorsement of Kerry.
Christopher Reed lived life with courage, and honor, and it should be so noted,here in Free Republic.
Courage? HONOR? Sorry, the man was an actor. He may have been forced to show some courage following his accident; but to my knowledge, Reeve never showed the kind of REAL courage it took men like Steven MacDonald to show in their everyday lives.
And HONOR? I don't see how we can say a man who injected himself into the political process -- demanding that human lives be sacrificed so that he might walk again -- can be described as a man of "honor."
So, moderator, remove my post if you think all comments on Christopher Reeve must be nicey-nice posts acclaiming a celebrity who happened to have had a sad accident -- and who deliberately injected himself into a disgraceful and deceitful Democratic campaign.
You're braver than I am. I wish I still had the guts to jump, I just don't. Even if I did, though, I would NOT tackle a huge jump like you are describing. I got butterflies in my tummy just reading your description of those olympic jumps.
It's not about being PC. It's about having RESPECT. Why is it that some freepers like you confuse any show of civility with PC? Well I already know I disagreed with Reeve and I'll be PC and not drag the man through the mud body still warm and all.
I liked the Superman movies and Somewhere in Time, but I agree with your post. I lost a lot of respect for Mr. Reeve in recent years when he turned more partisan and anti-Catholic. I just hope that any attempt to blame the President for his death blows up in the accuser's face.
He is to have a phrenic nerve pacer put in possibly this spring. He asks daily for information on Christopher Reeves and his progress--and of course his birthday was all about Superman.
The Good Lord looks after children, drunkards, and fools . . . ;-)
I had my share of foolishness on horseback as a kid, but I never rode cross country bareback (and if you had my skinny T'bred mare with withers like a board fence, you wouldn't either! < g > ) Dumbest thing I probably ever did was (at age 11) take an unbroken horse out jumping on a dare (he only fell down twice). He was a backyard pet who had never been ridden before. He was a sweet boy, though, and he tried his best to do exactly what I told him to. And amazingly enough it didn't spoil him or scare him, once I put some training on him he turned out to be a handy little horse, I think his owners even took him to a couple of local shows.
Even trotting on a paved road makes me nervous, I'll get on the shoulder if I can. There are a number of roads in our hunt's country that we have to cross from time to time, and somebody always winds up slipping on the asphalt. Talking about cars - last season I guess there were about 50 or 60 horses up with the hounds (it was early in the day) and we had to cross a two-lane county road after riding up the road probably a quarter mile. All the hounds poured across in a bunch, then the horses. I was back in the scrum probably half way, and here comes this little old man driving a minivan. He somehow DOESN'T SEE fifty horses beside and in front of him, and just plowed through . . . we were all yelling "GET OUT OF THE WAY - GET OUT OF THE WAY!" to the people up front. and horses were scattering left and right into the hedges. Somebody kicked the door of his minivan - serves him bloody well right.
Good night!! You are very lucky!! Just hasn't been your time, I guess. I've had 2 horses rear up and fall over backwards on me, been kicked in the face, ran over by herd, bucked off once and jammed my ring finger, it swelled up and cut off the circulation. I had to have my wedding rings cut off. The only hospitalizations were the rear-ups. All accidents were my fault, just being stupid. All were when I was a kid, with the exception of the buck off.
:~(
Thanks for the ping Sarge. He will be missed!
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