Celebrity Diagnosis » Literature

Reclusive legend J.D. Salinger expires

Dr B — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:23:23 +0000

Legendary author, Jerome David Salinger died yesterday of natural causes in his home in Cornish, New Hampshire were he lived in self-exile for decades. Mr. Salinger was 91. His most famous novel, The Catcher in the Rye, was required reading in high school English courses for generations of students. Natural causes is a frequently given [...]

Book World Loses Two Well-Known Authors

Dr B — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:46:09 +0000

This week we lost two well- known authors- Robert B. Parker and Erich Segal. Both died of heart attacks. Robert B. Parker,77, was a prolific mystery writer, and creator of the character Spenser, a tough Boston detective who was the hero of almost 40 books, and which inspired the 1980's TV show Spenser for Hire, which starred Robert Ulrich. Parker was apparently at work on a new novel when he collapsed at his desk.

Erich Segal, was best known for his 1970 novel and screenplay Love Story, which overnight made Segal a pop-culture phenomenon.Its signature line became a catch phrase: "Love means never having to say you're sorry." Segal also worked on the screenplay for the Beatles movie Yellow Submarine.

Larry Gelbart, “the Jonathan Swift of Our Time,” dies from Cancer at 81

Dr B — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 14:58:00 +0000

Mr. Gebart’s wife, Pat, declined to specify what type of cancer her husband had and we respect her privacy. FYI, according the the CDC (the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the top 10 cancers in American men are shown below. Top 10 cancers for American women are here or here. Mr. Gelbart was [...]

Something Fishy about Jeremy Piven’s Appearance on Letterman

Dr B — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:03:00 +0000

This week Entourage actor Jeremy Piven talked to David Letterman on Late Night about the controversy surrounding his sudden withdrawal from David Mamet’s Broadway show Speed-the-Plow last December. Piven reported that he was told by his physician that he had mercury poisoning, most likely caused by his diet of twice a day sushi and Chinese [...]

Writer and Journalist Dominick Dunne Dead from Bladder Cancer at Age 83

Dr B — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 01:26:00 +0000

Dominick Dunne 1925-2009 In the United States, bladder cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in men and the ninth most common cancer in women. About 45,000 men and 17,000 women are diagnosed with bladder cancer each year. Symptoms of bladder cancer may include blood in the urine (hematuria), pain during urination (dysuria), [...]

Frank McCourt Dies of Meningitis and Malignant Melanoma

Dr B — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:30:16 +0000

As reported a couple of days ago, Angela’s Ashes author, Frank McCourt, was gravely ill with meningitis. He died today from that illness. McCourt had recently been diagnosed with malignant melanoma, a dangerous skin cancer. Melanoma is a cancer that forms in skin cells, called melanocytes, which produce skin pigment. These cells grow in an [...]

Angela’s Ashes Author, Frank McCourt, Gravely Ill with Meningitis

Dr B — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 20:54:28 +0000

Frank McCourt, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Angela’s Ashes, ‘Tis, and Teacher Man, is gravely ill with meningitis according to his brother, author/actor Malachy McCourt. McCourt had recently been treated for malignant melanoma, a dangerous skin cancer, but according to his brother, had been doing very well of late. About two weeks ago, McCourt became [...]

Praise for Celebrity Dx from Health Literacy Expert Helen Osborne

Dr B — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:44:19 +0000

“Health literacy — when providers and patients communicate in wayseach other can understand — is more important today than ever.Celebrity Diagnosis helps improve health understanding by providingcredible, relevant, and timely health information tied to topics manypeople want to know more about,” says Helen Osborne, President of Health Literacy Consulting. Health Literacy Consulting, www.healthliteracy.com Health Literacy Out [...]

Breast Cancer Claims Formerly Ice Bound South Pole Doctor Jerri Fitzgerald

Dr B — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:06:05 +0000

Jerri Nielsen Fitzgerald, M.D. has lost her battle with breast cancer. Dr. Fitzgerald captured the world’s attention in the spring of 1999 when, as the only physician at the Amundsen-Scott South Station in Antarctica, she was forced to diagnose and treat her own breast cancer. While serving the 41 men and women of the South [...]

Helen Osborne’s Health Literacy Podcasts

Dr B — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 02:27:56 +0000

As you know from our mission statement, our goal with Celebrity Diagnosis is to increase health awareness and health literacy by using diseases of famous people as “teachable moments.” We were lucky to be able to sit down today with Helen Osborne, who is a nationally-known expert on communicating health and healthcare information and the [...]