Alan Alda Reveals He Has Parkinson’s Disease on CBS This Morning
On CBS This Morning, Emmy Award-winning actor Alan Alda, best known for his role on the long-running show “M.A.S.H.”, announced that he has Parkinson’s disease.
Alda of course is most famous for his role as surgeon Hawkeye Pierce on “M.A.S.H.”, one of the highest-rated shows in TV history. He’s starred in many hit movies and shows since, including the role of Senator Arnold Vinick on “The West Wing”.
“I’m doing great,” said Alda as the hosts welcomed him to the program. “You might be surprised to hear that.”
“I haven’t said in public until now that I’ve been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease,” he said. “And the reason that I want to talk about it in public is that it’s, I was diagnosed three and a half years ago, and I’ve had a full life since then. I’ve acted, I’ve given talks, I help at the Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook. I started in this new podcast.”
“And I noticed that– I’ve been on television a lot in the last couple of weeks, talking about the new podcast, and I could see my thumb twitch in some shots,” he said. “And I thought, it’s only a matter of time before somebody does a story about this from a sad point of view, and that’s not where I am.”
Alda said he requested the scan after noticing a telling early sign, acting out dreams, which led to his diagnosis. He didn’t have any symptoms, however.
“The thing I want folks to know – and this is not to short-change people who are suffering with really severe symptoms, you know symptoms can get very bad and their families can suffer – but in the very beginning, to be immobilized by fear and think the worst thing has happened to you, it hasn’t happened to you,” he said. “You still have things you can do.”
Alda said he takes boxing lessons three times a week, that he marches to Souza music because it’s good for Parkinsons, and that he continues to have an active life.
“The main thing is, there’s stuff you can do,” he said. “You know how I look at it? It’s like a puzzle to be solved, what do I have to adapt to to carry on a normal life. And I enjoy solving puzzles.”
His positive attitude extended to a bit of humor about his situation, too.
“It would be kind of ironic if I kept quiet about this, when a center for communicating science is named after me,” he laughed.
Alda encouraged anyone dealing with the diagnosis or symptoms of the disease to get real information and learn, “not follow quackery but find out what real science is coming up with that helps.”
Watch the clip above, courtesy of CBS.
[Featured image via screengrab]
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