Gary Busey was a Hollywood superstar in the '70s and '80s, starring in hits like Lethal Weapon, Point Break, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. His bizarre behavior over the past 20 years has raised questions about his sanity. Swapping wives with Ted Haggard and rambling incoherently in interviews have led many to wonder if he's lost his grip. A 1988 motorcycle accident that severely injured his head may be to blame. The crash, combined with drug addiction and a near-death experience, has contributed to his eccentric behavior. Gary Busey's tragic story explains his erratic conduct.
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In 1988, the 44-year-old was traveling.Along Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles, he was in a motorcycle accident. His bike hit sand and gravel on the road, and Busey was thrown over the handlebars.The bike threw Busey over the handlebars.Police found no evidence Busey was speeding or another vehicle was involved.
The accident left him with serious head trauma. He fractured his skull when he hit a curb.He fractured his skull when he hit a curb.He needed emergency surgery to relieve pressure on his brain.
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Busey needed two hours of neurosurgery to fix his head trauma. During that time, he briefly died.He briefly died.Doctors revived him. The actor later claimed he went to heaven and saw angels, which appeared as "big balls of light that float and carry nothing but love and warmth."
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The fracture was severe. It did not just crack his skull; it exposed his brain. In an interview with USA Today,USA TodayHe said, “I landed at the feet of a police officer and was rushed to an emergency room with a hole in my head the size of a half dollar.” Police work and medics saved the actor. Any delay in treatment would have likely killed him.
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Busey received a medically induced coma to speed up recovery. The coma lasted four weeks.The coma lasted four weeks in total.His recovery was remarkable. He showed almost no negative physical effects despite severe brain trauma. Five weeks after waking, Busey walked out of the hospital, though he needed months of rest before working again.
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He had no long-term physical problems from the crash.However, the crash seems to have affected his mental health.He did not have long-term physical problems from the crash.Busey appeared onCelebrity RehabHe appeared on Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew in 2008. During the show, he was evaluated by a psychiatrist.A psychiatrist evaluated him.The psychiatrist said Busey's brain injury "took a massive toll on his executive capability," meaning he cannot control and filter his actions properly.
She said brain trauma can cause "a loss of control over impulsive thought and behavior."
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Busey's career suffered by 2000. In 1999, he was arrested for violence toward his wife; he grabbed her shoulders and pushed her down. He was held and released after posting $2,500 bail. He also hit a flight attendant in 1997 when she bumped into him.
He soon gained a reputation for being difficult to work with on film sets. This earned him fewer movie roles; he even kicked a co-star in the stomach.He kicked a co-star in the stomach.He kicked a co-star in the stomach.
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TThe actor remembers little of the accident or his hospital time. He is sure only of passing into a spiritual realm during his coma.Busey stated the incident gave him a permanent link to ametaphysical world, which he compared to asacred, religious experience.
He later said this connection allowed former co-star Patrick Swayze to visit him as a ghost in 2014.Former co-star Patrick Swayze visited him as a ghost in 2014 because of this connection. Patrick Swayze visited him as a ghost in 2014.
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The motorcycle accident gave Busey one positive: it prompted a strengthening of his Christian faith.The accident strengthened Busey's Christian faith.Various interviews with Busey show his faith was what helped him recover.His faith helped him recover faster than expected.He left the hospital faster than expected.He left the hospital alive.He left the hospital alive.After praying in his hospital bed, Busey claimed he felt a white cloak cover him and called that cloak faith.While lying in his hospital bed, Busey prayed. He claimed he felt a white cloak cover him, calling that cloak faith.
He said this was what got him out of the hospital two and a half months early.
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THe wore no helmet during the crash.the actor admittedThat is what happened.the accident did not make him always wear his helmet while riding a motorcycle.Even though he got life-threatening injuries and could have died, he rode his bike without safety gear for a time.He later understood the danger and started wearing a helmet after he saw not wearing one was sinful and stupid and insane.
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He opposed a law making helmets mandatory for motorcyclists.The cruel irony of Busey’s injuries is this.Just a month before, he joined a campaign to stop helmets from becoming mandatory.He worked to stop helmets from becoming mandatory.He worked to stop helmets from becoming mandatory by law in California.California law made helmets mandatory.The actor opposed a law making helmets mandatory for motorcyclists.attended a benefit sponsored by the California Motorcyclist Association.The benefit raised money to pay lobbyists to oppose the helmet bill.
He argued that helmet use should be a rider's choice and that road education issues were more important.He argued helmet use should be a rider's choice; other safety issues, like poor road education, matter more.
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Busey now campaigns for helmet safety.Busey usey.Busey has since changed his mind about helmets.He changed his mind about helmets and their role in rider safety.He reversed his stance on mandatory helmet laws and now actively promotes motorcycle safety.
"I have no tolerance for people who want to ride free in the wind."Busey said...Three years after his accident.. "If you don't wear a helmet, you are not playing with a full deck. When the odds catch up, fate will steal your life and the hearts of those who love you."
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Busey struggled with cocaine for a significant time, which may have changed how his brain worked. The motorcycle accident also explains his erratic behavior.He struggled with cocaine for a significant period, which may have altered his brain function.Cocaine use for a long time may have altered his brain function. The motorcycle accident explains his erratic behavior.Cocaine use explains his often erratic behavior.His cocaine dependence became so strong that he snorted it off his dog at one point.At one point, his cocaine dependence was so strong he snorted it off his dog.The dog rolled in spilled cocaine. Busey spent 25 minutes trying to inhale it with a straw while breathing in dirt, mud, and dog sweat.
Busey overdosed on the drug in 1995 and never used it again. About his addiction, he said:Cocaine was my devil that I danced with. The devil is gone, and now I dance with only angels.
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After Busey's accident, short life, and spiritual awakening, he appeared in the movieQuigleyThis children's movie features him reincarnated as a dog. A set meant to look like heaven showed up. Busey became furious because it did not resemble the heaven he saw after his accident. Busey refused to film that scene.
Co-starCurtis Armstrong recalled the issue.:
"[Busey] appeared on a set designed to look like heaven. He looked around and stated, “I can’t play this scene.” They were three days behind then. But Busey insisted, “It’s nothing like this. I’ve been to heaven and it doesn’t look like this. That sofa is wrong. That mirror is ridiculous. They lack mirrors!” The design of heaven drove him mad.
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