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From WMAQ-TV/DT Chicago:

CHICAGO -- Frank O'Bannon, the governor of Indiana, collapsed during an event at the Palmer House Hilton in downtown Chicago and was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital Monday morning.

O'Bannon, who is in his early 70s, was in critical condition, according to a fire department spokesman.

The governor was attending the U.S. Midwest Japanese Conference in the Empire Room at the hotel at the time of his collapse. Several other midwestern governors, including Gov. Rod Blagojevich of Illinois, were also attending the conference.

From the Indianapolis Star:

Indiana Gov. Frank O’Bannon collapsed and was hospitalized during a visit to Chicago today, Chicago television station WMAQ reported.

Information on his condition was not immediately available.

O’Bannon, 73, was in Chicago for a meeting on trade between the United States and Japan.

After serving from 1988-1996 as lieutenant governor to Evan Bayh, O’Bannon was elected governor of Indiana on Nov. 5, 1996. A Democrat, O’Bannon defeated Republican Stephen Goldsmith, then mayor of Indianapolis, by a 51% to 47% margin.

In the 2000 election O’Bannon won re-election over GOP challenger David McIntosh.

O’Bannon announced his campaign for re-election as governor in Corydon on March 22, 2000. He was re-elected with 56 percent of the vote on Nov. 7, 2000.

O'Bannon Undergoing Surgery
Governor Listed In Critical Condition, Officials Say
CHICAGO -- Doctors have been performing surgery on Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon since 11 a.m. after he was found unconscious in a Chicago Hotel room Monday.
Doctors said O'Bannon suffered a cerebral hemorrhage.
O'Bannon, 73, was listed in critical condition at Northwestern Memorial Hospital after being admitted around 9:30 a.m., according to a fire department spokesman.
According to Chicago's ABC affiliate, O'Bannon's staff members became worried after they weren't able to reach him by phone in his room at the Palmer House Hilton in downtown Chicago. He was reportedly found unconscious inside the room after the door was knocked down.
O'Bannon (pictured, right) was attending the U.S. Midwest Japanese Conference in the Empire Room at the hotel and was scheduled to speak Monday.
O'Bannon's wife, Judy O'Bannon, has arrived at the hospital, a Chicago television station reported.
Lt. Gov. Joe Kernan was also at the conference but aides said he was headed back to Indianapolis. State officials were researching transfer of power procedures in case it was needed, RTV6's Norman Cox reported.
The Indiana Constitution allows for a transfer of power from the governor to lieutenant governor if the governor is incapacitated.
However, that requires a petition to be filed by the president pro tem of the Senate and the speaker of the House and a ruling by the Indiana Supreme Court.
The counsel to Chief Justice Randall Shepard, David Remondini, said two of the five justices are in the Statehouse and the others are being contacted.
The Democratic governor is in the third year of his second four-year term. By law, he cannot seek re-election.
O'Bannon suffers from familial tremors, a neurologic disorder that involves involuntary shaking, RTV6 reported. The condition typically gets worse when the affected person tries to move or become more active. The condition is not considered life-threatening.
"As far as we know, he has had excellent health. He has had annual physicals ... for a man of his age, he has been reported to be in excellent health each time he's had a physical," Indiana Governor's Office spokesman Andrew Stoner said.
O'Bannon was only scheduled to be in Chicago for a couple of days, Cox reported. He had been on vacation in Corydon, Ind., before going to the conference.

Indiana governor found unconscious in hotel
01:39 PM CDT on Monday, September 8, 2003
Associated Press

CHICAGO - Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon was found unconscious in his hotel room Monday and doctors believe he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, a hospital spokeswoman said.
Doctors were evaluating whether to perform surgery, Northwestern Memorial Hospital spokeswoman Kelly Sullivan said.
She said the governor, 73, was found stricken in his hotel room in the Palmer House Hilton. He was in Chicago to attend a conference of the Midwest U.S.-Japan Association.

AP
Gov. Frank O'Bannon

A cerebral hemorrhage, or bleeding in the brain, is often a type of stroke caused by a ruptured or leaking blood vessel. The outcome depends on how much bleeding occurs, how much of the brain is affected, and how long the patient goes without treatment.
In Indianapolis, O'Bannon spokeswoman Mary Dieter said earlier that he gets a yearly physical, and was deemed to be "as healthy as he could be."
O'Bannon's wife, Judy, was en route to Chicago.
O'Bannon, elected to his second four-year term in 2000, is barred by term limits from running again next year.
Lt. Gov. Joe Kernan also was in Chicago for the conference, but he headed back to Indianapolis.
The Indiana Constitution allows for a transfer of power to the lieutenant governor if the governor is incapacitated. However, that requires a petition filed by the president pro tem of the state Senate and the speaker of the House and a ruling by the Indiana Supreme Court.
O'Bannon was elected to his father's seat in the Indiana Senate in 1970 and served 18 years. He first ran for governor in 1987, but when Evan Bayh got into the race, O'Bannon dropped his bid and became Bayh's running mate.
After serving eight years as lieutenant governor, O'Bannon was unopposed when he sought the Democratic nomination for governor in 1996. He entered that race as an underdog to Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith and campaigned largely on his down-home charm and Evan Bayh's record. Bayh, meanwhile, was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998.
O'Bannon is also chairman of the board of O'Bannon Publishing Co., which publishes weekly newspapers in Harrison and Crawford counties.

Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dallas/newthishour/stories/090803dnnatindiana.892af.html

Hometown reacts to news of O'Bannon's illness

By John Fritze
john.fritze@indystar.com
September 8, 2003

Corydon, the southern Indiana hometown of Gov. Frank O'Bannon, was filled with heartache today.

Howard Saylor, 71, who owns the farm next door to O'Bannon's, said the governor had visited him just last week and the two had shared watermelon on Saylor's front porch.

"They've been one of the best neighbors I've ever had. Even if he wasn't the governor, I guess he'd be one of the best neighbors."

The O'Bannons grow primarily alfalfa on the 70-acre farm west of Corydon, and it's where the couple go for weekend getaways.

"He loves that place. He really enjoyed getting out and going around on the farm," Saylor said.

Saylor said Judy O'Bannon called him about 2:30 p.m. with a brief update on her husband's condition, saying that the prognosis wasn't good.

O'Bannon's sister, Rosamond O'Bannon Sample, who still lives in Corydon, said the news of her brother's collapse was "a real shock."

"The last time I had seen him, he looked fine. I thought he looked relaxed," she said.