I do hope you know who Peter Sellers was. Just in case you don’t, I’ll take a moment to bring you up to speed. He was an actor who was perhaps most famous for the hilariously funny role of Chief Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther film series. For those a wee bit older, you might remember all the numerous roles he played in Dr. Strangelove, but then there was also Being There (which earned him an Oscar nomination). My personal favorite of his is the truly funny “The Mouse that Roared“, a cold war satire from 1959 about a tiny little country (3 miles by 5 miles big) that goes to war against the US and wins. Seriously now, if you have no idea who he is, go stream these movies. They might be old, but you will love them, he was a true comic genius.
Anyway, putting that aside, today I’m thinking about what finally happened to him. Tragically he had a heart attack and died in 1980 at the young age of 54. So why am I blogging about this, isn’t that simply one of those things that happens and there is not much you can do about it? Sadly no, it is not as simple as that, his death was totally pointless and very very preventable. This is not the point at which I insert some glib rant about eating healthy, or taking plenty of exercise, because that was not the problem here; let me explain.
In 1964, at the age of 38, Peter Sellers suffered a series of heart attacks that caused serious damage to his heart. Now this next part is the root cause of his problems, pay attention. Instead of seeking proper medical care, he decided to consult psychic healers, and so proceeded to visit these quacks about twice a year.
Yep, you’ve got it, he truly believed in this stuff and was sure it was a better solution than conventional medicine – thinking like this is what killed him. Over the next 16 years his condition rapidly got worse, and then in 1977 he suffered his second major attack. Even then there was still hope. This event resulted in a pacemaker being fitted, but that was never going to be enough; his doctors pleaded for him to have further surgery that would have greatly extended his life, but he refused. A couple of years later in 1980 he had a further final heart attack.
Sad as all this is, we can still applaud his unique sense of humor. In his will he requested that the Glenn Miller song “In the Mood” be played at his funeral. This is considered to be his last touch of humour. Apparently he hated it and thought that it would be funny to force all those turning up for his funeral to listen to it.
You can read more about Sellers on his Wikipedia page here.
Modern Medicine, the Stuff that works, really is your best option
When faced with claims about various forms of woo such as psychic healers and other similar claims, you might be tempted to think that it is just a bit of fun and harmless. However, that is not wholly factual. Such beliefs often lead to tragedies like this. People really do buy into it and believe to such a degree that they end up avoiding proper medical care. When faced with such nonsense, be skeptical. Your best bet for a longer life is to trust real medicine, the stuff that has been tested and proven to actually work, it just might save your life.
Nope, I died years ago … I’m writing this from the other side :-)
Hey, are you still alive?
Oddly enough, Peter sellers walked on water in his last film “being there”.
Maybe it could’ve
“Coronary artery disease is a toothless paper tiger”
As I don’t know the conditions surrounding sellers’s death but you obviously weren’t far off the mark when mentioning diet and lifestyle. Heart disease has been proven reversable and preventable with a plant based diet
Silly me, I thought it was all the cocaine and alcohol.
Well,aren’t you a regular James Randi.
There is a place for standard medicine, and yes, Psychic Healers too. After, it seems as to what is stated here about Psychic Healers and Spiritual Healers, that Gosh, God really does not have any powers at all, only the doctors on planet earth. Too, bad, that they are unable to raise the dead and walk on water, oh and don’t forget to stop people in general from dying. After all, what and who is God. It is a shame, that skeptics take this kind of approach and belief. But to each their own.
// There is a place for standard medicine, //
True.
// and yes, Psychic Healers too. //
Nope, no place for frauds, there is no such thing as a real “psychic healer”
// that Gosh, God really does not have any powers at all, //
Correct … because there is exactly zero evidence for a god of any type.
// that they are unable to raise the dead and walk on water, //
Except for the rather inconvenient fact that in all of human history this has never happened even once. … and yes, lots of claims, but no evidence.
// It is a shame, that skeptics take this kind of approach and belief. //
No “belief” required … just evidence, which so far has failed to materialise.
I can back the standard Medical System. I was shopping in Wall Marts late one afternoon. Just had the feeling to go to the hospital. The Ambulance came and checked my blood pressure, placed me on the cott, started an I V. When I awoke the doctor said I was to be operated on at 8am. next morning. After using all my spare vaines I still have 2 blocked. That was 7 years ago and feeling great.