Author dies after facelift

[demdave]

Best-selling author Olivia Goldsmith has died after her facelift went wrong.

She was best known for The First Wives Club which was turned into the 1996 hit film starring Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler and Diane Keaton as three friends who take their revenge on cheating husbands who dump them for younger women.


The 54-year-old writer, whose real name was Justine Rendal, had been in a deep coma for more than a week caused by a reaction to an anaesthetic while she was having plastic surgery.

http://www.thisislondon.com/news/articles/8630309?source=Evening%20Standard

[TeeYiYi]

1. Gawd. That's awful. How sad. . .

She was only 54. :-(

TYY

[0007]

3. The price for vanity is indeed expensive!

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[TheDalaiMama]

7. it's bad enough women are addicted to this image thing...now men

are getting surgery in almost equal numbers. Where will it all end?
Did you ever notice that the surgeons are not good looking with the exception of a few? They don't pratice what they preach.

[demdave]

10. It will end when vain people stop trying to look better than others.

I refuse to believe society pressured this rich woman to try to improve her looks. Look at the topic and messages of her writings. How is it that many of us go through life and age naturally but the rich have to "look better"?

Sometimes nature gives us a lesson, if we are willing to learn.

[TeeYiYi]

13. I don't know if it's vanity or not . . .

. . . in this case it may have been. Who knows. :shrug: But I wonder how getting a face lift is much different that getting caps or veneers on your teeth. I can be the most conscientious teeth brusher and flosser and I still expect to own a few crowns some day. (My tiara is in the closet.) If my eyes get too baggy, I'll probably go in and have them fixed. If we allow the body to age naturally, wouldn't people who's knees give out be in wheel chairs? What about hip replacements? . . . :shrug:

TYY

[demdave]

14. If you can't see the difference between mobility and baggy eyes

I would be wasting my time trying to explain.

[TeeYiYi]

15. What about the caps? . . .

. . . those aren't necessary. The discussion was about allowing the body to age naturally. And yet, it seems we do everything in our power to stop that from happening. Diets, vitamins, secret potions. It goes against human nature to want to age, naturally or otherwise. We face our own mortality every day and some people go to greather lengths than others to try and halt it.

TYY

[TeeYiYi]

27. HELLO demdave? What about the caps? ......n/t

TYY

[MaineDem]

17. Baggy eyes don't limit your mobility

In your comparison, no hip replacement would mean the person is stuck in a wheel chair. Big difference from elective face-lift.

I've lost almost 150 pounds in the past 2 years. I just noticed the other day that I have wrinkles!!! I never did when I was really heavy. I noticed crow's feet around my eyes for the first time. The way I figure it...I earned those lines! No surgery for me but, heck, if someone wants it and it doesn't come out of my health benefits, go for it!

Any surgery is risky, regardless of the severity and reason for the surgery.

[TeeYiYi]

9. I'm not revering it too well . . .

. . . and I suspect I'll submit to the knife in my 50's if necessary. I think there is a line that gets crossed with plastic surgery. MJ being a prime example. But for people who are getting up there in age in, say, a corporation where ageism is a problem, then I see no problem with them wanting to refresh their appearance. Like everything else, moderation is important.

TYY

[ElsewheresDaughter]

4. vanitites vanities this is so sad

[spooky3]

31. Is it vanities, or simply people responding to the fact that many other

people in society treat them MUCH better when they look good than when they do not?

I'm not arguing that people have no responsibility for their choices. What I'm arguing is that "vanity" sounds like a personal weakness that is independent of the environment they are operating in. But the decision to do ANYTHING to improve one's looks (including wearing makeup, losing weight unless seriously overweight, getting your hair styled, etc.) could be called "vanity", I think unfairly. In fact, some people say things like "doesn't she care how she looks?" (yes, they're more likely to say it about women). Look at what MANY people (not just neocons) say or would say about Dr. Judith Steinberg Dean. The reality is that society definitely values looking good, and the question is just one of how far does it make sense to go to get the advantages for oneself.

[MaineDem]

5. Wow! For real?!

I loved "The First Wives Club". I just read another of her books about women in prison. I forget the name. It was interesting but not as much as "First Wives...".

Ah vanity!

[question everything]

6. That's sad

I loved the book and I loved the movie. It is being shown on cable this month and I watched it again just last week.

[ima_sinnic]

8. oh, that is tragic

I saw a documentary on exactly how a facelift is done. Believe me, I was gagging and will NEVER subject myself to one. The doctor inserts a spatula under the skin and actually lifts it away from anything holding it underneath--and this is done quite forcefully, a striking/digging motion all over the face. No wonder people's faces are black and blue afterward. UGH. At 57 I am resigned to the face I was born with, which is aging naturally.

[shanti]

25. i'm on your side, sister

i refuse to even consider cosmetic surgery and plan to just grow old gracefully.

[David__77]

11. Cosmetic surgery didn't kill her--it was anesthesia.

I have to point out that cosmetic/reconstructuve surgery has helped many people improve their lives--we shouldn't condemn it out of hand.

[demdave]

12. Not cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, elective vanity surgery

is what people are pointing to. Yes the anesthesia killed her, but the complications of any "vanity" surgery is enough to show it is wrong.

[FlaGranny]

18. Some cases of "death by anesthesia"

are caused by an anesthetist putting the endotracheal tube down the esophagus instead of the trachea. Since oxygen is supplied to the patient with this tube, the patient's brain is deprived of oxygen. If this lady died a week after the surgery, this may have been the cause. Notice, I say may. I'm not making accusations. If her death had been caused by an allergic reaction or other severe reaction to the anesthesia, it seems to me that she wouldn't have hung on for an entire week, but these are just guesses on my part.

I don't think vanity surgery is wrong. If you can afford it and you understand the risks, it is no more wrong than getting your ears pierced. There is nothing useful about going through life with ears like handles or a huge nose or even wrinkles and sagging skin. If it makes someone feel better about themselves or improves their chances at employment and they understand there is a 0.5% chance of dying from the surgery, it is okay with me.

[Ilsa]

34. Exactly. And she could have had the same reaction

to anesthesia for any nonelective or emergency surgery. She could have had the same reaction to having her gall bladder out or an appendectomy.

I'm not a big fan of having any surgery unless you really need it. But this was her choice, which I support.

[morningglory]

19. I agree that in early 50's you can be made to look 40 again, but

after 60, you just get more lizard-faced with cosmetic surgery. I admire Robert Redford for sticking it out.

[Susang]

28. Except for his eyes

They've been done, most likely to remove excess skin that was impairing his vision. Sometimes people forget that there are legitimate uses for cosmetic/plastic surgery other than vanity.

[Logansquare]

29. I know someone who had an eye lift so she could see better

She always had deep-set eyes with heavy lids, and was losing her peripheral vision by the time she hit 60.

[Teaser]

20. No one really knows how most anaesthesia works.

It's kind of a crap shoot.

[RememberTheCoup]

33. Thanks for pointing that out, David.

I don't like the attitude I'm seeing here that this is some sort of punishment brought on by vanity (or societal pressure). A surgery like this doesn't usually kill you although all surgeries have risks. This is just an unfortunate event; let's not try to hang a moral on it.

[delete_bush]

16. Talk about an extreme makeover!

There does seem to be a high risk/reward ratio associated with cosmetic surgery but it appears that for many the procedure is worth the risk.

[leesa]

21. I think it's unfair to blame it on vanity. If she had died from an

anesthesia reaction during some other surgery no one would be condemning the surgery.
I find many vanity surgeries sad simply because people are so bombarded with the image of the "perfect body" every where you look that they feel they need to surgically alter themselves to meet that ideal, but it's the cultivation of the perception that's wrong, the person who falls for it is basically the victim.

[mainer]

23. Moral of story: stick to local anesthesia if you can

Since I'm now getting to that age when the years are starting to show, I can certainly see why she might have wanted a nip and tuck. Especially when you're in a public job like entertainment, retaining a youthful appearance may be necessary for job success.

There are certain plastic surgery procedures (blepharoplasty, for instance) that have the option of using either general anesthesia or local. While local might be a bit more uncomfortable, at least it's way safer than general!

[Character Assassin]

36. You're right. I blame vanity and stupidity.

I find many vanity surgeries sad simply because people are so bombarded with the image of the "perfect body" every where you look that they feel they need to surgically alter themselves to meet that ideal, but it's the cultivation of the perception that's wrong, the person who falls for it is basically the victim.

The 'victim'?!? Get real. The person who falls for it is a sucker.

The person who falls for it and dies of the consequences is a dead sucker.

[kskiska]

22. Berlusconi's had some nips and tucks, too

along with at least 20 other MPs..

The paper quoted the prime minister's doctor, Umberto Scapagnini, as saying the tycoon-turned-statesman had had "a small plastic surgery operation round the eyes".

This would explain the peculiar remark of one of the few people who claimed to have seen him since December 20. Pumped by reporters, eager for any news of the phantom premier, Umberto Bossi, the Northern League's leader, who lunched with him on Monday, said: "I found him particularly taut".

Mr Berlusconi is suspected of having undergone plastic surgery on at least two previous occasions - in 2000 and in 1996, when he claimed to have been bitten by a spider.

more…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/italy/story/0,12576,1124392,00.html

[Demonaut]

24. Crap, thought it was Anthrax Coulter

Oh well.

[peekaloo]

26. she's had her face lifted

from a few crotches but nothing lethal. :evilgrin:

[Piperay]

30. Such a shame and

it didn't have to be. :-(

[flamingyouth]

32. I really loved her books

I admit it.

What a shame to die so young like that. :-(

[Mari333]

35. Logical reasoning prevails

Im 52...I could spend my 15,000 on a trip to Crete and visit the islands, or spend it having my face lifted and look like Katherine Harris..
I think Ill take the trip to Crete..

stand on your head if you want your face to defy gravity!

[Isere]

37. Politicians who have had plastic surgery

Since this is a political discussion forum, I think it would be instructive to list the politicos who have had plastic surgery. Should there be truth in labeling?

Here are a few for starters:

Elizabeth Dole (major work on that lady)
Nancy Pelosi (ditto)
Jennifer Dunn (unrecognizable from her former self)
Bob Dole (eye lift)
Arlen Specter (eye lift, I'll bet money on it)
Barbara Boxer (the eyes at the very least)
Dianne Feinstein (eyes probably)

In the emeritus category: Nancy Reagan (egads!)
Betty Ford (major work)


Have I missed anyone?