During a riding competition, Christopher Reeve,
known to millions around the world as Superman,
was thrown headfirst from his horse
in an accident that broke his neck
and left him unable to move or breathe.
Today in his first visit to our show,
Christopher Reeve shares with all of us
what his life is like now and how
he survived the darkest days.
It is an inspiration to every living human being.
Welcome Christopher Reeve!
[AUDIENCE CLAPPING AND CHEERING]
OPRAH WINFREY: Howdy, howdy!
Howdy, howdy!
Thank you.
OPRAH WINFREY: Howdy, howdy!
CHRISTOPHER REEVE: Thank you very much.
OPRAH WINFREY: Christopher Reeve!
[AUDIENCE CLAPPING AND CHEERING]
It's almost three years this month.
Yeah.
Do you still, I know in Still Me, you
talk about how for so long every day
you would review what you could have done differently.
- Yes. - Blaming yourself.
Do you still three years later?
No.
Today I just worry about laryngitis.
OPRAH WINFREY: Today.
[LAUGHING] I know.
I met him backstage, and he said he's worried about laryngitis.
I wouldn't worry about that If I were you.
- That's right. - Really.
Yeah.
You know, if you play the game of what
if, you know it's really a losing proposition.
You go forward, not backwards.
OPRAH WINFREY: Can you take us back to that day for which
the book is named?
The day you were thinking about giving up or not even knowing
what the future might hold.
Yeah.
I woke up after four days of being completely unconscious.
I mean, they had me snowed on morphine.
And finally I came out of it and gradually
realized my situation.
Dana came into the room and just as you described
it is how it happened.
But the main thing is, when she said, you're still you
and I love you.
If there had been a pause or if she looked away or somehow,
you know, not answered me immediately
and instinctively, I would have felt
she was just undertaking an obligation.
But it's not an obligation it's just her love for me.
I joked and I said, I'm taking the marriage
vows a little too far.
I mean we talked about sickness and health, but
OPRAH WINFREY: Nobody's prepared for this.
No one's prepared for this.
But the thing is, actually, we were prepared for this
or for whatever comes.
Literally, my head was disconnected from my body.
only my neck muscles were holding it on.
The surgery that they did five days later is a miracle.
Dr. Jane at UVA
OPRAH WINFREY: And have had not done it before?
You found that out afterwards?
CHRISTOPHER REEVE: Yeah, they had to actually make up
an operation.
They rehearsed it.
But to figure out what to do they
ended up putting a titanium rod, connecting the top of my spine
to the base of my skull, and then
drilling holes in the bottom of my brain,
and wiring them together.
I don't know anybody else in the world
could have accomplished that.
So, I was very, very lucky.
You are Superman.
CHRISTOPHER REEVE: [LAUGHING]
What a life changing moment for you
was appearing at the Oscars?
I remember when Quincy Jones called
me and told me that he had the idea
to invite you to the Oscars.
And I said, huge!
That is going to be huge!
CHRISTOPHER REEVE: It's crazy.
I'm really crazy.
I had only been out once before in public.
And Quincy called and said, you know,
would you come out and do a thing?
And I said I'd think about it.
And they said, yes.
OPRAH WINFREY: Were you scared?
Were you scared?
Well I, I wheeled into Dana and said,
I've just agreed to go out on the Oscars.
Live, in front of two billion people.
And I haven't been out anywhere yet.
So why don't we start big?