What do Hollywood actors Robin Williams and Bruce Willis have in common?
In episode 49 of KBS2's "Secrets of celebrity soldiers," airing at 8:30 p.m. on the 24th, from the genius actor who made the world laugh to the action star who challenged the impossible, and even the president who led a country, it delves into the horrific reality of "dementia" that no one could escape and the tearful struggles against it.
Robin Williams, who comforted the world with the films "Dead Poets Society" and "Good Will Hunting." News of his sudden death in 2014 gave rise to various conspiracy theories, including allegations of Illuminati involvement. Especially in the months before his death he suffered from stomach pain and constipation, repeatedly made line flubs, and reportedly exhibited extreme anxiety bordering on obsession, calling directors every dawn to ask, "Was my acting okay?" Eventually, the real cause that drove him to death was revealed only through a postmortem.
Medical staff who saw the autopsy report were astonished, saying "It was a miracle he could walk in that condition," because Robin Williams' brain was said to have been filled with "that." What exactly was the "that" that ate away at the genius actor's mind? On the day, brain aging expert Professor Mook In-hee shocked the studio by identifying that Robin's simple stomach pain and constipation were actually prodromal symptoms of a "fatal rare dementia" caused by dementia-inducing substances produced in the gut that traveled along the "gut-brain axis" to the brain.
Action hero Bruce Willis, famous for the "Die Hard" series. In the three years before his retirement he rushed through an astonishing 25 films, enduring humiliation such as being criticized as "money-minded and a poor actor" and receiving the "worst acting" award. But when it was revealed that he had to rely on an earpiece on set because of frontotemporal dementia, considered one of the worst forms of dementia, the studio fell silent at the heartbreaking story.
Meanwhile, when a story was introduced that Bruce Willis had overcome a severe stutter through theater in the past and was reborn as a "born actor," Le Chanwon said, "I, too, used to live with a pen in my mouth trying to fix my Daegu dialect," expressing deep empathy for the hardships of correcting speech habits. Also, Jang Do-youn mistakenly referred to Demi Moore's signature work "Ghost" as "Love and War," causing laughter. Afterwards he shouted, "This is all because of Chanwon," blaming Le Chanwon, a "Love and War enthusiast," which sent everyone into peals of laughter.
Former U.S. president Ronald Reagan, nicknamed the phoenix, also diminished before dementia. Four years after leaving office, in 1994, he confessed to battling "Alzheimer's dementia." The program also reveals the reason he, a true romantic, had to scatter leaves in the pool every night. In the terminal stage of the illness that his wife Nancy called a "long goodbye," he could not even recognize his wife, but Reagan always smiled brightly whenever she appeared. Lee Hyun ended up in tears over the heart-rending love story that "even if memory is lost, emotion remains."
The emotion was short-lived. When Seoul National University brain aging researcher Professor Mook In-hee warned that "the seeds of dementia grow from your 40s," cast members, including 40-year-old Lee Hyun, each shouted "It's me!" and fell into a collective meltdown.
From news of the domestic commercialization of the disease-modifying drug lecanemab that can slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease by more than eight years and the importance of early intervention, to practical dementia prevention tips for building "cognitive reserve," such as walking 10,000 steps a day and reading 1,000-character passages, lifestyle-oriented dementia solutions will be revealed on KBS2's "Secrets of celebrity soldiers" at 8:30 p.m. on the 24th.
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