Heart surgeons at Cedars-Sinai sliced through Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s still impressive pecs after a catheter valve replacement procedure led to complications resulting in open heart surgery that lasted several hours.
The 70-year old star and former Governor of California was scheduled to undergo surgery to replace a pulmonic valve that was never intended to be permanent and, 21 years later, has outlasted its life expectancy. But while bits of his heart were on the verge of conking out, the rest of Arnie thankfully wasn’t, with his representative saying that he’s currently recovering from surgery and in stable condition.
Arnold first went under the knife in 1997, with the procedure causing some notoriety at the time because doctors opted to transplant a valve from a pig’s heart. The operation was also Arnold’s decision alone – his family has a history of congenital heart disease and he wanted to undergo surgery sooner rather than later, saying:
“I’ve never felt sick or had any symptoms at all, but I knew I’d have to take care of this condition sooner or later. I said to the doctors, ‘Let’s do it now, while I’m young and healthy.”
I’m glad he’s been proactive with his health, because a world without Arnie doesn’t sound like much fun. Not only is he one of the most iconic actors of the 20th century, but he’s also a fantastic interviewee and dynamite on social media. I briefly met the man a couple of years back and even in his late sixties he’s still impressively enormous, brimming over with charisma and has a handshake like a traction engine.
Right now, Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s currently scheduled to appear in Viy 2: Journey to China (apparently a Russo-Chinese fantasy adventure about an English cartographer) and will apparently be once again reprising his most famous role in an upcoming Terminator sequel. It’s doubtful that those projects will reach the heights of his biggest hits, but I’m just glad he’s still on cinema screens and is doing well after his most recent surgery.