Celebrities w/Kidney Disease

[angela515]

A couple of thoughts:  I wish a real celebrity would develop kidney failure. No, I don't wish anybody that. I just think if a famous likeable person would get kidney failure, it would raise awareness, maybe get more people to be organ donors, etc. 

Do you know who George Lopez is? He has a kidney trasnplant from his wife... I don't think he ever went on dialysis, but he still suffered many years of feeling like shyt from his failing kidneys.

[Jannie]

No offense, but I never even heard of George Lopez. I did some research, and he's an Hispanic stand-up comedian who had a TV show last year that was not a hit. No offense (again) but that's not a real celebrity, in my opinion. Now if George Bush got kidney failure, well, then maybe. . .

[angela515]

No offense, but I never even heard of George Lopez. I did some research, and he's an Hispanic stand-up comedian who had a TV show last year that was not a hit. No offense (again) but that's not a real celebrity, in my opinion. Now if George Bush got kidney failure, well, then maybe. . .

Actually maybe you should do some more research.. he has a HIT tv show, and it's still on the air. ABC... It's very good... so yeah.. he is a "real celebrity"... (no offense)

Also...  Former NFL football players Ron Springs, left, and Everson Walls greet each other before a news conference after their successful organ transplant in Dallas in this March 2, 2007 file photo. Walls donated a kidney to Springs, and the former Cowboys teammates will serve as honorary captains for the team's Sept. 9 season opener.

He's considered a "real celebrity" also... Raising awareness.

[Adam_W]

I could be wrong, but wasn't Berry White on dialysis at the time he died?

Adam

[angela515]

You are correct Adam. 

[Zach]

And Humorist Art Buchwald and author James Mitchner and Broadway writer Neil Simon.
 

[goofynina]

Neil Simon??    No waaay, (oh wait, i think i am thinking of Neil Diamond)    Who the heck is Neil Simon?   

[Zach]

Neil Simon??    No waaay, (oh wait, i think i am thinking of Neil Diamond)    Who the heck is Neil Simon?   

An American playwright and screenwriter:
Barefoot in the Park,  The Odd Couple, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Murder by Death, and The Goodbye Girl, to name only few.

But we're getting off-topic ...

[kidney4traci]

Who's Neil Simon?  OMG!  lol, anyway - welcome!  Glad you are doing better!   Unfortunately, "real celbrity" types usually get transplanted faster than us nornmal types.  Wonder why??

[angela515]

Who's Neil Simon?  OMG!  lol, anyway - welcome!  Glad you are doing better!   Unfortunately, "real celbrity" types usually get transplanted faster than us nornmal types.  Wonder why??

That's not true to every celebrity... however I know it was very true for that basketball player in 1999.... pissed me off.

[Lulu]

Who's Neil Simon? OMG! lol, anyway - welcome! Glad you are doing better! Unfortunately, "real celbrity" types usually get transplanted faster than us nornmal types. Wonder why??

Alonso Mourning, is that who you are talking about. If so, I go to the same doc. His pic is on the wall in the room. I told my doc I didn't wnat to have a transplant because of the drugs and weight gain and my doc pointed to Alonso's pic. He looks awesome. It was taken after his transplant. Of course, Alonso has millions...I just have medicare.

And Hello and  Jannie. I am new here too. Not on dialysis yet. I hope you are feeling better and dialysis is going better.

[angela515]

Yes, that's him. He got his so fast because he was famous, so they did his testing and donor testing very fast instead of scheduling them months apart, and then scheduled the surgery asap.

[goofynina]

I do know that Alonso and George did have live donors, i am sure that had a great deal to do with their speedy transplants (at least thats what i thought)    I am sure the money helped as well 

[angela515]

I had a live donor the same year as Alonso.. what pissed me off... was me and my mom started our testing before he did, months before, and yes our transplant was done months after his. So yeah... he was moved along VERY quickly due to his being famous.

As for George, he didn't get one quickly... he went through life with failing kidneys and didn't even start looking for a donor until his doctor told him it was time.

[paris]

Steven "Cojo" Cojocaru, fashion critic (Access Hollywood, E!, Entertainment Tonight) had 1st transplant 2004 from a friend. After it failed, his Mother donated a kidney in 2005.  You see him on all major talk shows and in magazines.  So, add another to the list of celebreties.  This disease does not discriminate between rich, poor, old, young, ugly, pretty------but no disease does.   My sister-in-law had breast cancer for 3 years. She is very wealthy and was able to fly all over the country for new treatments. She died in May.  Money doesn't solve these horrilbe illnesses.  It does help pay for things and I sometimes could use a little more of it! 

Back on topic!!!        This is an incredible site with tons of information

[angela515]

((Off Topic)))  Maybe we should move the individual posts about celebrities into a topic of its own "Celebrities with Kidney Disease"? Just a thought, it's an interesting thread of it's own.

[goofynina]

Excellent idea Angela,  and we shall do just that   thank you 

[Zach]

And there is Gary Colemen.

[livecam]

Don't forget Ed Masry who was Erin Brockovich's long time employer.  She was the go getter,  he was the attorney.

[KICKSTART]

Cant think of any British ones ? I just love they way ,when its cancer it makes headlines tho'

[okarol]

Famous Kidney DONORS:

Name                  Occupation          Birth          Death              Known for

LeVar Burton          Actor               16-Feb-1957                            La Forge on Star Trek: TNG
Jake Garn              Politician          12-Oct-1932                             US Senator from Utah, 1974-93
Oscar Robertson     Basketball          24-Nov-1938                         NBA's Most Valuable Player 1964
Franz Vranitzky       Head of State     4-Oct-1937                          Chancellor of Austria, 1986–97


Famous Kidney RECIPIENTS:

Name                 Occupation         Birth           Death               Known for

Erma Bombeck       Columnist            21-Feb-1927    22-Apr-1996    The Grass is Always Greener
John Brockington   Football               7-Sep-1948                          Green Bay Packers running back
Steven Cojocaru     Critic                   5-Jan-1965                         Entertainment Tonight fashion critic
Freddy Fender         Musician              4-Jun-1937       14-Oct-2006         Before the Next Teardrop Falls
James Holshouser   Politician              8-Oct-1934                            Governor of North Carolina, 1973-77
Ken Howard        Actor                    28-Mar-1944                        The White Shadow
Bruno Kreisky         Head of State         22-Jan-1911      29-Jul-1990         Chancellor of Austria, 1970-83
George Lopez        Comic                   23-Apr-1961                      Stand-up comic, George Lopez Show
Jay Miner           Engineer                31-May-1932   20-Jun-1994       Father of the Amiga Computer
Kerry Packer          Business                17-Dec-1937    26-Dec-2005      Richest man in Australia
Billy Preston          Musician                9-Sep-1946      6-Jun-2006        Wrote You Are So Beautiful
Zulu                    Actor                     17-Oct-1937      3-May-2004        Kono on Hawaii 5-O

Found on: http://www.nndb.com/event/578/000091305/

[st789]

Sean Elliot (basketball player).

[livecam]

Famous Kidney DONORS:

Name                  Occupation          Birth          Death              Known for

Jake Garn              Politician          12-Oct-1932                             US Senator from Utah, 1974-93

Senator Garn may also hold another record as well.  It appears that he is the first living donor to have flown in space! Jake Garn flew as a Space Shuttle payload specialist on Discovery, STS-51-D in April of 1985!

[glitter]

And Humorist Art Buchwald and author James Mitchner and Broadway writer Neil Simon.
 

Three of my favorite famous people!! Plus I like George Lopez too!! He is funny as heck!

[stauffenberg]

Walter Matthau recently died of kidney failure.  He had a long and excruciating discussion about his disease with Larry King on television, which demonstrated how little most healthy people are able to understand about the disease.  John Ehrlichman, a former Nixon aide during the Watergate scandal, and one of the Justices of the Canadian Supreme Court also recently developed renal failure, and both of them refused to go on dialysis and preferred death instead.