Sepsis and Celebrities

Many celebrities and public figures have been affected by sepsis. Some survived their bout with the disease, but others died. Sepsis is an equal opportunity illness – it can affect anyone of any social status, age, ethnicity, or beliefs.

All too often, however, the media that report celebrities illnesses or deaths from sepsis fail to say the word. They often say that the person has died of complications of pneumonia, surgery, or cancer, for example. If someone has died of an infection, such as pneumonia or the flu, or an infection from surgery, he or she has died from sepsis. If someone develops an infection serious enough that they must be treated in the hospital with IV fluids and antibiotics, chances are that they have sepsis.

Below is a list of celebrities who Sepsis Alliance knows have had sepsis or believes they did due to the news reports. If you know of any celebrities that you feel should be added to this list, please send the information to info@sepsis.org.

Suggested Citation:
Sepsis Alliance. Sepsis and Celebrities. 2024. https://www.sepsis.org/sepsisand/celebrities/

Updated June 6, 2024.

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

Bacterial Infection

Ashley Park, actress – treated for tonsillitis that progressed to sepsis

Cancer

Paul Allen, Co-Founder of Microsoft – died
Ron Piche, former Montreal Expo pitcher – died of “cancer and blood poisoning” in 2011 (baseball)
Ray Price (Country star Ray Price back in hospital with sepsis) – died
Charlie Robinson, actor – died
Lura Lynn Ryan, Illinois former first lady – survived first bout with sepsis, later died of “complications from cancer”
Susie Steiner, author – died
Cory Wells, musician – died
John Wetton, musician – died

Cellulitis

Jon Huntsman, philanthropist – died
Rusty Staub, baseball player – died

COVID-19

Nick Cordero, actor – died
Larry King, TV personality – died
Cloris Leachman, actor – died of stroke, but coroner said COVID-19 was “significant condition”
Pranab Mukherjee, former president of India – died

Dental Infection

Mike Williams, former NFL player – died

Diabetes

Paul Jackson, bassist with Herbie Hancock – died

E coli

Hugh Hefner – died
Lily Rose Depp, daughter of Johnny Depp

HIV

Fred Hersch, Jazz pianist and composer

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

Tyler James Williams, actor (Crohn’s disease)

Infected Wound

Casey Kasem, radio personality, voice over actor – died
Christopher Reeve, actor – died of anaphylactic shock
E-Dubble (Evan Sewell Wallace), rapper – died
Mother Theresa, infected pacemaker line, survived but died years later of other causes
Chris Young, singer
Calvin Coolidge jr., President Calvin Coolidge’s youngest son, infected blister – died

Influenza

Quintana Roo Dunne, daughter of author Joan Didion – died
Ken Flach, professional tennis player – died
Mary Louise Parker, actor

Intestinal Infection or Perforated Bowel

Socrates, Brazilian soccer player (captain) – died
Patty Duke, actor – died

Maternal Sepsis

Lily Allen, British singer
Kathryn Fiore, UK actress

Meningitis

Amy Purdy, actress and athlete

Other

Stephen Colbert, TV talk host, “blood poisoning” after burst appendix
Paul Di’Anno, singer
J. Charles Jones, civil rights activist – died
Eli Leon, psychologist, scholar – died
Kyle Lowry, basketball player
Eddie Money, musician (Barrett’s esophagus)
Fernando Valenzuela, former pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers – died
Heather O’Rourke, actress – died
Ignaz Semmelweis, physician who pioneered infection control to reduce postpartum sepsis deaths
Jessye Norman, opera singer – died (following a spinal cord injury)
John McCutcheon, singer (lung infection)
Denis O’Brien, film maker – died
Mel Tillis, singer – died
Marcus “Kutfather” Tufono, DJ – died
Rudolf Valentino, actor – died

Pancreatitis

Robby Steinhart, musician with the band Kansas – died

Peritonitis

Harry Houdini, magician – died

Pneumonia

Marty Allen, comedian – died (reported as pneumonia)
Christian Brando – died
Chuck Brown, singer – died
Fast Eddie Clarke, musician – died
Jeff Conaway, actor – died
Nicole DeHuff, actor – died
R Lee Ermey, actor – died
Ken Flach, professional tennis player – died
Whoopie Goldberg, TV personality
Corey Haim, actor – died
Angelica Hale, singer
Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets – died
Trish Keenan, singer -died
Bernie Mac, actor – died
George Michael, singer
Steve McMichael, former NFL player
Prince Ranier of Monaco, “chest infection” – died
Leslie Nielson, actor – died
William L. O’Neill, historian and author – died
Kim Porter, actress, model – died
Wayne Rogers, actor – died (reported as “complications of pneumonia”)
Lawrence Welk, musician – died

Surgery

Bobby Darin, singer – died
Jamie-Lynn Sigler – actor

Toxic Shock Syndrome

Audrey Leishman, wife of pro golfer Marc Leishman
Alex Smith, professional football player

Unknown

Neil Adams, creator of Batman and the X-Men – died
Muhammad Ali, boxer – died
Joshua Bassett – actor
DuShon Monique Brown, actress – died
George H.W. Bush, former President of the United States
Dennis Caplinger, musician – died
Christopher Cazanove, actor – died
Steve Curry, actor – died
Brian Dennehy, actor – died
Robert L. Drew, Filmmaker and journalist – died
George Genovese, baseball scout – died
Elizabeth Irving, mother to athlete Kyrie Irving – died
Kenny Jönsson, NHL player
Paul Kantner, singer
Larry King, talk show host
Jonathan Koch, film producer
Steve Mackay, musician (the Stooges) – died
Rita McNeil, Canadian singer, possible: “from complications of surgery after a recurrent infection” – died
Burt Metcalfe, TV producer – died
Steven Rumbelow, writer and director – died
Charles L. Schulze, economist – died
David Sherwin, screenwriter – died
Grace Slick, singer, septic shock
Anne Love Smith, mother of actress Julianne Moore – died
Anna Nicole Smith, model – died
Dan Snyder, National Hockey League player – died
Yolanda Sonnabend, theater designer and painter – died
John Vinocur, foreign correspondent, reporter, and editor – died
Deborah Donnelly Wahlberg, sister of actor Mark Wahlberg – died
Dean Winters, actor (bacterial infection)
lke Wyludda, German Olympian
Jay Youngblood (Steven Nicky Romero), professional wrestler -died

Upper Respiratory Infection

Robbie Coltrane, actor – died

UTI

William (Bill) J. Clinton, former President of the United States, due to E. coli
Mariana Bridi Costa, Brazilian model – died
Etta James, singer – died
Pope John-Paul II – died
Tanya Roberts, actress – died

Related Resources

Allison B.

Ten months ago on a Tuesday, I developed what I thought were cold symptoms – a sore throat, low grade fever (100) and a swollen lymph node in my neck. Overall I felt okay, it wasn’t anything too unusual. By Thursday, my lymph node was VERY swollen. I called my doctor’s office, and they gave me some suggestions over the phone to help my throat, etc. Later that night, my fever went up to 103. On Friday, one of the doctors finally agreed I should be seen. He tested me for Covid and flu, but not strep because my throat ... Read Full Story

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Paula Jacobs

After working on development of one of the country’s first electronic sepsis alerts, followed by 18 years of leading teams in early detection and treatment of sepsis, I thought I knew everything there was to know about sepsis. But I did not know how it makes you feel. That all changed in 2016 when I developed severe sepsis after just a couple of days of fever from undiagnosed pneumonia. (Sepsis and Pneumonia) There was no preceding upper respiratory illness, no cough, just fever and extreme fatigue. It was about the sickest I had ever felt, with that vague yet horrible ... Read Full Story

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David Blankenship

My father died tragically and unexpectedly of sepsis on March 5th, 2024. It is now September 15th, yet we all feel like it was yesterday. Mom and Daddy lived in Harlingen, Texas. He struggled with Type 2 diabetes and a few other health issues and was always checking his sugar and blood pressure numbers and diligently recording them. After my father died, I moved back to Harlingen to live with my mother. My sister lives in Colorado. On February 25th, a mere 10 days before Daddy died, Mom was scheduled to perform in a pageant. Daddy was going to help ... Read Full Story

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Gary Barrett

I was a healthy active 49 year old, participating in every sport I could find, after feeling unwell for about 10 days with pain and inflammation I went to the doctors I was told I had just pulled a muscle in my side and not to worry. At 1am I woke my wife up to say I could not stand the pain anymore and needed the hospital. She rushed me there and I collapsed at the entrance. I was unconscious for most of the following day, unaware of that I was losing the battle to live. The doctor, who I ... Read Full Story

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Amanda V.

It was my first week at college, first time ever being away from my parents. It’s supposedly meant to be exciting and fun, right? That’s what I figured, for a perfectly healthy 18-year-old freshman like me. Three days before my first class began, I came down with the highest fever I’ve ever had – a 103 – and no antipyretics I took could break it. I went to the student clinic on day 3 of my illness, and they dismissed it as a mild URI (upper respiratory infection) as my Covid and flu tests came back negative. I thought I’d ... Read Full Story

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Sepsis and Celebrities

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

Related Resources

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