While there is no way in hell I would want to be a celebrity and have paparazzi follow me around all day harassing me and documenting all of my foibles, I think a lot of the time we excuse them being jackasses because of the constant coverage. At any rate, via the Agitator, Peyton Manning shows how really easy it is to be classy as a celeb:
Peyton Manning provided a family temporary respite from an unremitting ordeal.
All it took was a couple of telephone calls to the Burghduf residence in Niles, Mich. Each was in response to a request from Brian Burghduf, who was losing a battle with leukemia that had stretched more than 21/2 years.
Advertisement“What an awesome guy,” Sherri Burghduf said of Manning. “My husband was so impressed with him.”
Burghduf, 48, died July 29, less than a week after spending a few minutes on the phone with the Indianapolis Colts quarterback. It actually was the second attempt by Manning to reach out to Burghduf, who missed the initial call because he was getting outpatient treatment at the hospital.
Sherri Burghduf admitted the family was “very shocked” that Manning called. The request was made to the Colts by Richard Grom, who strives to create memorable moments for terminally ill patients and their families through a Life is Precious program in St. Joseph. Mich.
Many times, it really is just that easy.
zhak
Maybe you should look into the guy’s past a bit.
pharniel
payton manning’s personal political and religious beliefes are in line with his coach: abomniable, but only from my perspective.
OToH, sometimes it seems like he takes that old ‘golden rule’ bit seriously, which is schocking considering who else is in his tent and how they flagrently DWTFTW anyway.
i love that one.
need to vocolize it though.
dwwhhht-fttt i think.
Some Guy Named Matt
What kind of counter tops does he have?
Jamey
I would gladly exchange my privacy for the millions of bucks/annum a guy like Cap’n Forehead earns to throw a ball. Besides, if I didn’t have a press secretary send out a release every time I took a dump or went to a bar, I might be able to reclaim some of my status as a private citizen.
That said, it was a nice gesture on Manning’s part.
bootlegger
Maybe a positive act is a positive act no matter who does it.
Being an atheist I have to put up with comments like this from the so-called Xtians out there who believe I cannot be a moral person without communiques from supernatural creatures.
IMHO what makes a plural society work is a willingness to respect differences in belief as long as the actions are laudable. Right-wing Xtians don’t agree with this but I won’t stoop to their level.
myiq2xu
Cuz you know Tom Brady wouldn’t do nothing like that.
John D.
Out of curiousity, which views does he hold that you consider “abominable”?
AIMAI.
I don’t understand it, but then I’m not a football fan. Still, J.K. Rowling after being fooled a couple of times by people who had the gall to pretend to be sick in order to get a glimpse of the Harry Potter novels before they came out I think also had a tender phone conversation with a little girl reader who was actually dying and wanted to know how the story came out. If all you have to offer is your celebrity, and that is enough for your fans, more power to you if you can offer it graciously and at the psychological moment. Regardless of your political affiliation (I haven’t forgiven Curt Schilling for using his celebrity status to try to get my blue state to turn red). After katrina he flew a large family up to his house in ma and put them up, for a while, and tried to help them get on their feet.
aimai
Nick
How many hundreds of thousands of people would like to chat with Peyton Manning (or other celebrities)? Two minutes multiplied by a thousand takes up the better part of two days.
And what is the real value of Manning’s time? He can shoot commercials and make a lot of money in two days.
I think it’s a bit selfish of someone to ask for a celebrity’s time because the person is dying. We’re all going to die; I don’t see the sense in giving people a trip to Disneyland just because they are dying.
Church Lady
Peyton Manning lives his life reflecting the values instilled by his parents. Archie and Olivia Manning were college sweethearts and have been married for a long time, raising three sons in the process. There has never been a whiff of scandal attached to any of them. Given all the stuff that seems to go on in the NFL, that’s pretty refreshing. If chatting with Peyton for a few minutes made a dying man happy, I don’t have any problem with it.
Bill H
And Archie Manning told his son Eli that he was so good that he should hold himself above the NFL draft and dictate what team he would/would not play for. All players entering the NFL must play for the team that drafted them, unless they are named Manning, and then they may select the team that they want to play for beacuse they are a superior level of being with godlike powers.
John, you should check out the projects and activities of NASCAR drivers, particularly the Pettys (Kyle in particular) and Tony Stewart.
maxbaer (not the original)
Nice to see someone famous performing a class act. Good on ya, Peyton.
michael
While I think it’s cheap to praise anyone for just, y’know, not being a heartless asshole, I also realize that when (non-conservative or non-sports) celebrities do good things, they get called out as phonies and showoffs. Damned if you do…
Shygetz
You mean a father told his son to do what’s best for him? The HORROR!!! Manning didn’t say he was gonna sue to play for the Giants; he just said he wouldn’t play for San Diego, and he would hold out a year. Surely you’re not saying that any person drafted by the NFL is the indentured servant of the team that drafted him…are you?
Capri
If I recall, John Elway did the exact same thing when he was drafted.
w vincentz
I don’t know much about Manning, but I applaud what he did.
His actions remind me of a time long ago when my six-year-old nephew was dying of a cancer called neuroblastoma. During the last two years of his short life, he could only watch teevee from his hospital bed. He became an ardent Mets fan. Came the day when his time was very short and a group called the “Make a Wish Foundation” made arrangements for him to meet his hero, a Mets outfielder. So, my nephew was brought to Shey (sp) stadium and got to sit in the Mets dugout with his hero, who also gave him a game ball autographed by every Met. Oh, the guy’s name was Daryl Strawberry.
The point is that though Strawberry will not be looked at as a hero by many since those days, he’ll remain one to me.
My nephew died two weeks later.
Kind acts are long remembered.
‘nuf said.
Neal
Peyton’s personal/political/religious beliefs are Peyton’s business. That’s what is so good about this country, isn’t it?
As for his coach, Tony Dungy is a good man. I’m here in Tampa and this city has more love for that man than you can imagine. He’s been involved in this community for years (since he coached here) and even though he’s in Indy now, he still has a residence here. My father met him on several occasions. Incredibly humble.
Shit, the man’s second passion (behind coaching in the NFL) is prison ministry. He spends his free time speaking with inmates. Maybe you don’t like his religion, but the man really does live it.
The Moar You Know
And as a San Diegan, I gotta say he did the right thing. Coming to play for the Chargers is a fine way to waste a career. You’ll never get a ring – odds are you’ll never even win a championship. You’ll be relegated to being a (perhaps) great player in the backwater of the NFL; a town that, by all rights, shouldn’t have a football team at all.
The Dude Abides
w vincentz
+1 – well said
w vincentz
@ The Dude Abides,
Thanks.
Perhaps I should provide a followup. My son, (Keith’s cousin) obtained his PhD at M D Anderson in Houston where he was involved in finding a triggering gene for retinal cancer. The same gene (FGF 15) is also responsible for causing a cardio defect called “hole in the heart”. It affects many newborns (6 in 10K). My son now does post doc work at the Wells Institute in Indianapolis where he recently found and published in the Journal of Developmental Biology, new findings involving genes called Twist, Hand 1, and Hand 2. Simply stated, these genes are responsible for triggering a cancerous tumor to metasticize and become systemic. Implications include where and how the cancerous cells relocate.
I’d like you to know, Dude, that despite terrible tragedy such as my nephew’s death, a scientist (his cousin) found something positive to devote his life to finding.
The quest continues, and all those that seek, and help others find, are real heros to me.
Bill H
Perish the thought that one would abide by the rules that prevail in the organization that one is joining. Perish the thought that one would, perhaps, live by the same rules as the rest of the organization that one is part of. One should always do what is one’s own personal self interest and never, under any circumstances, consider the greater good.
gorp
Kindness schmindness! Peyton should quit being a sissy and torture dogs like M Vick does. Now there’s a real man!