March 17

- British actress Natasha Richardson is in critical condition after she took a nasty tumble, causing serious head injuries, while skiing at a resort near Quebec.



The 45-year-old 'Nell' star and wife of Liam Neeson was brought to a Montreal hospital for treatment on Monday evening, according to reports by PEOPLE, IrishCentral.com, among other media outlets.
A ski patrol source tells TMZ that Richardson was having a private lesson on a beginner slope and fell. Two ski patrollers came to her rescue and said there was no blood and no sign of impact. She got up and said she was fine, smiling and making jokes. The Gazette reports that Richardson was not wearing a ski helmet when she fell.



"She was laughing and joking and she walked to her room on her own," Mont Tremblant spokesperson Catherine Lacasse said.
Skip over this content Over an hour later, Richardson started to complain of a headache and said she didn't feel well. Someone called 911 from the ski resort, and she was taken to the hospital. She was conscious when she left the resort.
A family member confirmed Richardson had had a skiing accident.
"We know that she has had an accident but we really do not know any more details," said Kika Markham, who is married to Richardson's uncle, Corin Redgrave. "We are very concerned."



A source from inside the hospital told IrishCentral.com that Richardson is under constant supervision for a "traumatic brain injury."
Neeson has left the set of the film 'Chloe' in Toronto to be with his wife, a rep for the movie announced on Monday night. "We do not have any details at this time but we hope for the best and our thoughts and prayers are with Natasha and Liam and their family," the statement read.
Richardson won a Tony award in 1998 for her role in 'Cabaret' and has numerous film credits including 'The Parent Trap' with Dennis Quaid, 'Blow Dry' and Ethan Hawke's 'Chelsea Walls.'
She is the daughter of legendary actress Vanessa Redgrave and producer Tony Richardson and has been married to Neeson since 1994. The couple have two sons.


[Edited 3/18/09 17:42pm]

I hope everything turns out alright for her.

I love her!

Reports vary wildly regarding extent of injuries suffered by Natasha Richardson


at 15:30 on March 17, 2009, EDT.
By Tobi Cohen, THE CANADIAN PRESS


MONTREAL - Actress Natasha Richardson's injuries from a fall during a ski lesson at a Quebec resort were described Tuesday as anywhere from minor to life-threatening.

The New York Post said it had learned from friends of the British actress that she was brain dead, but some Hollywood "insider" websites suggested Richardson had swelling of the brain.

A spokeswoman for the Mont Tremblant ski resort said Richardson, 45, was conscious and showed no signs of a serious head injury after she fell on a beginner run on Monday while in the company of an experienced instructor.

Lyne Lortie said the Tony-award-winning actress was in the middle of the private lesson when she suffered what appeared to be a relatively unspectacular fall.

While Richardson seemed fine, the ski patrol wanted to take a closer look so she was taken to the bottom of the hill by sled, Lortie said.

"She showed really no visible sign of injury and she was talking and showed absolutely no sign of confusion," she said.

"It was right in the middle of the slope so she didn't hit anyone or a tree. It was a fall as anyone can do. It wasn't a violent fall at all."

A family member confirmed Richardson had a skiing accident but the extent of her injuries was unclear.

"We know that she has had an accident but we really do not know any more details," said Kika Markham, who is married to Richardson's uncle, Corin Redgrave. "We are very concerned."

Lortie said the ski patrol wanted Richardson to see a doctor but she insisted on returning to her room at Mont Tremblant's Hotel Quintessence.

The ski patrol and instructor stayed with her for about an hour after which she began complaining of a headache and not feeling well.

Lortie said they "immediately" called an ambulance and she was taken to the Centre Hospitalier Laurentian near Mont Tremblant before being transferred to Sacre-Coeur Hospital in Montreal.

The Canadian Press was told initially on Monday that someone with the same name as Richardson was registered at Sacre-Coeur, but employees said later in the day they had no records of someone with that name at the hospital.

On Tuesday, Sacre-Coeur spokeswoman Josee-Michelle Simard said Richardson left the hospital at 12:30 p.m. and was headed out of the country.

She said the family was to release a statement on Wednesday.

Richardson is married to actor Liam Neeson and is the daughter of famous British actress Vanessa Redgrave.

Neeson was reportedly in Toronto at the time of Richardson's accident filming the movie "Chloe" with Julianne Moore.

Producers confirmed that Neeson immediately left the Toronto set upon news of his wife's accident.

Richardson comes from a long line of successful actors. She was born in London to Redgrave and British director Tony Richardson.

Her maternal grandparents were Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson and her uncle Corin and aunt Lynn Redgrave are also both actors. Sister Joely Richardson is also an actress, best known for starring in the TV series "Nip/Tuck."

Richardson trained at London's Central School of Speech and Drama which initially led to a career in regional theatre, then later to film and television roles.

Richardson won a Tony award in 1998 for her turn in "Cabaret." Film credits include "The Parent Trap," "The Handmaid's Tale," "Evening," "Gothic," "A Month in the Country" and "Nell" in which she appeared with Neeson.

In January, Richardson and her mother played the roles of mother and daughter in a one-night benefit concert version of "A Little Night Music," the Stephen Sondheim-Hugh Wheeler musical, at Studio 54 in New York.

Richardson has been married to "Schindler's List" star Neeson since 1994. The couple have two sons.


©The Canadian Press, 2009

The latest news from Access Hollywood is that she is being moved from Montreal back the USA for further treatment, but is still in critical condition.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29733775/

- Ted Casablanca
http://www.eonline.com/ub...rning.html

I hate the rush to news before multiple confirmations. It lends to such disparate info.
[Edited 3/17/09 17:35pm]

hope all is ok. loove her films!

They're moving her back to NYC and taking her off of life support...so I've read...

Very sad..

Lammastide said:

You don't move somebody who's in critical condition.

I hope it isn't true.

sammij said:

seriously??

Ace said:

i was thinking the same thing.

Ace said:

No. No. I'm not talking about the medical attention she's receiving. I'm talking about the rush of news outlets to report. Given the disparate info from various sources, it seems some outlets are forgoing the validity of their sources' claims for expedience. At least for awhile there, someone was wrong.
[Edited 3/17/09 18:55pm]

Lammastide said:

Re: the rush of news outlets to report: always has been; always will.

From what I've read, no one has disputed that she has been flown to NYC. If she were not at least brain-dead, they wouldn't have moved her from Montreal.

Ace said:

Indeed, Ace. I'm speaking somewhat more specifically to her condition prior to the move, vis-a-vis luv4u's posted article.

Of course, this sort of thing does happen all the time. It's nonetheless a disservice where not being "scooped" trumps accuracy.

Lammastide said:

I agree. But, in the words of David Byrne, "Same as it ever was".

Tomorrow never knows, folks. Seize the day.

I thought she was up walking and talking after the accident only complaining of a headache?

Ace said:

I guess.

Somewhat related, have you ever heard about the number of times singer Ben E. King has had to issue statements that he hasn't died? Rookie reporters and their overzealous editors have killed this man over and over. I'm sure it's a joke to King these days, but can you imagine those first couple times hearing, say, your dad or uncle or cousin or best buddy had died... all because some college intern wanted to be first at bearing bad news they hadn't confirmed?

News is big business... and so it's competitive, but real people are effected by this reporting. We learned that in Reporting 101.

...Apparently no one was listening.
[Edited 3/17/09 19:50pm]

Lammastide said:

When I worked in a sprawling suburban metro daily, I had to lobby for prominent coverage of Barry White's death.

The editor who was on duty, eager to show how hip he was and familiar with White's songs, started singing "Me and Mrs. Jones."

You'd be surprised how clueless the media are, most of the time...

And, I hope Richardson makes a speedy recovery.

ThreadBare said:

I ain't saying I definitely would do a better job, but if the kids I sat in classes with are now in positions of leadership in newsrooms, I am not at all shocked at the circus that is news these days.

...But I've jacked the thread. My heart goes out to Richardson's family.

I heard on tonights news that she was braindead.

i feel so bad for her family....life is short....& un-fair

I Pray that she SURVIVES. This is such a TRAGEDY.

Beautiful, classy lady. I pray she pulls through.

Vendetta1 said:

thats what some reports said

There does not appear to be any definitive news yet


March 18 (Bloomberg) -- Actress Natasha Richardson was flown to New York City from Canada yesterday in a serious condition with head injuries suffered in a skiing accident, the New York Times reported, citing two people close to her family.

Richardson’s condition is very serious and her family is highly distressed, the newspaper cited the unidentified people as saying. The plane arrived in New York late yesterday, they said, declining to say where Richardson was being treated.

The 45-year-old actress, married to actor Liam Neeson, is the daughter of Vanessa Redgrave and director Tony Richardson, who died in 1991. Neeson was seen crouched inside an ambulance beside his wife yesterday at Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur in Montreal as she lay wrapped in blankets with tubes around her face, the newspaper said.

There were conflicting reports about Richardson’s medical condition yesterday, and by evening, the nature and gravity of her condition couldn’t be officially confirmed, according to the NYT. United Press International earlier said the actress died, citing a report on OK Magazine’s Web site.

Redgrave was seen walking into New York’s Lenox Hill Hospital wearing a scarf and looking somber at 8:40 p.m. yesterday, the NYT said. The hospital said it wasn’t treating any patients with the last name “Richardson” and an after business- hours voicemail left by Bloomberg News with Neeson’s agent, Alan Nierob, wasn’t returned.

Richardson was taking a lesson on a beginner’s slope when she fell at about 3 p.m. two days ago. Her instructor called the ski patrol, which came to Richardson’s aid, said Catherine Lacasse, the public relations supervisor for Mont Tremblant Resorts.

“She was awake and alive and laughing and breathing,” Lacasse said. “She refused to see a doctor. She said she was fine and everything was OK.”

When she started having headaches about an hour later, Richardson was taken by ambulance to a hospital about 20 minutes from the resort, the NYT said.

The U.K.-born Richardson has appeared in films such as “The Parent Trap,” “Patty Hearst” and “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Richardson won a Tony Award in 1998 for her role in the Broadway musical “Cabaret.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Heath in Sydney at mheath1@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: March 18, 2009 00:49 EDT

This shit is crazy - to have things take such a sudden turn

I hope she makes it, some reports say she's brain dead



,
[Edited 3/18/09 1:21am]

CalhounSq said:

My goodness! Oh this is so sad. My thoughts and prayers go out to her, her friends, and family.

I do not want to scare anyone, but I had friends whose daughter died after a similar accident. It is the only funeral for a child I have ever had to attend. It's the only child I have ever known dying.

What happened was the little girl went down a slide head first, hitting her head. She was stunned, but not unconscious, so my friend (the mother) didn't see any reason to take her to hospital.

Well..what happened was the little girl develop symptoms later that night. And they took her to the emergency room, but she died later. Of course, they wished they had taken her after the accident happened, but they had no clue the injury was as serious.