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elephant man
About the Program

Making of "The Curse of The Elephant Man" (cont'd)
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Q:   Were the families reluctant to do this on camera?
A:   They weren't because they knew we were not going to exploit them. The production company — Natural History New Zealand — did a good job of assuring them of the quality of the program, and if they agreed to move forward we could help them determine if there were any genetic concerns they faced being a decendent of Joseph.

Q:   What is the most profound thing you came away with after doing this show?
A:   I guess when you get to the basics, you figure this guy had won the worst lottery in the history of the world because what are the odds that he is going to end up with such a unique marriage of genetic diseases? So there by the grace of God go I.

There are so many people in the world who have some form of neurofibromatosis that just shows up as caf´e; au lait spots, but it's a significant number of people who have that gene and it's a crap shoot as to how much or how little you could be affected.

Q:   What do you want viewers to take away from this show?
A:   My hope is that people watching the show understand that buried underneath the mask of deformity lived an intelligent, caring man who donated his body to science so that we might learn what happened to him and hopefully prevent anyone else from going through the same horrific life that he did.

Also, that the Curse of the Elephant Man was just that…one man's curse.


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Pictures: Drummond Design/NHNZ |

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