From: Hermit (hidden@lucifer.com)
Date: Sat Aug 16 2003 - 22:38:08 MDT
More Bad News For Alcor
[Hermit] It seems that the modern mummification process, the crypreservation of cadavars is not going to be as successful as the
time-tested Egyptian system, certainly some are saying that the system is not all it is cracked up to be. Argument may be made that
Nearly Headless Ted's head was cracked before Alcor got hold of it.
Source: MSNBC (http://www.msnbc.com/news/951571.asp?0cv=CB20)
Authors: Not Credited
Dated: 2003-08-16
Noticed By: David Lucifer (http://virus.lucifer.com/bbs/index.php?action=viewprofile;user=admin)
Refer Also: Greatest hitter ever deserves better than this (http://www.msnbc.com/news/952169.asp)
A former executive of the cryonics company where the body of Ted Williams is being stored admits he briefly posted a photograph of
the hitting legend's severed head on his Web site this week and asked for "donations" to view it and others, the New York Daily News
reported Saturday.
BUT LARRY JOHNSON, the former chief operating officer of Alcor Life Extension Foundation who blew the whistle on the company over
its treatment of the Hall of Famer's remains, told the Daily News he did so only to draw attention to the plight of Williams'
remains and to help pay his mounting legal bills.
"In retrospect, I regret putting the pictures on the Web site," Johnson told the Daily News on Friday. "There was a series of
photos, but only one was of Ted and that wasn't identified. It was a mistake. But at the time, I wanted to educate the public as to
what goes on at Alcor and what Ted went through, and I was hoping to get some donations to help me out."
Johnson disclosed details of the state of Williams' body in a Sports Illustrated article this week. Johnson said Williams' head was
removed after his death and placed in a nitrogen cylinder. Johnson told the newspaper he came forward because of the horrific
conditions in which Williams' body is stored and the unethical practices of Alcor.
Johnson also told the Daily News he is cooperating with authorities who are investigating Alcor and has received death threats since
the Sports Illustrated article appeared.
"Ever since this broke I've had to move from my home," Johnson told the newspaper. "They (Alcor) let everyone know where I live and
now I'm getting death threats. So I'm doing my Saddam Hussein routine, moving from place to place."
Johnson told the Daily News he could have sold his story, and the photos, to a number of publications but instead chose to disclose
his information to SI because it is a "reputable magazine that has a national circulation that could get the story out there. I got
nothing for it."
The controversy over Williams' remains began after his death in July 2002, when his son, John Henry Williams placed Williams' body
in the Alcor facility against his half-sister's wishes.
The New York Times reported Thursday that Johnson talked of company officials who suggested, perhaps jokingly, that they would ship
the body to his son if he didn't pay what he owes.
"One director said that if John Henry didn't pay, they should ship the body in a cardboard box to him, then to Bobbi-Jo [Williams
Ferrell]," Johnson said.
Johnson said Williams still owes the foundation $111,000, and that the entire preservation process costs $136,000, the New York
Times said.
On Wednesday, an Alcor director disputed claims by Johnson that some of the baseball legend's DNA is missing and that his remains
have been treated poorly.
Johnson told Sports Illustrated that Williams' body was decapitated by surgeons in a procedure called neuroseparation, and both
parts were suspended in liquid nitrogen.
The article, which was on newsstands Wednesday, also said Williams' head was shaved, drilled with holes and accidentally cracked 10
times.
Alcor won't confirm that it is preserving Williams' body, but that was revealed in court documents when his oldest daughter
challenged the decision to take his body to the company.
Paula Lemler, the wife of Alcor President Jerry Lemler, said Wednesday her husband is undergoing chemotherapy treatment and could
not comment, but she said Alcor doesn't take DNA or blood samples.
"If there's something we don't store and don't keep, there's no way we can lose it," added Carlos Mondragon, an Alcor director.
Mondragon noted that decapitation and shaving can be parts of the normal preservation process used by the company, and that the
process normally causes microscopic cracks. He said that drilling holes in a head that is being preserved is also normal, but that
it would be limited to one or two holes.
"We're disputing that any patient was negligently handled," Mondragon said.
Mondragon described Johnson as a disgruntled employee.
Cheryl Spain, a spokeswoman for Sports Illustrated, said the magazine stood by its story.
The article - based on internal documents, e-mails, photographs and tape recordings supplied by Johnson - was another twist in the
strange saga that began after Williams died July 5, 2002, and his body was taken by private jet to Alcor, in the Phoenix suburb of
Scottsdale.
His son John Henry and daughter Claudia maintained they signed a handwritten pact with their father in 2000 agreeing that their
bodies would be frozen.
On Wednesday, investigators in Florida were examining whether the note was forged, and if so, whether a crime was committed, said
Ric Ridgway, chief assistant state attorney in Ocala, Fla.
Daughter Bobby-Jo Ferrell fought bitterly to recover the frozen body, saying Williams wanted to be cremated and have his ashes
spread in the ocean near Key West, Fla. She claimed that her brother planned to sell their father's DNA.
The cryonics procedure cost $136,000, according to Sports Illustrated, which said Alcor claims it is still owed $111,000.
Buzz Hamon, a former director of the Ted Williams Museum in Hernando, Fla., has asked Arizona's attorney general to investigate
Alcor and the condition of Williams' body.
Dianna Jennings, a spokeswoman for the state's attorney general, said the office cannot comment on ongoing investigations.
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