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15 May 2001 | Volume 134 Issue 10 | Pages 955-962
Background: Social status is an important predictor of poor health. Most studies of this issue have focused on the lower echelons of society.
Objective: To determine whether the increase in status from winning an academy award is associated with long-term mortality among actors and actresses.
Design: Retrospective cohort analysis.
Setting: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Participants: All actors and actresses ever nominated for an academy award in a leading or a supporting role were identified (n = 762). For each, another cast member of the same sex who was in the same film and was born in the same era was identified (n = 887).
Measurements: Life expectancy and all-cause mortality rates.
Results: All 1649 performers were analyzed; the median duration of follow-up time from birth was 66 years, and 772 deaths occurred (primarily from ischemic heart disease and malignant disease). Life expectancy was 3.9 years longer for Academy Award winners than for other, less recognized performers (79.7 vs. 75.8 years; P = 0.003). This difference was equal to a 28% relative reduction in death rates (95% CI, 10% to 42%). Adjustment for birth year, sex, and ethnicity yielded similar results, as did adjustments for birth country, possible name change, age at release of first film, and total films in career. Additional wins were associated with a 22% relative reduction in death rates (CI, 5% to 35%), whereas additional films and additional nominations were not associated with a significant reduction in death rates.
Conclusion: The association of high status with increased longevity that prevails in the public also extends to celebrities, contributes to a large survival advantage, and is partially explained by factors related to success.
Author and Article Information
From University of Toronto, the Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research Program, Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre, and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Acknowledgments: The authors thank Susan Campbell for data entry; Robert Tibshirani and Jerry Lawless for statistical insights; and Peter Austin, Ahmed Bayoumi, Chaim Bell, Victor Fuchs, David Juurlink, David Naylor, Miriam Shuchman, Leonard Syme, and John-Paul Szalai for commenting on drafts of this manuscript.
Grant Support: Dr. Redelmeier was supported by a career scientist award from the Ontario Ministry of Health, the de Souza Chair in Clinical Trauma Research of the University of Toronto, and the Canadian Institute for Health Research. Mr. Singh was supported by the Jane and Howard Jones Bursary at the University of Toronto.
Requests for Single Reprints: Donald A. Redelmeier, MD, Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre, Room G-151, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M4N 3M5, Canada; e-mail, dar{at}ices.on.ca.
Current Author Addresses: Dr. Redelmeier: Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre, Room G-151, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M4N 3M5, Canada.
Mr. Singh: Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre, Room G-106, 2075 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M4N 3M5, Canada.
Author Contributions: Conception and design: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Analysis and interpretation of the data: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Drafting of the article: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Critical revision of the article for important intellectual content: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Final approval of the article: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Provision of study materials or patients: S.M. Singh.
Statistical expertise: D.A. Redelmeier.
Obtaining of funding: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh.
Administrative, technical, or logistic support: D.A. Redelmeier.
Collection and assembly of data: D.A. Redelmeier, S.M. Singh. ARTICLE
Survival in Academy Award–Winning Actors and Actresses
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