poetrychic

JACKSON, Miss. - Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman was in a hospital in Memphis, Tenn., on Monday after being injured in a car accident in Mississippi.
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Regional Medical Center spokeswoman Kathy Stringer said Freeman, 71, is in serious condition. The hospital is about 90 miles north of the accident scene in rural Tallahatchie County in the Mississippi Delta.

Mississippi Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Ben Williams confirmed Freeman was in a wreck shortly before midnight Sunday, but said he was still gathering information and had few details Monday.

Clay McFerrin, editor of Sun Sentinel in Charleston, said he arrived at the accident scene on Mississippi Highway 32 soon after it happened about 4 miles west of Charleston, not far from where Freeman owns a home with his wife.

McFerrin said it appeared that Freeman's car was airborne went it left the highway and landed in a ditch.

"They had to use the jaws of life to extract him from the vehicle," McFerrin said. "He was lucid, conscious. He was talking, joking with some of the rescue workers at one point."

McFerrin said bystanders converged on the scene trying to get a glimpse of the actor.

When one person tried to snap a photo with a cell phone camera, Freeman joked, "no freebies, no freebies," McFerrin said.

Freeman won an Oscar for his role in "Million Dollar Baby." His screen credits also include "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Driving Miss Daisy."

The hospital where Freeman is being treated is commonly known as The Med, and is an acute-care teaching facility that serves patients within 150 miles of Memphis.

Morgan Freeman injured in car accident in Miss. - Yahoo! News

good that he was lucid and joking, i hope he remains stable and gets well soon...i really like him and even though the death of an old man is never really a tragedy, it would still make me sad to see him go...he's a real class act and one helluva actor....

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HarperLee

I love Morgan Freeman. Just watched Nurse Betty for the tenth
time recently.

The fact that he was joking at the scene is promising.

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gonzo

They sure are being tight with the details of his condition. The words "air evac'd" and "serious condition" snapped me to hoping it really isn't as serious as the media is playing it, although they don't usually bring the chopper in unless it's life threatening. (Or at least that was my experience with calling Bayflight for my units back in Tampa Bay.)

I hope he's ok. I am a huge fan of Mr. Freeman.

ibex

Anything can happen. I agree completely that the fact that he was luicd and conscious is good, but I heard a first hand account of comedian Sam Kinnison's death from his own brother years later. Kinnison had just completed rehab and was on the road being driven by his brother/manager when they were struck by a drunk driver. The brother said they were both bruised and bloody but Sam was conscious, standing up and walking around for several minutes before he collapsed and died on the spot, probably from internal injuries. Freeman is a great actor and was perfectly cast in "Gone Baby Gone." I hope he recovers fully and soon.

anhailla

Oh no!

It is a good sign that he was talking directly after...that indicates at least, an absence of a serious head injury.

"serious" is also a better sign than "critical", a helicopter would not be unusual in an accident where extraction is difficult. Morgan Freeman has to be one of the greatest living actors and seems like just a great person in general.

sigh...I wish we had more information, this is upsetting.

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HarperLee

From Guardian UK atory an hour ago:

Bill Luckett, a friend of the actor and co-owner of Freeman's restaurant, Madidi, said he was sitting up and talking at the hospital.

__________________
Oliver Stone on George W. Bush: "the banality of evil"

http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

anhailla

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!

__________________
...either I go, or that wallpaper does.

Oscar Wilde

HarperLee

Good news!

Morgan Freeman hospitalized after car wreck - CNN.com

__________________
Oliver Stone on George W. Bush: "the banality of evil"

http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

MintJulep

Whew! That's good news^ Just a few broken bones...

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gonzo

Minty, read between the lines there. They are being super careful on how they words things. He's still listed in serious condition, so it seems odd they wouldn't upgrade him if all he had was a broken arm, broken elbow and minor shoulder damage? He's scheduled for surgery. He's a very private individual, so we may never know? The car he was in flipped several times.

I wish him the best and a speedy recovery.