IN the 1980s, human rights activist and comedian Dick Gregory became involved in weight loss.
Ron High, who has lost 300 pounds but he says he can?t see the difference, joins comedian Dick Gregory, left, at a news conference in New York, May 6, 1986. High has lived at Gregory’s International Health Institute in the Bahamas, constantly monitored as he eats fruits and vegetables and Gregory’s diet potion in addition to exercising. High of Brooklyn, New York said “I’m learning about my body.” (AP Photo/Susan Ragan)
Comedian turned nutritionist Dick Gregory gets a heavy-handed lift, left to right: 526-pound Ron Miller, of Marion, Ind., 375-pound Lou Barone, Elmont, New York, and 750-pound Mike Parteleno, Struthers, Ohio, June 7, 1988 in New York. Gregory has assembled a group of 13 obese people, whose total weight is nearly three tons, in a nutrition program aimed at helping them lose weight.
One name will be forever linked to the programme. Walter Hudson was very big.
Walter Hudson, 42, lies in his bed at his home in Hempstead, New York, Oct. 8, 1987, less than two weeks after beginning a diet, with the help of one-time comedian Dick Gregory. Hudson, who weighs more than 1,000 pounds, has been approached by people who want to help him after he was in the news three weeks ago when fire and medical workers had to free him from his bedroom doorway. (AP Photo/David Bookstaver)
Eight-hundred-pound Walter Hudson explains that he couldn’t muster the courage to leave the home he hasn’t been out of for 18 years, Feb. 5, 1988 in Hempstead, New York. Hudson, 42, weighed 1,200 pounds a few months ago before going on a diet supervised by Dick Gregory, who stands beside him during the interview. (AP Photo/David Bookstaver)
Walter Hudson, who is heavier than the heaviest man listed by the Guinness Book of World Records, listens as Dick Gregory talks with him at his home in Hempstead, New York, Oct. 7, 1987
Walter Hudson smiles in New York, July 14, 1988, as he stands on a scale that shows that he now weighs only 562 pounds.
Walter Hudson, who had not walked out of his Hempstead, New York, home for 18 years, takes his first steps outdoors, Sept. 8, 1988. Hudson, who weighed 1,200 to 1,400 pounds, announced he is down to 520 pounds. (AP Photo/Charles Wenzelberg)
He didn’t love enough.
Nutrition guru Dick Gregory, right, pays his respects at the funeral of Walter Hudson, who weighed over 1,000 pounds when he died Christmas Eve in Hempstead, New York, Jan. 2, 1992. Hudson had at one point lost more than 600 pounds with the help of Gregory. (AP Photo/Mike Albans)
Eight pallbearers roll the custom-made casket of Walter Hudson, who weight more then 1,000 pounds when he died, on a metal dolly out of Gospel Blessed Center Church in Hempstead, New York, after funeral services, Jan. 3, 1992. Hudson, who died Christmas Eve of a heart attack, attracted worldwide attention when he lost over 600 pounds several years ago with the help of nutrition guru Dick Gregory. (AP Photo/Mike Albans)
Would you like to support Flashbak?
Please consider making a donation to our site. We don't want to rely on ads to bring you the best of visual culture. You can also support us by signing up to our Mailing List. And you can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For great art and culture delivered to your door, visit our shop.
