Alzheimer’s disease claims about 23,000 American lives a year, making it the eighth leading cause of death among the elderly in this country. Early onset Alzheimer’s can develop in people as young as forty, but most victims of this affliction develop it after the age of sixty-five. This form of dementia is particularly insidious, as it robs those with it of their mental faculties and memories. One of the most famous individuals to die from Alzheimer’s was former President Reagan, but he is by no means the only celebrity to succumb to it. Also with Alzheimer’s as a cause of death was one of the nation’s biggest sex symbols, a trio of prominent athletes, the actor known as the “Penguin” to millions, another actor who played in a great sci-fi thriller and did much television work, and a panelist from the popular games how “What’s My Line?
Rita Hayworth was born in 1918 as Margerita Cansino, but later changed her name to avoid discrimination against Latinos in Hollywood. Rita would become a huge movie star during the 1940s with Columbia Pictures and was one of the most mooned over pin-up girls by servicemen during World War II. Rita starred in films such as “You Never Were Lovelier” and “Fire Down Below” and she was a first class dancer, making a film with Fred Astaire once. Rita was married five times, most prominently to Prince Ali Khan. Rita developed early onset Alzheimer’s in the early 1960s, although the disease was not properly diagnosed until 1980. She passed away from the malady in 1987 at the age of 87.
Tom Fears is a member of both the College and Professional Football Halls of Fame, as the UCLA graduate and Los Angeles Rams’ player was a gifted defensive back and wide receiver. It was as a wide-out that he left his mark on the pro game, setting records for most catches in a season and a game in 1949 and 1950. Fears later became the coach of the fledgling New Orleans Saints. Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 1994, Tom finally died from it in 2000. Mickey Owen is forever remembered by the remaining Brooklyn Dodgers’ fans as the catcher that dropped a third strike in the 1941 World Series, allowing the Yankees to mount a game-winning ninth inning rally to take a 3-1 lead in games before closing it out the next day. Strangely, Owen had set a record that very season for the most errorless fielding chances. Owen would be an elected sheriff in his native Missouri in his later years before dying from Alzheimer’s in 1989. One of the most gifted boxers of all time was Sugar Ray Robinson, who won an amazing 175 fights and has been called the greatest “pound for pound” fighter ever by no less than Muhammad Ali. Robinson, who finally retired for good in 1965, was immortalized in the film “Raging Bull” for his battles with Jake LaMotta. He died from Alzheimer’s in 1989, after being broke for most of the time after he left the ring.
Burgess Meredith was featured with much acclaim in motion picture classics like “Of Mice and Men” and “The Story of G.I.Joe”, as well as playing Rocky Balboa’s grizzled trainer in the “Rocky” movies. But it was as the dapper dressed villainous Penguin from the comic-book inspired “Batman” television series of the 1960s that he was best known for. Meredith also did a memorable stint in an episode of the “Twilight Zone”, as a myopic bank teller who only wants to be left alone to read. He gets just that opportunity when he is the sole survivor of a nuclear holocaust, only to break his prescription reading glasses. Meredith remained active in films until as recently as 1995’s “Grumpier Old Men”, two years before his death from Alzheimer’s in 1997.
Arthur Hill, brother of former “Law and Order” star Steven Hill, who played District Attorney Adam Shiff, was a movie and television stalwart in his own right. He had a lead role in the science fiction thriller “The Andromeda Strain” and later went on to star as “Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law” on ABC in the early 1970s. His long fight with Alzheimer’s ended last October 26th, when he died at the age of 84 from the disease. Arlene Francis was an accomplished Broadway actress and New York City radio personality, but she is most associated with the television game show “What’s My Line”, where people would try to stump the panelists, hoping they would not guess their occupation. Francis lived to be 93, eventually losing her war with the dreaded Alzheimer’s in 2001.
