Jon-Erik Hexum
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Jon-Erik Hexum (November 5, 1957 – October 18, 1984) was an American actor and model who died accidentally shortly after a firearms incident on the set of Cover Up, a television series in which he was a central cast member.
Born to Norwegian immigrant parents, he was the star of the science fiction series Voyagers!, which aired on NBC during the 1982–83 television season. He also appeared in made for television movies The Bear and Making of a Male Model, co-starring Joan Collins and Roxie Roker,<1> and in an episode of Hotel, before being cast in the action series Cover Up.
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On October 12, 1984, in between filming scenes on the set of Cover Up, Hexum was critically wounded after he placed a .44 Magnum prop gun loaded with blanks to his temple and pulled the trigger.<5> The accident happened during the filming of a scene where Hexum’s character (Mac Harper) was supposed to unload a handgun and replace the bullets with blanks—as the script required. However, the shooting was delayed due to a technical difficulty and Hexum fell asleep on the set. Hexum awoke approximately fifteen minutes later and, realizing the scene was still not ready to be shot, began playing with the gun. He eventually placed the gun to his head and pulled the trigger.<6>
Hexum was apparently not aware that blanks use paper or plastic wadding to seal gun powder into the shell, and that this wadding is propelled out of the barrel of the gun with enough force to cause severe injury or death if the weapon is fired within a few inches of the body, especially if pointed at a particularly vulnerable spot, such as the temple or the eye. Although the paper wadding in the blank that Hexum discharged did not penetrate his skull, the wad struck him in the temple with enough blunt force trauma to shatter a quarter-sized piece of his skull and propel the pieces into his brain causing massive hemorrhaging.<2><7>
Hexum was rushed to the Beverly Hills Medical Center where he underwent five hours of surgery to repair his wounds.<7> On October 18, six days after the accident, Hexum was declared brain dead. Hexum's mother Greta allowed his body, still connected to life support, to be flown to San Francisco for organ transplants.<3> Hexum's heart was then implanted into a 36-year old Las Vegas escort service owner who was awaiting a heart transplant.<8> Hexum's kidneys and corneas were also harvested and placed in organ transplant banks before his body was flown back to Los Angeles for autopsy and burial.<3>
Hexum's death was ruled accidental.<9> Hexum's mother later received an out of court settlement from Twentieth Century Fox Television and Glenn Larson Productions, the production team behind Cover Up.<2>
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon-Erik_Hexum
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