The Associated Press reports that a panel of Actors’ Equity and Broadway League members failed to reach a unanimous decision today regarding Jeremy Piven’s abrupt departure from the Broadway production of Speed-the-Plow. Producers filed a grievance after the 43-year-old actor left the play in December, citing a diagnosis of mercury poisoning. The producers now have the right to proceed to arbitration.
In a statement, Piven’s rep says, "Mr. Piven is hopeful that the Producers will ultimately recognize that he didthe right thing by listening to the instructions from his doctors during hishospitalization, who told him to stop the play immediately and undergo enforcedrest, rather than continuing to perform and risk dire health consequences." The statement goes on to say, "Although Mr. Piven’s forced withdrawal from the show was an enormouspersonal disappointment since it was his life-long dream to perform on Broadway,he is glad that his illness has helped raise public awareness of the serioushealth risks caused by Mercury exposure. He is also pleased that the Obamaadministration is seeking an international treaty to reduce Mercury pollution,which it has recognized as the world’s gravest chemical problem."
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I eat at the same sushi joint that Piven does and man has this been a tough winter. I didn’t have the money to get tested for mercury poisoning but I bet Bob my uncle I have a pretty sevre case of it. I can’t even remember which apartment is mine. I’ll fall asleep at my cubicle. I also got nailed with bad peanut butter right after new years, so I guess you can say 2009 has been awful!
Don’t eat any Acai berries Jackson, they have awful side effects! I saw a recipe on Rachel Ray and made it less than 30 minutes but I was sick for 14 days!!!!
Acai berries have a similar side effect to mercury poisoning, maybe Piven has been eating those, in that case the tests wouldn’t show particularly high levels of mercury in his system. You’re in my prayers Pives!
Hmmm, seems kind of fishy to me
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Butterflylover49 you don’t know anything! Acai berries are incredibily beneficial to the body. There side effects are minor!
My main question is:
If he was under a doctor’s care, why didn’t he submit a doctor’s note just like anyone else would do if they were sick from work?
Just asking….
Heather, clearly you don’t understand Broadway. You would get laughed off the stage sweetheart!
If it smells like fish, make a wish…
Jeremy Piven’s always been a douchebag.
Hmm, I wonder how long is recovery time or was for Piven. Since he was out at all the awards shows a brief time after he left the show. I think he’s over rated personaly, my friend loves him went to the show and came back and told me he was god awful. I think it was to much for him, broadway invovles real acting.
My opinion: What a joke. Do we really think that Piven is pleased that he has raised “mercury” awareness or tht Obama is working to minimize mercury contamination in the environment. What PR hack came up with that self-serving drivel?
Those new “environmentally friendly” lightbulbs ALL have mercury in them, and if you drop one you will be exposed to high levels of mercury. Mercury poisoning shows the same damage as Alzheimer’s disease. So he may have had to back out because of short term memory loss and loss of coordination. Mercury is used in vaccines too, thats why lots of parents dont want to give their kids shots that have mercury in them. Hope you get better dude.
just as an aside, his acting is, um, well, perhaps his calling in life is this mercury thing, for the first time america can truly see what mercury poisoning can do to a person
The vaccines that have Thiomersal, which is the organic mercury compound used as a preservative to keep the vaccines from accumulating bacteria, are limited in number and are being phased out completely. Only a very small amount of vaccines have it now. Most vaccines are packaged in single dose vials so the use of a preservative is no longer needed.
Stop spreading vaccine fear Lulabelle, these things save peoples lives.
How much sushi did he eat anyway?
Wouldn’t you think the chef’s at this restaurant would be sick too?
Jeez part of being an actor is acting your way through it, even if you’re hung-over. It’s the job and and he didn’t do it, so the producers should sue for services not rendered. His “star” power was supposed to help the show.
If he was sick, just show the note and be done with it.