Meet the super doctor who treated 'Superman'

(JNS) - Although American actor Christopher Reeve sustained a life-altering injury that left him paralyzed below the neck, the actor maintained his positive morale and unselfishness, according to Dr. Steven Kirshblum, who is featured in the new documentary film "Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story," out in theaters nationwide.

Initially after a fall from his horse at an equestrian competition in Virginia on May 27, 1995, Reeve asked his wife, Dana, if they should let him go. But she told him that as a husband and father - he had two children, Matthew and Alexandra, from prior marriages and a son with her, Will - she said that she loved him for who he was, and so he decided to fight as best he could to recuperate.

Once stable, he went to the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, N.J., where he often worked with Kirshblum, who serves as chief medical officer there. The doctor said they developed a good relationship to the point that Reeve sometimes joked with him, reminding him that as an Orthodox Jew, he needed to get home before sundown on Fridays.

Kirshblum was later surprised when Reeve once showed up at his synagogue, Ahavas Achim B'Nai Jacob & David, in West Orange, N.J.

"I was being honored for my work that was not medical, and he found out about it," Kirshblum told JNS. "He didn't find out from me. He called and asked how there could be a dinner where I'm honored and he's not invited. Unbeknownst to me, he and his wife came to a local shul dinner. This was a small event, and it was amazing that he showed up."

Reeve reached superstardom in 1978 when the "Superman" movie became an instant blockbuster, critically and commercially. Almost overnight, he became a sex symbol for playing the man of steel and bespectacled reporter Clark Kent. Due to changes in cinematography, it was also the first time that an audience could see a character appear to be credibly flying in a movie.

He went on to make three sequels: "Superman II," "Superman III" and "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace," as well as direct other works. All four performances garnered him a Saturn Award nomination for best actor.

'The pressure of getting back'

The 6-foot, 4-inch-tall Reeve landed on his head after he fell from his horse, permanently damaging his spinal cord. At age 42, he became paralyzed from the neck down and needed a ventilator to breathe.

Kirshblum stated that anyone who suffers a severe spinal-cord injury and paralysis faces immense challenges and that Reeve showed great determination.

"With everybody, famous or not, there's the pressure of getting back to your family, back to your community, back to work. It's never something a physician or a psychologist will say directly that will magically help," he told JNS. "It's the combination of working with that person's strength and their family, and a need to let them see that there is something more that they can accomplish."

As he did his exercises, which took most of his day, and worked as best he could to recover his strength, Reeve also spoke to other patients and inspired them, according to the doctor.

After years of rehabilitation, Reeve returned to acting in a television remake of "Rear Window" in 1998 and the "Brook Ellison Story" in 2004.

He also became an activist for those with disabilities and for stem-cell research, raising money through the Christopher Foundation, later renamed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. All three of his children are board members.

Reeve died on Oct. 10, 2004, at the age of 52. Despite not being a smoker, his wife died of lung cancer two years later, in 2006, at the age of 44. Their son, now 32 and also 6-foot-4, is an actor and producer.

'Treating everyone as individuals'

Kirshblum said Reeve left an indelible mark by deciding to be an activist and to stay in celebrity society, punctuated by his surprise appearance at the 1996 Academy Awards ceremony.

"He made being disabled something that you could respect. People who were disabled, particularly in the 1980s and '90s, were embarrassed. People were afraid to go out in public," Kirshblum explained. "By being able to not be a hermit and getting out there and going to award shows or being in the political process, he showed you don't have to hide when you're disabled. You can still be funny. You can still be involved. The psychological impact that he had was dramatic in terms of changing the thinking of the public."

Kirshblum said he once asked a journalist who came to interview Reeve how it was that his story stayed in the media and was not forgotten.

"He said he was known as one of the good guys," recounted the doctor. "If there was a talk show that needed a guest at the last minute, he never gave them a hard time about why he wasn't the first choice to begin with. He was always willing to help."

Kirshblum, who said he was one of the first students of the Frisch School in Paramus, N.J., had a grandfather who was a prominent rabbi.

"He initially thought I would go into the rabbinate, but I told him I wanted to go into medicine," said Kirshblum. "He said 'the world doesn't need another cardiologist. There are many people who aren't being cared for, so find a specialty where you can help people who otherwise aren't being helped.'

"So, when I went to medical school, I looked for something that would make him proud. I came across the field of rehabilitation and saw it was a field where people were not being helped as much as they could. Spinal-cord injury is such a unique injury that can affect anyone and comes with a lot of complications."

Kirshblum said the lesson of the Reeves and the film is that perceptions can be changed, as so many people were stunned that the man they saw fly could no longer walk.

"I think the importance of treating everyone as individuals, regardless of whether they have a disability, is critical," he said. "People with disabilities are people first, and we should recognize people for what they can do as opposed to what they can't do."

Of the documentary, he stated that he hopes it "reinforces and brings back the memory of not only a person who was a unique individual but influences how we treat those who are disabled."