Denise Montgomery

Denise Montgomery
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The blogger formerly known as Verbal Remedy would like to change her name to an unpronounceable glyph, but until a clever designer comes up with just the right one, will settle for something easily spelled and pronounced.

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MARCH 17, 2009 6:07PM

Natasha Richardson is BRAIN-DEAD!? (Updated with film clip)

Rate: 27 Flag

favourwatchfish 

No. Way.

No. No. Just No. This has got to be a mistake.

That report says: Natasha Richardson was reported to be "fine at first" after she hit her head in a skiing accident, but the 45-year-old actress' health began to deteriorate within an hour.

Now sources close to the Tony award-winning actress say she is brain dead and being flown back to New York, where she will be taken off life support.

 Please understand, it's not that I know the woman. But I adore her work. And she (was) so young and vibrant and gorgeous and...

The worst part is, my favorite film of hers has never been released on DVD. So tonight I will not be able to watch The Favour, The Watch, and the Very Big Fish and weep.

 

UPDATED TO ADD THIS CLIP from the film.

Sorry it's initially in German. It's the only one I could find on the entire interweb. Fast Forward to 1:50, when Bob Hoskins' unwitting character, doing a favor for his voiceover artist Zalman, realizes exactly what kind of a film they're there to do voiceovers for.  This is the scene in which he and Richardson first meet.

 

 

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I am holding out hope that this report is entirely wrong.

I know better.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 06:10 PM
I saw a report earlier about her being brought to US but not that ... wow ... how very, very sad
1_Irritated_Mother
March 17, 2009 06:13 PM
I hope it is false. She is way too young, has two little kids and all that. Ugh, this is awful.
LuluandPhoebe
March 17, 2009 06:13 PM
I'm beginning to suspect that she had an aneurysm. And if she did, then perhaps she is dead. Jesus. How awful for her family. I've always admired her acting.
fingerlakeswanderer
March 17, 2009 06:14 PM
Yeah. I felt the same way. She had such a graceful, pretty (and pretty-soul) screen persona. Even just by being in frame in the midst of emotional scenes (“Nell” comes to mind), it felt like she could make a connection to the audience. Very sad.
David Decker
March 17, 2009 06:18 PM
I do have Gothic. I might need to watch Gothic. Or A Handmaid's Tale.

Damn it, damn it, damn it.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 06:19 PM
I saw yesterday, or maybe on Sunday that she'd had a skiing accident and was critically injured and taken to the hospital It is indeed very sad. I liked her work a lot too. =o( And I'm sad for her family.
Shiral
March 17, 2009 06:22 PM
oh, sweetie, this is very sad. she is/was an exceptional actress. and married to liam neelson. god, i feel for her family. skiing is very dangerou. there was one year when two famous people died from slamming into trees, i remember. long long ago there was an snl skit about skiers being shot by claudine longet but that was another matter. she killed her boyfriend or something.

i wonder who you contact and bug to get a dvd released. i have a similar thing with far from the madding crows. i love julie christie more than love. thanks for letting us know. love lvoe love
Theodora L'Engle Knight
March 17, 2009 06:28 PM
Oh, bummer. Was she wearing a helmet?
Jon Henner
March 17, 2009 06:31 PM
Life isn't fair. It so sucks. I feel so sorry for her and her family.

We used to ski without helmets all the time when I was younger. Come to think about it I still ski without a helmet. However, I always make our son wear one. I think I'll change my practice from now on.

I hope this is reporting is in error.

denese
denese
March 17, 2009 06:36 PM
Ok so i had to Imdb her.. and the only movie i think ive seen with her in it besides main in manhattan *and I dont remember her being in it* was the newer parent trap with lohan..

that is a horrible way to go though..
Barbra anne
March 17, 2009 06:42 PM
(Please, y'all...don't thumb this...comment away, let's discuss, but I can't cope with thumbs.)

No mention of a helmet. Also, it must be said, thus far, it's only FOX that's saying this. CNN/NYT have not changed their story from "critically injured" and/or "hospitalized."

I've never learned to ski.

I'm taking that off my Life List now.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 06:42 PM
too damn young! She will be missed.
Fabflamingo
March 17, 2009 06:43 PM
The Guardian (www.guardian.co.uk) is reporting simply that she "has been discharged from the hospital."
That's all.
fingerlakeswanderer
March 17, 2009 06:44 PM
I was shocked when I saw this today, too. Last I heard, TMZ had reports that she was unconscious and her brain was swelling, but that she had not yet actually been pronounced brain dead. I hope they're right, but I suspect not. Always sad to lose a Redgrave.
merwoman
March 17, 2009 06:45 PM
3/17 NBC Evening news 6:42PM:

Conflicting reports of traumatic brain injury. Small falls can cause such injuries. Liam Neeson left his movie set in Toronto to be with her at Sacre Coeur hostipital in Montreal. Such injuries can be recovered from, but there is no news as to her current condition.
voicegal
March 17, 2009 06:45 PM
last i heard, via CBC, she had an accident while learning how to ski and left the mountain feeling fine. She was reported to be feeling "ill" later that evening in her hotel room. She was flown back to New York, with Medics by her side. CBC also notes that a sudden onslaught of exaggerated reports regarding her condition have flooded the media.
Karin Rego
March 17, 2009 06:50 PM
I'm wondering if it's something else. I can't tell you how many times I've fallen over the years skiing. Se didn't hit anything and was on a green. She felt fine and went back to her hotel and after an hour, her head hurt. Wondering about an aneurysm...

Really sad.
Julie Tarp
March 17, 2009 06:51 PM
OK, the hope is growing...

BBC says internet reports are "exaggerated..."

Could it be a case of FOX being very, very bad reporters? (Like it would be the first time...)
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 06:52 PM
That is very sad.Fox news is frequently wrong. I hope they are wrong again.
Dorinda Fox
March 17, 2009 06:58 PM
I just saw a report on the evening news that says that she has a condition that can be reversed. I dont recall any mention of her being "brain dead". It sounded like she has bleeding which can be, for lack of a better word, drained. From what I understood they expect her to be fine.
Bill Beck
March 17, 2009 07:01 PM
I just saw a report on the evening news that says that she has a condition that can be reversed. I dont recall any mention of her being "brain dead". It sounded like she has bleeding which can be, for lack of a better word, drained. From what I understood they expect her to be fine.
Bill Beck
March 17, 2009 07:01 PM
Yeah, I don't know about the helmut, but what I"ve heard indicates she was taking skiing lessons, so she couldn't have been on a diamond slope or anything. And I can't find out if Fox is blowing it out of proportion or not. This is frustrating. She is a brilliant stage actress, and a lovely person. I fear, with her coming to NY, the worst. If it were simply swelling that could be controlled with meds and/or relief of the pressure (via drilling), they could presumeably do that in Canada, since they'd already moved her from one facility to another (airlifted). Why would they bring her on to NYC unless she were stable... or dead/dying?
ConnieMack
March 17, 2009 07:03 PM
All the hype --shame on fox news--(she has a family FFs!) let's hope this talented actress entertains us for years to come.
Chuck A. Stetson
March 17, 2009 07:10 PM
imdb hasnt changed her status or anything... so..
Barbra anne
March 17, 2009 07:15 PM
I'm actually not in a panic (yet). I've been watching these reports all day and they have been so greatly varied - from saying she was in critical condition to saying how grossly exaggerated the earlier reports had been. The last thing I read is that she was going to a hospital in New York - which shouldn't be suspect as that's the city she and her family currently live. Right now this is all just hype.
RenaissanceLady
March 17, 2009 07:20 PM
oh Man! The MOM in Parent Trap !!!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Crimsonbutterfly
March 17, 2009 07:34 PM
Here this is taken from Dlisted.com which took it from TMZ
"UPDATE: The hospital has told TMZ that Natasha isn't brain dead. They said Natasha is currently sedated and her brain is swelling. She's traveling to another hospital for treatment. I'm going to choose to believe TMZ"
Crimsonbutterfly
March 17, 2009 07:38 PM
Widow's Peak is what I remember her in, with Mia Farrow and Joan Plowright. I hope the latest posters are right. I'll go check the BBC. I trust them.
latethink
March 17, 2009 07:39 PM
I'm with you, Verbal. Reading that she is now in her third hospital since the accident raised my antennae. I hope for the best but I fear the worst. Hug across the nation to you.
cartouche
March 17, 2009 07:43 PM
I work for a hospital. If an American hospital actually told TMZ anything whatsoever, heads would roll, lawsuits would be filed, and fines would reach into seven figures. HIPAA doesn't allow disclosure of confidential patient information on the part of a hospital.

I'd really like to know who Fox's "sources close to the actress" are.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 07:46 PM
So sad. I often wonder how we would all change our lives if we knew how much time we had left. I heard of the injury, but not this report. Sorry VR.
Michael Rodgers
March 17, 2009 07:51 PM
Wow, I hope this is wrong too. Her and Liam Neeson are both such wonderful artists and I can only imagine what he's going through and their kids. This is all I found.

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/media/story/2009/03/17/richardson-ski-accident-neeson-tremblant.html?ref=rss
Kind of Blue
March 17, 2009 07:52 PM
D, TMZ is reporting it's not true. I don't know if that's good or bad. They are normally on top of stuff, good or bad...They do have a lot of sources. I hope they're right. She is definitely suffering from brain swelling in the other stories I've found, nothing conclusive.
Kind of Blue
March 17, 2009 07:55 PM
You're right about HIPAA. As a researcher I'm so familiar with this law and everyone I know is scared to death to cross it. That doesn't mean that people starved for fame, or money won't disclose things they shouldn't...

About helmet wearing while skiing. I have been thinking tonight about how stupid I have been not to wear one. We all thought riding a bike without a helmet was safe; we know it's not, and we now require all of our children to wear one.

Just because it hasn't happened to us or to those we know, doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

Brain injuries are tricky.
denese
March 17, 2009 08:05 PM
Yeah, I saw that on Yahoo. That's terrible. She was a good actress. Celebrities and skiiing don't mix. She was too young to have this happen. It's tragic.
Choirville BreadInLocker
March 17, 2009 08:23 PM
Ugh.

When the word "vigil" is being used...

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20266327,00.html
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 08:27 PM
Isn't she married to Liam Neeson? Oh man....how sad how sad...I like them both a great deal.
Persephone13
March 17, 2009 08:45 PM
Yes, Persephone. That's the one.

I just added a clip from TFTWATVBF. It's classic. And once the awful overdubbing is removed (around minute 1:50), it's their actual voices.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 09:14 PM
Crap, read it on the iPhone from your post and did not see the brain, just the dead. Man, I hope she makes it. I love her and I loved her mother.
Stellaa
March 17, 2009 09:21 PM
Whoa, first I've heard of it. Hope it is a cruel joke...
Esse Est Percipi
March 17, 2009 10:02 PM
Sorry to hear this and I do pray it isn't true..... but....


So, Liam Neeson may soon be available?
MiddleAgedWomanBlogging
March 17, 2009 10:04 PM
It's on the news as I read this. Horrible.
Sally Swift
March 17, 2009 11:05 PM
Gods. She is/was only 4 years older than me.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 11:22 PM
I'm holding out hope she's not dead and that TMZ, of all agencies, is right. It sounds as if they put her in a medical coma, which is sometimes done in extreme brain injury. Perhaps New York simply has the right kind of surgeons.

I'm curious though, and this part may indicate the worst, that they put her on a plane with a brain swelling. That seems .... hmm ... like there isn't much hope.

On the other hand, it also seems more likely that, if she was dead, really dead, they'd simply keep her in the hospital she's in and fly everyone in to say goodbye. It's not like the family can't afford that.

I really hope Fox News is wrong, as they have been so many times in the past.
odetteroulette
March 17, 2009 11:30 PM
It seems awfully fast to go off life support. I heard drs saying tonight that with some things they can fix w/ surgery really quickly.
Annimal
March 17, 2009 11:48 PM
I'm not going to add any more links. I'm just going to say that as tonight wears on, it's looking worse. And worse. And worse.

Her poor boys.

Her poor husband.

The rest of us never really knew this woman. They did. I wish I could pray. If I could pray, I would pray for their comfort.
Denise Montgomery
March 17, 2009 11:51 PM
There have been a lot of reports about this in Montreal because that's where she was brought to after the accident. I'd be really surprised that they would have moved her to New York if she was in critical condition. Montreal has some of best neurologists in the world. Last I read, in the New York Times she walked into the hospital in New York, which is pretty far from brain dead. Still it does sound like it could be potentially serious. No helmet, that's for sure. They interviewed resort officials who helped her after the accident.
Juliet Waters
March 17, 2009 11:52 PM
I hate to say it, but..moving a person in critical condition is dangerous and rare.

Moving the still-breathing physical remains of a person who's brain-dead so that her family can "say goodbye" to the breathing body is much, much easier.

I hope I'm being merely cynical.

You may all beat me the hell up if that's the case.
Denise Montgomery
March 18, 2009 12:00 AM
It was her mom that walked into the hospital, actually.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/18/theater/18richardson.html?ref=world

It's very frustrating, because no one knows anything for sure, it's al speculation and guesswork. However, the pictures of Lynn going into the hospital look fairly grim; she doesn't look like a woman who's relieved to be visiting her recovering daughter, IMO.

http://www.tmz.com/2009/03/17/redgrave-visits-richardson-in-hospital/
merwoman
March 18, 2009 12:53 AM
i saw you title but hadn't read it yet. i was thinking you were calling her brain dead for saying something dumb. then mrs. cap'n asked me if i'd heard what happened.

very sad.
Cap'n Parrotdead
March 18, 2009 01:03 AM
Sad indeed. A family friend was killed in a skiing accident last year; I didn't realize how dangerous it could be. (Although, when I think about it, downhill is next-door to free-falling down a mountain at upwards of 70mph.)

If she is, in fact, brain-dead, I hope her family will consider organ donation, and that they will make a public statement to that effect.
Squillo
March 18, 2009 01:18 AM
Just saw it on CNN. Very sad. They explained how this
can happen. Hoping for the best.
DakiniDancer
March 18, 2009 01:23 AM
And it was inconvenient of the family to come to Montreal instead of New York? That doesn't make much sense, especially since her husband was working in Toronto. Still, it concerns me that they haven't made any kind of statement saying she's okay.
Juliet Waters
March 18, 2009 06:03 AM
Wow. I really hate being this wrong. But a confidential source from Sacrée coeur hospital told Montreal's major newspaper, La Presse that she is brain dead.

Sorry.
Juliet Waters
March 18, 2009 06:54 AM
This is just so sad. Hal M posted about this earlier. Heartwrenching news.
screamin mama
March 18, 2009 07:31 AM
News like this is always a shock, especially when the 24-hour cycle is preoccupied with the usual politcal and business stories.

My favorite Richardson movies are "A Handmaid's Tale" and "Nell." Haven't seen the one featured in this post.

I remember reading an interview with Richardson in People magazine shortly after she married Neeson. She freely admitted in that veddy practical English way that her wedding to Neeson was put on the fast track because of her pregnancy with their first son. She also said she wasn't as ambitious as the rest of her family, preferred stage to movies, and was a great cook.

She guested on "Top Chef" not too long ago, hosting a fundraiser for AIDS that the contestants cooked for. Good episode.

I'm just ignoring the news reports, because I don't think they really know anything for sure, and nobody will until the family chooses to issue a statement. Waiting is a tough game.
flyover52
March 18, 2009 09:56 AM
As of midnight the BBC is not reporting her condition as "brain dead", they are reporting her as being in critical condition. An update is expected today.

I'm the praying kind, Denise, so I'm sending up some for her and the family. Though I've never seen anything she's been in that I can recall, she's too damn young.
Bill S.
March 18, 2009 10:12 AM
Ugh, forgot the url:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7949810.stm
Bill S.
March 18, 2009 10:13 AM
People magazine is now reporting her brain dead, according to a "family friend."

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20266350,00.html
Juliet Waters
March 18, 2009 11:22 AM
I really have to say that it sounds as if she had an underlying condition, for instance a blood clot/aneurysm waiting to happen and be jarred loose. It sounds by all accounts like a minor head trauma. As Bill Beck said, they can do cranial drilling to relieve the bleeding and it can be reversed. Unless she has a hemorrhagic stroke which can cause death. A lot of unanswered questions, but if she fell in a minor fall and bumped her head, as the reports say, that usually does cause inner cranial bleeding.

We keep her in our thoughts and prayers.

http://www.thestar.com/Entertainment/article/604133
Kind of Blue
March 18, 2009 12:03 PM
I love Natasha Richardson, she was brilliant in Asylum, one of my favorite films. I pray for her recovery.
Monsieur Chariot
March 18, 2009 12:37 PM
Maybe the doctors put her into a medically induced coma to help heal the brain.

I'm sure Dr. Amy here would know.

I'm sending her and her family and friends good prayers and thoughts for a healthy recovery.
LuisG
March 18, 2009 12:46 PM
I agree, Monsieur Chariot. Asylum was her best work ever.

I have not heard the latest news, but I pray for a miracle.
MiddleAgedWomanBlogging
March 18, 2009 03:24 PM
I'm going skiing this weekend, actually. It will be interesting to see how many people are wearing helmets. I will probably be one of them.
Sheldon The Wonderhorse
March 18, 2009 03:25 PM
TMZ is reporting that they took her off life support. I don't know - it is TMZ....

So sad.
Julie Tarp
March 18, 2009 04:30 PM
It's so very sad. She had so much to do still ahead of her.

(Someone at the resort should have insisted that she go to the hospital immediately after the trauma.)
ktm
March 18, 2009 04:42 PM
Actually, they did ktm, but she apparently insisted on going up to her room.
emma peel
March 18, 2009 04:45 PM
UPDATE: NPR has just reported that the family has announced her death.
Squillo
March 18, 2009 08:06 PM
Oh, you beat me to it. I just heard it on the BBC radio.

R.I.P. Natasha. This is very, very sad.
emma peel
March 18, 2009 08:31 PM
This is just beyond sad.

What a tragic waste.

I cannot imagine what her sons (who were skiing with her) must be going through.
Denise Montgomery
March 18, 2009 09:42 PM
I loved her in Nell. I'm saddened this has happened. And I especially feel for her mom. No parent wants to outlive a child. It is an outrage to the order of the universe.
Cindy Ross
March 18, 2009 11:05 PM
Thanks, Verbal, your post alerted me to this before any other source. Sad indeed, and always frightening when death strikes during innocuous leisure activities. I guess I'll go watch her in Widows Peak, where she's so sly and insinuating and lovely...
Donald Brown
March 19, 2009 03:52 PM

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