Celebrities Who Were Near Death: PART 2
Actor Greg Morris, who co-starred in TV's Mission: Impossible and Vega$, was almost killed in a car accident outside of Las Vegas in 1981. After a long recuperation, he was able to return to acting. Sadly, he died in 1996 at age 61, in his home in Las Vegas. Morris had battled brain and lung cancer, but had told the media just a few months earlier that he was cancer-free.
When he was 7 years old, Alan Alda, Emmy-winning actor/writer on TV's M*A*S*H, nearly died from polio. For months, his mother faithfully applied heated packs to his back, and miraculously, nursed the boy back to health.
Perky newcomer Sandy Duncan, whose debut in the 1971 TV sitcom, Funny Face, made her a household name at the time in the U.S., was nearly killed in a car accident. From her extensive injuries, Duncan lost an eye, which was replaced with a glass one. Incredibly, she bounced back from this tragedy. Duncan went on to an Emmy-nominated role in the acclaimed TV miniseries Roots, and starred in Peter Pan on Broadway.
As a youth, George Lucas had planned to become a race-car driver. However, a near-fatal crash only two days before his high school graduation altered his plans forever. He decided to pursue a "safer" career: film production. Lucas was catapulted to fame and fortune with his brilliant American Graffiti and the Star Wars films in the 1970's.
On June 19, 1999, horror writer Stephen King was struck and thrown by an out-of-control minivan while walking near his Maine home that afternoon. King, age 51, suffered a broken leg, a broken hip, and a punctured lung. He was found bleeding in a ditch, and was hospitalized in serious, but stable condition. Following extensive surgery, King was reported to be alert and joking with his family. Additional surgeries were scheduled for his leg and hip injuries. Police said the minivan driver was distracted by a dog inside the car. Speeding was not suspected and no charges were filed against the motorist.
