March 9, 2003

IS THERE A REAL DR. CPR TOO?:

Heimlich: Still saving lives at 83 (Jane Elliott, 3/09/03, BBC News)
Henry Heimlich's name is known across the globe. Every time he travels, the 83-year-old is greeted by someone with a tale to tell about how the Heimlich Manoeuvre saved their choking mother, father or child.

He has books filled with grateful letters from people who have saved their loved ones.

Since the technique was introduced in 1974 it has saved more than 100,000 US lives, including those of Cher, former President Ronald Reagan, Elizabeth Taylor, Goldie Hawn, Walter Matthau, Carrie Fisher and Jack Lemmon.

But despite being the inventor of one of the most significant medical techniques, Dr Heimlich told BBC News Online that he has only been called upon once to carry it out himself - and that was just three years ago.

"I was in this club restaurant eating when I heard someone calling Dr Heimlich. I turned around and saw a man choking so I did the Heimlich Manoeuvre and got it out and then went on and had my lunch."


Cher? Posted by Orrin Judd at March 9, 2003 6:22 AM
Comments

Useless fact: Anson Williams (Potsie Weber from Happy Days) is the nephew of Dr. Heimlich.

Posted by: pchuck at March 9, 2003 11:47 AM

There are no useless facts, only useless people, like Potsie...

Posted by: oj at March 9, 2003 12:08 PM

Potsie is not a person. He's a sitcom character...who was useless. Another useless Potsie fact would be that Anson Williams used to be married to a distant cousin of mine.

Posted by: NKR at March 9, 2003 12:43 PM

When they started giving Anson Williams major singing roles on "Happy Days" it often made me want to cough up my food withut the benefit of the Heimlich Manoeuvre, though I think stationing Anson with a microphone and some kareoke tapes at restaurants around the country would be a far less efficient method of preventing avoidable choking deaths...

Posted by: John at March 9, 2003 1:36 PM

NKR:



Of course, in metaphysical terms, you may be the sitcom character--a la Truman Show--and Potsie may be quite real. Thus are we all people of faith.

Posted by: oj at March 9, 2003 1:42 PM
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