I had just concluded hosting the West Coast edition of the Grammy LiveClack, and was diddling around late Sunday evening glancing up occasionally at the television set, when I witnessed this.
I wondered about it briefly after seeing it but I didn’t pay it much mind, thinking it was merely a huge, live reporter’s glitch. I even mentally asked myself if I had truly witnessed it at all, thinking for a moment it may have just been a result of the late hour and the very long day. Or was it something else entirely?
As it turned out, there was more to it than I realized.
Quite a few things happened over the weekend besides the Grammys. It just wasn’t all about Lady Gaga’s grand emergence from her egg, or Lady Antebellum’s glum and boring win, or Bob Dylan’s sandpaper growling during his performance in the telecast.
Life, you see, has the tendency to sneak in and rear its head when you least expect it.
And the incident played out in the above link should make us all step back for a moment, count our blessings, and give pause to what we do and how we do it … no matter who we are or what we believe in.
Clacked by Michael Noble 
on Feb 15, 2011 @ 18:15 EST5EDT
Late night shows were making fun of it, and when they showed it the first thing I thought is she had a stroke.
If that happened to me I would go to the hospital and get that pill that helps with strokes, but only within 5 or so hours of the stroke. It was either a stroke or other brain related thing or she was drunk. I can’t believe no one at CBS was smart enough to realize she needed to go to the hospital!
@Oreo from what I’ve read, they did send her to the hospital right away. Surprisingly, her tests came back perfectly normal. I can only hope this was some bizarre transient event, rather than a serious health issue.
I was glad to see that, upon medical examination, she turned out to be ok. After watching it a few times & looking for various clues as to what had happened, what struck me was what I interpreted as her quickly building terror. Not that she had flubbed badly, but that she was no longer in control of her faculties. Specifically, what was coming out of her mouth.
I can only imagine how terrible that sensation must be.
I think it was Gawker (or Deadspin) that ran a post the day after her tests came back clean that, because she checked out OK, it was fine to laugh at her.
I almost threw something at my screen before I remembered it was my screen.
Jerks.
Glad she’s okay. Someone has already done an auto-tune version of it on YouTube!
I saw a Dr. mentioning that perhaps it had something to do w/ constricted blood flow to the brain, like a severe migraine.
I’m sure with all the attention her doctor(s) will find and answer for her!
Which is kind of a Stroke-lite. I think, technically, a stroke is a stoppage of flow to the brain. So, it is in the same ballpark of not-gooded-ness.
It was a migraine.
https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2011/02/17/serene-branson-talks-about-her-live-medical-emergency/
Truthfully, I’m more worried about the poor CBS reporter. https://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/02/15/60minutes/main20032070.shtml?tag=exclsv
I never wish hell on anyone, but in this case, I probably can make the exception. Whatever they did to her will be waiting for them for eternity.
Want to make yourself REAL sick to your stomach?
https://nation.foxnews.com/twitter/2011/02/15/despicable-nyu-fellow-attacks-lara-logan-war-monger-after-sexual-assault
Yup, good thing my trash can was handy. Shocking. Vile. I don’t know anything about this poor gal. I don’t care if she was a warmonger, or a code pink supporter, no one deserves that, no one. I can’t stop thinking about her. It breaks my heart.
Glad you wrote this post, Michael. I was thinking about this all day yesterday.
Well, it is a sad thing that late night shows would make fun of her. But then, Conan O’Brien has recently dressed puppies in “sexy” lingerie, complete with falsies< and put them on his show.
I am really impressed with her composure. I think I would probably have become extremely and visibly distressed the second I was aware that my speech synapses were misfiring! She kept her cool and made it through. And I hope she will be all right.
*POST AUTHOR*
. . . . .
And therein lies the kicker, Mr. Constant:
Depending on what the situation is, you might realize what’s going on and be able to do something about it … you might realize what’s going on and not be able to do something about it … you might be so discombobulated as to not realize what’s going on at all … et cetera, et cetera.
One would hope you’re not put in this position at all. But – as stated – Life happens, good, bad or indifferent. And sometimes at the most inconvenient of times …
Her composure was such she seemed to be cognizant of the situation, fortunate for her.
Thank you for commenting!