March 26: Teddy Pendergrass (b. 1950)

R&B singer Teddy Pendergrass, born on this date, was paralyzed in a car accident in Philadelphia in March 1982. Two years ago, he celebrated the 25th anniversary of his survival with an all-star concert, and gave this interview in connection with the publicity surrounding that:



I don't have a full transcript, but the passage that interested me most starts around 3:00, where Pendergrass talks about not emphasizing the "cure" goal--instead, he says:

"I feel obligated to help those with spinal cord injuries realize their life's ambitions and be able to live life as independently and productively as possible, through education and employment opportunities.... I don't want to foster cure. I don't think that's a real thing to foster. For me, I'd rather foster and emphasize quality of life. I think that's more important.... research is important, [but] what do we do in the meantime?... I will never step up and step on the cure bandwagon, I'd rather be realistic, I'd rather live life the way life goes."

(The interviewer seemed to expect a different answer to his question about celebrity advocacy.)