Christopher Reeve

Christopher D'Olier Reeve (September 25, 1952 – October 10, 2004) was an American actor, film director, producer and screenwriter, best remembered today for his role as the iconic hero Superman. On May 27, 1995 Reeve became a quadriplegic after being thrown from his horse amidst an Eventing competition in Culpeper, Virginia, and subsequently required a wheelchair and breathing apparatus for the rest of his life. He lobbied on behalf of people with spinal cord injuries, and for human embryonic stem cell research after this accident. He founded the Christopher Reeve Foundation and co-founded the Reeve-Irvine Research Center. Reeve died at age 52 on October 10, 2004, from cardiac arrest caused by a systemic infection.Reeve married Dana Morosini in April 1992, and they had a son, William, born that June. Reeve also had two children, Matthew (born 1979) and Alexandra (born 1983), from his previous relationship with girlfriend Gae Exton. Dana Reeve died of lung cancer in March 2006.