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 January 21, 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)
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

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
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

Chelsey M.

On 9-3-21, after dealing with a Bartholin’s cyst that had turned into an abscess and was not responsive to conservative treatment, I went to the emergency room in 10/10 pain. My vitals were well out of range and the ER doctor lanced and drained the abscess and placed a Word catheter. My vitals were never checked again and no labs were drawn, despite my racing pulse and high blood pressure. (Sepsis and Bacterial Infections) I thought that I felt better and went home to rest. I woke up about 6 hours later and decided to get into the shower. Immediately, ... Read Full Story

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Jean Kestner

On July 11, 2015, I felt “off” – like I had an intestinal bug. I went to bed that evening and have little memory of anything else until four days later. My husband called the paramedics early the next morning when he spoke to me and I responded with gibberish. At one point after I had been in the ER for several hours, the doctors asked if I had a living will as my BP had flat-lined. I was taken to CCU in critical condition with a dx of septic shock. (Sepsis and Septic Shock) I made it through the ... Read Full Story

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Elizabeth B.

I was diagnosed with sepsis along with Strep A and toxic shock two days after giving birth to my beautiful daughter. (Sepsis and Group A Streptococcus, Sepsis and Toxic Shock Syndrome, Sepsis and Pregnancy & Childbirth) I was sent to the ER in Dallas, Texas, where I was intubated and in a medically induced coma for 8 days. I had an infection in my vagina that came from birth, resulting in five surgeries later to finally contain the infection. I was on continuous dialysis for 5 days and 3 days of intermittent dialysis. Due to the pressers I was on ... Read Full Story

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Matthew M.

I had kidney pain for many months and ignored it and liver problems, which I had cured. I eventually lost my mind and wandered away from my home because I saw people outside it was 3 am. My wife called the police and they found me and called EMS. At the ER I was found to be in septic shock and put into a coma, which to me was unnecessary. (Sepsis and Septic Shock) I had 4 organ failures and my wife was told probably I would die. I didn’t but fear I have sepsis again. People don’t ignore your ... Read Full Story

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Anne Packard

I never knew what sepsis was before this experience. In March 2020 when the Covid19 pandemic had just begun here in the United States, I was treated at home for other reasons, with an IV infusion, After the treatment I began to shiver and shake. My temperature rose to over 100 degrees. We thought it was due to a bacterial infection that entered my blood through the IV drip. (Sepsis and Invasive Devices) I called my doctor who advised me to stay put and he would come to me, as going to a hospital at that time posed a high ... Read Full Story

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Sepsis and Celebrities

Likely Sepsis Cases By Illness:

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