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> “Like so many other things in life, you solve a problem and go on to the next thing,” he said in a telephone interview for this obituary from his home in Jack
by mysterypie 9y ago
> “Like so many other things in life, you solve a problem and go on to the next thing,” he said in a telephone interview for this obituary from his home in Jacksonville in 2014.*
So the New York Times calls up old people to prepare for their eventual obituaries? Do they tell them the true purpose of the call or do they pretend that it's background for some other story? I'm aware that they write draft obituaries on people who might pass away, but to actually phone them for pre-death interviews seems a bit macabre.
- dbcurtis 9y agoSo, how are you feeling? Great? OK, I'll call back at a better time......
- pizza 9y agoSounds like the recent movie The Last Word - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5023260/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5023260/
- majormajor 9y agoIt sounds reasonable. Like with the rest of end-of-life planning, when it becomes an increasingly likely option, you come to terms with facing it. It's no more macabre than writing a will, designating a power of attorney, thinking about if you'd want to be on life support, etc.
- gregschlom 9y agoYes, all major publications do that, so that they have the article ready when the time comes. Also, it must be pretty flattering to know that some major newspaper will publish an obituary for you.
- tryingagainbro 9y agoThey have obits for most famous people ready to go probably. if you're 90 and someone thinks that you may die soon, you can get mad but .... Interesting reading here meanwhile, you go in there even after the explosion, which makes sense given the name but I didn't know: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallout_shelter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallout_shelter "A fallout shelter is designed to allow its occupants to minimize exposure to harmful fallout until radioactivity has decayed to a safer level."
- astura 9y agoNot any more "macabre" than, say, writing a will. Not any more macabre than talking to Mom about getting an advance directive. The guy was 92 when they called him. If you're 92 you should be doing some end of life planning.
- melling 9y agoYeah, and then get on with your life: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/opinion/sunday/jimmy-carter-lusts-trump-posting.html https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/opinion/sunday/jimmy-cart... https://www.axios.com/trump-talks-north-korea-with-henry-kissinger-2495221440.html https://www.axios.com/trump-talks-north-korea-with-henry-kis...
- astura 9y agoWhat exactly is your point here? I didn't say "you're 92, time to lay down in bed to die." Kissinger and Carter probably have done some end of life planning, especially Carter who had brain cancer a couple years ago.
- melling 9y agoThe average American male dies at 76. You should probably have done your end of life planning several decades before your 90’s. http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/12/08/504667607/life-expectancy-in-u-s-drops-for-first-time-in-decades-report-finds http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/12/08/50466760... Of course average means a fair number will die before 76. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/03/former-intel-ceo-paul-otellini-dies-age-66.html https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/03/former-intel-ceo-paul-otelli... http://deadline.com/2017/03/bill-paxton-dies-obituary-twister-big-love-1201999634/ http://deadline.com/2017/03/bill-paxton-dies-obituary-twiste...
- schoen 9y agoIt seems like you two are actually in profound agreement.
- 9y ago
- smacktoward 9y ago> to actually phone them for pre-death interviews seems a bit macabre I would take it as the opposite: if you get that call, it means you lived a life notable enough to merit an obit in the New York Times. That's actually pretty flattering!