X-Message-Number: 150
From att!osu-cis!compuserve.com!72320.1642 Mon Jan  8 03:10:28 1990
Received: by saqqara.cis.ohio-state.edu (5.61/4.891221)
	id AA23669; Mon, 8 Jan 90 03:10:25 -0500
Date: 08 Jan 90 02:37:57 EST
From: STEVE BRIDGE <>
To: KEVIN <>
Subject: CRYONICS ON L.A. LAW
Message-Id: <"900108073756 72320.1642 EHI28-1"@CompuServe.COM>

CRYONICS ON L.A. LAW
From: Steve Bridge, 
1-8-90

Did you see L.A. Law Thursday night?  Cryonics was the featured story and
it was very well done -- probably the best fictional presentation of
cryonics ever done.  The program was about a young woman (beautiful and 
articulate, of course) who had terminal brain cancer.  She wanted the 
court to give her permission to undergo suspension before waiting for 
legal death -- by which time her brain would be nonexistent.  After a lot 
of emotional arguments, legal wangling, and some excellent scientific 
testimony, the judge told her that to grant her plea would be to give her 
the right to have someone aid in her suicide, which is specifically for-
bidden under California law.  However, he said that he believed that 
law to be unconstitutional, and that was to be the basis of his
decision.  She had to be suspended that night, however, because the 
prosecution was going to file an appeal the next morning.

If you didn't see it, I hope you can find a tape to watch.  The reaction
around my friends was startling.  Six different people who have avoided
the topic of cryonics whenever they were around me suddenly asked me
serious questions about it and wanted to have a real conversation on
the subject.  This may turn out to be the most important publicity
cryonics has ever had.  L.A. Law is one of the most watched shows on
television and is watched by a very high percentage of educated viewers.

I was especially pleased by the acting in the show.  Each pro-cryonics
character made his or her plea from the heart, not from a text book.
And yet the information was all there, condensed of course, but accurate.
I have talked with Alcor's President, Carlos Mondragon, about the show, 
and they are all overwhelmed at the quality of the show.  They have gotten
many phone calls both from members and from people who had only been sent 
information.  No new calls for information yet, but it still will take
some work for people to track down the cryonics organizations.  No group
was specifically named in the program.

Incidentally, in case you are asked, Alcor was a technical consultant 
(uncredited) for the show.  Carlos Mondragon, Jerry Leaf, and attorney
Chris Ashworth spent many hours in conversation with writers and 
producers, and Alcor shipped them mountains of material --which they 
apparently read! 

If you missed this, watch for reruns this spring or summer.

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