Chevy Chase came “back from the dead” after suffering heart failure. The 82-year-old comedian spent five weeks in hospital due to heart issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the extent of his health problems has now been revealed for the first time.
Speaking in the new documentary, I’m Chevy Chase, and You’re Not, his daughter Caley Chase explained: “He has basically come back from the dead. He had heart failure.” His wife, Jayni Chase, added, “Something was wrong, and he couldn’t explain to me what was wrong. So, we go to the ER. His heart stops. During those years he was drinking, he got cardiomyopathy; when the heart muscles get weaker, and they can’t pump as much blood out with each beat.”
Chevy’s friend, Peter Aaron, revealed Chevy’s loved ones were told to “prepare for the worst” as he battled heart failure, which can be caused by cardiomyopathy. He said, “They decided to put him into a coma for maybe eight days. That’s pretty rough on the body.”
Caley added, “The doctor had warned us: ‘We might not get him back. We don’t know how present he’ll be. Prepare yourselves for the worst.’ He woke up, all he could do was use his voice.”
But Caley knew her comedian dad and star of the Vacation movies was on the mend when he started cracking jokes with a nurse who came in to rearrange some medical equipment. “She said, ‘I’m going to have to put this in here.’ And he said, ‘That’s what she said.’”
However, it wasn’t an easy recovery, and Peter revealed Chevy had some “cognitive disability,” and it took a while for him to “reorient himself” after the coma. He went on, “I feel like his memory gaps come from that incident.”
The legendary Saturday Night Live star agreed, saying, “According to the doctors, my memory would be shot from it. That’s what’s happened here. Heart failure is what it is. I’m fine now. It’s just that it affects your memory, the doctors have told me that. So, I have to be reminded of things.”
I’m Chevy Chase And You’re Not premieres New Year’s Day on CNN and streams nethe xt day on the CNN app. Watch the trailer below:
REELated:
Christopher Nolan sets sail with The Odyssey, a mythic IMAX epic
