14 DAY TRIAL // There’s a saying that goes something along the lines of “it’s always best to be prepared (for the worst).” That’s probably what one editor over at celebrity publication People Magazine thought too, when they drew up the obituary of legendary icon Kirk Douglas, father of Michael Douglas.
The obituary was never meant to be published online or in print, and proof of that is in the fact that its headline comes with the warning “DO NOT PUB” in all caps. Someone either didn’t understand what that meant or they didn’t see it, because the obituary ended up online.
Thank the powers that be for social media, because we have actual proof of this huge faux-pas.
Kirk Douglas isn’t dead but he is somewhat amused
Some people would probably find offense with this mishap, but not Kirk Douglas. “The announcement of my death is premature,” he tells USA TODAY in a statement, adding, “I'm looking forward to turning 98 next week.”
The fact that the obituary came just one week before his birthday could have been even more offensive, because it shows that some people, this celebrity publication in particular, is waiting for him to die any day now.
And they want to be the first to run the news, hence the need to have the obituary prepared.
“Kirk Douglas, one of the few genuine box-office names to emerge just as TV was overtaking American culture in the years right after World War II, died TK TK TK. He was 97 (DOB 12/9/1916) and had been in good health despite having suffered a debilitating 1996 stroke that rendered his speech difficult,” the text read.
Well, they didn’t even count on him making it past his 97th birthday. Useless to say, someone at People must have gotten a pink slip already for this.
Offensive mishap, but not something new
This might be People’s biggest snafu in a while and it’s definitely a potentially offensive one, but the reality is that having obituaries ready “just in case” isn’t as uncommon as we’d probably like to believe.
In 2008, Bloomberg published a 15-page obituary for Apple boss Steve Jobs as reports of his failing health had started spreading at an alarming rate. Of course, they pulled it immediately, but not before it had been screencapped and shared online.
In 2003, CNN accidentally published premature obituaries for Dick Cheney, Roland Reagan, Fidel Castro, Bob Hope, Pope John Paul II, Nelson Mandela, and Gerald R. Ford. George W. Bush was “killed” in 2009 by a South African publication, while Sharon Osbourne lost the battle with colon cancer in 2004, as per ABC News.
Premature obituaries might seem like a twisted attempt to be the first to break the news, but they’re real. And occasionally, we get to see them too.
Kirk Douglas: not dead yet, but @peoplemag must think he’s close http://t.co/uh9tGjbpxa pic.twitter.com/Ej1UXBWIaE
— Evan Smith (@evanasmith) December 1, 2014
