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Thursday, November 18, 2010

The Famous Faces of Diabetes

Wilford Brimley and B.B. King might have leant their celebrity to diabetic supply commercials, but they weren't the only famous people to have diabetes.
Great men and women throughout history have not only influenced society, toppled sports records, and made advances in technology, but many have made those important changes while managing diabetes.
From harnessing electricity to judging on American Idol, the modern landscape is dotted with successful diabetics—including the "Queen of Soul" and the "King of Rock 'n' Roll."
Their influence is so prevalent that you can see it a daily basis.

Television

Depending on your favorite era of television, there are plenty of celebrities on the little screen who lived with diabetes:
  • Mary Tyler Moore
  • Funny man Jack Benny
  • Designing Women leading lady Delta Burke
  • Television legends Dick Clark and Jerry Lewis
  • Honeymooner Jackie Gleason
  • Comedian Carroll O'Connor, who might be better known as Archie Bunker
  • Scotty from Star Trek, James Doohan
If the classics aren't your thing, you can see diabetics like Sherri Shepherd of The View and 30 Rock, American Idol judge Randy Jackson, and even Larry King on TV regularly.

Movies

Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry is known for her talent and beauty, but her type 1 diabetes is another one of her attributes she doesn't mind discussing. She also volunteers with the Juvenile Diabetes Association.
While Wilford Brimley is one celebrity synonymous with diabetes, there's also another interesting fact about him: he once worked as a bodyguard for billionaire industrialist Howard Hughes, another famous diabetic.
If you're a fan of Star Wars or Indiana Jones, you can thank a diabetic—writer, director, producer, and California Hall of Famer George Lucas.

Sports

Sports halls of fame are also covered with the names and faces of diabetics:
  • Tennis legend Billie Jean King
  • Cy Young-winning pitcher James "Catfish" Hunter
  • Olympic snowboarder Sean Busby
  • World boxing champs "Sugar" Ray Robinson and "Smokin'" Joe Frazier.
Besides championships, diabetics have also swam the English Channel and ran across the United States.
Legendary Philadelphia Flyer Bobby Clarke's type 1 diabetes was a problem early in his career, including two diabetic seizures on the ice. But with the right diet, including chocolate bars and glucose gum close by during games, he made it to the Stanley Cup Finals three times.

Arts & Sciences

If influencing and enriching society is your forte, being a diabetic with artistic or scientific dreams means you have plenty of role models.
Famous authors such as Ernest Hemmingway, Anne Rice, and Laura Ingalls Wilder all have or had diabetes. Author H.G. Wells, when not inciting mass hysteria with War of the Worlds, founded the British Diabetic Association.
Next time you flip a light switch, let it serve as a reminder that Thomas Edison—inventor of the light bulb, among other things—was a diabetic.
Or the next time you drive your Harley-Davidson passed a McDonald's while blaring some Pink Floyd or James Brown know that none of it would exist if they weren't for diabetics.
But the "Godfather of Soul" and Floyd frontman Syd Barret aren't the only diabetics who made their mark on music.
So did:
  • "The Queen of Soul" Aretha Franklin
  • "The Man in Black" Johnny Cash
  • Rick James
  • Jerry Garcia
  • Tony Bennett
  • Miles Davis
  • Ella Fitzgerald
  • Mama Cass Elliott
  • Nick Jonas
  • Ghostface Killah of the Wu-Tang Clan
  • Neil Young
  • Elvis Presley, the King himself
Maybe science and medicine is your thing.
Perhaps you can follow in the footsteps of Dr. George Minot, winner of the 1934 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He was the first diabetic to win the Nobel. Not bad for a guy who also happened to be the Assistant in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
No matter your dreams, passions, or desires, know that living with diabetes doesn't have to be a hindrance with the right treatments.
Many people have done marvelous things despite having diabetes. It's great company to be in.

Source: http://www.healthline.com/health-care/famous-people-diabetes#ixzz15htd9HKF

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