X-Message-Number: 60
From: Kevin Q. Brown
Subject: Morton Downey cryonics show 
Date: 9 Feb 1989

The Morton Downey, Jr. show, which is a nationally syndicated program broadcast
to 80% of the people in the country, taped a program on cryonics Mon. Feb. 6.
The air time will be about two weeks after the taping.  The show featured
Dr. Avi Ben-Abraham (Chairman of the American Cryonic Society), Gerard Arthus
and Philip Kirschner (members of the Cryonic Society of New York and also
suspension members of ALCOR), Irving Rand (of the Cryonics Coordinators of
America, which provides life insurance for ACS members), Father James Labar,
and the Medical Examiner of Bergen County, NJ (whose name I did not get).
I was in the audience but did not take advantage of the opportunity to be a
"loudmouth".  What follows is my best recollection of what happened.

Most members of the audience did not know the topic of the program until
shortly before the taping of the show.  Some, however, had received the word

sufficiently in advance to make a sign reading "Freeze Dry Coffee - Not People".
The prospects looked ominous when the prep man introduced the topic:
  "Here is a man who wants his head cut off and frozen so that he can come
  back to life in 100 years.  Do you believe it?"
(Audience: snort, snort, guffaw, howl, grunt)  Then a pre-taped introduction
played on the monitor.  Morton Downey was dressed in a butcher's apron amongst
several carcasses in a meat locker telling people about cryonics.

The rules for success in talk shows are not the same as the rules for success
in academic circles and the rules for success on the Morton Downey show are
even less academic.  It is conducted more like a raucus party than a forum for

intelligent conversation.  In general you need to be both fast and loud.  If you
cannot get your point across in ten words or less, forget it; someone will
interrupt and the topic of conversation will shift to something else.
Amazingly, though, Ben-Abraham at times got a full minute to speak without
interruption.

Morton Downey asked a few pointed questions, as he should, but it was only the
audience that wanted blood.  I think that the highly-credentialed Ben-
Abraham made a big difference.  The audience got to hear impressive things
about him; he was the world's youngest doctor doing open heart surgery by the
age of 16 and was also nominated for a Nobel Prize.  (That has to be somewhat
intimidating.)  But he also keeps his cool under fire, is politically astute
and a capable BSer, has an understandable yet foreign accent, and can wear a
suit.  (Remember, we are talking about Show Biz here!)

Father Labar was asked what problems might arise concerning the soul if
cryonics brings back someone who was dead.  He replied that the soul would
come back to the body and did not seem particularly disturbed about it.  He
said that people who "die" in surgery and yet come back do not have problems
losing their souls.  The Medical Examiner was skeptical about cryonics and
wanted details but was unable to deliver any crushing blows to the cryonicist's
arguments.  He even (unintentionally) helped give a good advertisement for
Saul Kent's vitamins (Life Extension Mix) when he checked out, and found
acceptable, the contents of Phil Kirschner's bottle of it.  Arthus, who is
quite tall, was questioned about his choice of neuro preservation rather than
whole-body, while members of the audience shouted "Lurch Lurch" and hummed the
theme song of the Alfred Hitchcock show.  The show ended rather upbeat.
Morton Downey said that he wants to come back in two hundred years so that
he can see his AUDIENCE!

Considering how serious cryonics is (life vs. death), is a rowdy party
(such as the Morton Downey show) an appropriate forum for presenting it?
You will have to judge that for yourself.  I can, however, point to some
definite accomplishments.  First, it presented the notion of cryonic suspension
to a national audience and managed to do so without the cryonicists being
dismissed as kooks.  (On the Morton Downey show yet!)  Since the public
perception of cryonics influences our legal and political climate which
greatly affects the ability of cryonics organizations to successfully do
cryonic suspensions, consciousness raising and educational efforts to reduce
the public's ignorance about cryonics and general death-oid orientation will
always be valuable.  This was not the first nationwide show on cryonics nor
will it be the last.

This show also gave practice in media exposure to the cryonicists on stage and
at the "loudmouth" stations.  Furthermore, since the show will be televised,
they will get excellent video feedback on their performance, which will be
useful for future presentations.  And there may indeed be future appearances
on other television talk shows.  The producers of these shows do not live in a
vacuum; successful appearance on one show often leads to an appearance on other
shows.

                                       - Kevin Q. Brown
                                       ...att!ho4cad!kqb
                                       

PS: I was surprised by what was NOT said.  I do not recall the Dora Kent case
    even being mentioned.  Also, nobody claimed to know about ALCOR's recent
    suspension of Dick Clair Jones ("John Roe") when Downey started fishing
    for it.  Finally, this program showed (to the cryonics community) some
    cooperation among ALCOR and ACS members because the members of both ALCOR

    and ACS must have bit their tongues on several occasions where they normally
        would express differences of opinion.

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