2005-12-12 - 3:52 p.m.
Richard Pryor was the funniest American comedian ever (except for Carrot Top, of course). Certainly, he made a far greater impact on American culture than you or I. He was also one of the most famous actual people with MS. The most famous �person� with multiple sclerosis was probably Martin Sheen�s President Josiah Bartlett on The West Wing, but he�s fictional. Montel Williams is a big star and all, but the rest of the famous-with-MS list is pretty B-team.
Mouseketeer Annette Funicello? Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto? Actress Terri Garr (fine, I did think she was pretty when I was little)? �Squiggy� from Laverne & Shirley? Come on. There�s also a bunch of famous people�s relatives who have MS. �Harry Potter� author J.K. Rowling�s mom. Pearl Jam singer Eddie Veder�s dad. Comedian Adam Sandler�s cousin. Unfortunately, celebrity relatives don�t really generate awareness. �I just heard Gloria Estefan�s dad has MS; I�m gonna make a big donation!�
I guess it�s a sort of morbid idea, people with a certain disorder subconsciously secretly hoping someone with star-power will get it too and raise awareness and research donations. I honestly can�t say it hurts, though. A former poster-child for spinal cord injuries was �Hustler� publisher Larry Flynt, a pretty icky person to be associated with. Then Christopher Reeves fell off his horse and Superman was a cripple. Rather poetic, in a dark way. (Of course, despite having all money, he died from an infection contracted from easily identifiable bedsores�)
But heroes and role models can go a long way. When I was newly-diagnosed, I met Lianne Marks serving as a spokesperson for the National MS Society (about whom I have an ambivalent attitude, but I�ll save that thought for later). Lianne was about my age, brilliant (a Yale graduate), and gorgeous (a former Miss Hawaiian Tropic). Gosh, I thought, good company to be in. Maybe someday I�ll be as smart and good-looking. (And as you know, I did go on to win the Miss Hawaiian Tropic pageant in 2001, but was stripped of my title after my �Playboy� pictorial surfaced.)
Now of course I don�t have much in common with Richard Pryor. I�ve said it before, but people with MS don�t all hang out together in the MS clubhouse. But it means a great deal to me to know that a fucking legend had a similar experience to me. Even though it was obviously terrible for him (although he�s said, like me, that he got a lot positive out of getting sick and it actually extended his life, making him consider his actions more), even if MS progresses quite differently in everyone (so daily problems I�ve faced may or may not be the same as his).
So our lives weren�t alike in any way, but I think there�s something I can learn from his death. Richard Pryor�s said he was afraid of dying alone (me too; aren�t we all) and I don�t think he did. The most important lesson I can draw from this is that he didn�t die of MS. (Few people actually do; it�s not terminal except in severe cases and from suicides resulting from associated depression.) He had a heart attack. He didn�t self-destruct like so many tortured artists. He didn�t fatally light himself on fire.
He died quietly (well, probably as quietly as he could do anything) and, most surprisingly, normally. Was it his past catching up to him? Certainly he lived hard in his younger days. But who really cares whether it was some sort of karmic retribution. The reality-check of getting sick made him appreciate life even more in the end. I think if it helped him find a level of calm he�d never had before, that�s an example I can follow. Rest in peace, Rich.
(It�s also Nya�s birthday, so please send her good wishes.)
� 2005 Geoff Gladstone
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