Kathleen Turner, the celebrated actress famous for her roles in *Body Heat* and *Romancing the Stone*, has recently raised concerns about her health following a public appearance in New York City.
The 70-year-old was seen using a wheelchair and a cane during her outing, which took place in Manhattan. She was dressed casually in a black shirt, black pants, a gray sweater, and black sneakers. Initially, she used a cane as she got out of a vehicle and entered an office building. However, when she left, she was in a wheelchair, leading to worries about her well-being.
This sighting comes after a recent incident where Turner had to leave the stage during a performance of *A Little Night Music* due to feeling unwell. This raised further questions about her health, especially given her long history of serious health issues.
Turner has been candid about her battle with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease that affects the joints and can cause severe pain. She was diagnosed during the height of her career in the early 1990s, and the illness has significantly impacted her life.
In earlier interviews, she described the severity of her symptoms while filming the 1994 film *Serial Mom*, explaining that her feet swelled to the point where she couldn’t fit into her shoes. “I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t hold a glass,” she shared. “The only way I could go up and down stairs was on my butt, pushing myself. The pain is very bad because there’s no way to sit, lie, or stand that allows you to escape it.”
Turner noted that while her condition is not life-threatening, it severely diminishes her quality of life. She turned to alcohol as a way to cope with her pain, believing it was a safer option than pain medication. “It was incredibly stupid,” she reflected, realizing later that drinking was taking away precious moments with her family. She eventually checked into rehab in 2002 and now only enjoys a cocktail occasionally.
Despite her chronic pain and the challenges of her condition, Turner has continued to work in Hollywood, albeit with fewer leading roles. She recognizes that she needs to adjust her career to manage her health better.
Turner reflected on the challenges of living with rheumatoid arthritis, but she emphasized her determination to keep going. “Yeah, but I wouldn’t accept it. I am a very stubborn woman,” she said.
She shared that she regained her strength, stating, “I got back to full strength, as full as I would ever be again. They told me I would be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. Now, that was almost 30 years ago. And I look at what I’ve done in 30 years and I think: ‘Well, go to hell!’”
Despite her ongoing health issues, Turner’s fighting spirit has kept her active in film and theater. However, her recent appearances, along with her need for mobility aids, have led to increased public concern about her health.
Fans are undoubtedly hoping that the beloved actress, who has been open about her health struggles and her past with alcohol abuse, will continue to tackle her challenges with the same resilience and strength she has shown throughout her career.
What Happened to Zac Efron: He Changed His Lifestyle and Now Calls a Different Country “Home”
Zac Efron has been traveling around the world frequently since he shot to fame, both for work and leisure. Still, he kept living in California, where he was born and raised. However, it all suddenly changed after he chose to spend some time abroad and he realized he needed to change the way he lived in order to find true happiness.
He lived most of his life in the United States.
Originally from San Luis Obispo, in California, Zac Efron spent the majority of his life in the United States, having grown up close to the heart of Hollywood. Despite this, his parents were never involved in the entertainment business. Still, he took his first steps into that world early on in his life. His journey in acting and singing began during his time at Arroyo Grande High School in the early 2000s, with a drama teacher playing a pivotal role in connecting him to an agent.
After he achieved success with teen flicks like the High School Musical trilogy and 17 Again(2009), he shifted into more dramatic roles in films such as The Greatest Showman(2017) and, more recently, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile(2019). It was this ever-growing filmography that allowed him to amass a net worth of around $25 million and gave him the opportunity to purchase a mansion in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, in 2013. He lived there for seven years until he no longer felt like it was the right place for him.
So, what happened to Zac Efron to make him change his mind? Keep reading to find out.
His L.A. house had everything to offer, but ultimately it wasn’t enough.
The 36-year-old actor put his Los Feliz home up for sale in December, 2020, and the listing made public the house’s astounding features. The property, which is nestled against the Hollywood Hills and located in a prestigious neighborhood filled with plenty of celebrity residents, offers breathtaking views, accentuated by walls of glass, terraces, and numerous outdoor spaces that offer panoramic vistas of the city below.
With five bedrooms and five bathrooms within its 5.455-square-foot layout, the main level includes a living area, dining room, chef’s kitchen adjoining a family room, and a master suite with a spa-like bathroom. But that’s not all!
Additionally, it has three bedrooms with bathrooms downstairs, along with a separate one-bedroom, one-bath guesthouse. It also features amenities such as a gym, media room, game room and security cameras, and the outdoor space includes view decks suitable for outdoor dining and lounging.
So, with all its potential, it wasn’t shocking that it sold in only a few months, in spite of the hefty price tag. In May 2021, the house sold for $5.3 million. Albeit below the initial asking price of $5.9 million, it still marks a profitable venture for Efron, as he paid around $4 million when he first purchased the property.
He fell in love with a different country.
In 2020, Efron made a move that had a deep impact on him — he relocated to Byron Bay, Australia. Back then, he still owned the Los Feliz mansion, so many thought it was just a temporary home. The fact that he lived out of a van, before buying a property in the Australian beachside town also led many to believe nothing much could come of the move.
However, he shot the second season of his Netflix documentary series Down to Earththere, which allowed him to spend over a year with the Aussies. Eventually, he did return to the US to enjoy quality time with his family, but it wasn’t long before he was once again on Australian ground. This time, it was to shoot Ricky Stanicky, a movie in which he co-stars with John Cena and that has yet to have a set date for its debut.
But a special situation might have sealed the deal for his ever-growing bond with the country. Shortly after he moved to Australia, Efron found love. He met Vanessa Valladares, a waitress at the Byron Bay General Store & Cafe, in June 2020. They began dating and eventually spent Christmas and New Year’s together in Australia. Although the couple has since called it quits, the relationship might have been the final trigger of Efron’s decision to move permanently from the US, as he then put his L.A. home on the market.
Finally, a source close to the actor revealed in January 2021, that Efron already considered Australia “home.”
The actor doesn’t think Hollywood is a healthy place to live in.
The actor had previously expressed his intention to move out of Hollywood, though, and it was precisely in a scene from Down to Earth. In the fourth episode, he candidly shared his desire to move away from the Hollywood scene and the lifestyle associated with it, and emphasized that it didn’t contribute in any way to a “long, happy, mentally-sound life.”
Curiously, what happened to Zac Efron also happened to Chris Hemsworth, in which both actors made the decision to move to Australia so they could distance themselves from the hecticness of Hollywood. Although Hemsworth himself is Australian, his mindset was similar to that of Efron.
In 2016, Hemsworth, known for his role as Thor in several Marvel movies, relocated his family from Los Angeles to Byron Bay. The 40-year-old similarly expressed a wish to escape the suffocating nature of being constantly surrounded by the entertainment industry. Opting for a more tranquil lifestyle, as of 2023, he and his family reside in a $20 million mega-mansion in Byron Bay’s hinterland, which they view as a healthier environment for their children to grow up in.
People often also wonder what happened to Zac Efron when it comes to his new appearance. His face changed considerably throughout the years but the drastic change isn’t down to plastic surgery. According to him, it’s because of an accident where he almost died.
Preview photo credit zacefron / Instagram, zacefron / Instagram
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