Kevin Smith Says He Suffered Massive Heart Attack, but Had ‘Sense of Calm’

Kevin Smith Says He Suffered Massive Heart Attack, but Had ‘Sense of Calm’
Host Kevin Smith attends the IMDb Yacht Party, presented by TCL in San Diego, California on July 22, 2016 . (Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb)
Jack Phillips
2/26/2018
Updated:
2/26/2018

“Clerks” director Kevin Smith said that he suffered a massive heart attack between comedy sets in California.

Smith, who is half of the “Jay and Silent Bob” duo, posted a photo of him hooked up to tubes in a hospital bed, dressed in a gown.

“I was trying to do a killer standup special this evening but I might’ve gone too far. After the first show, I felt kinda nauseous. I threw up a little but it didn’t seem to help. Then I started sweating buckets and my chest felt heavy. Turns out I had a massive heart attack,” he wrote on Instagram on Monday morning. “The Doctor who saved my life at the #glendale hospital told me I had 100% blockage of my LAD artery (also known as ‘the Widow-Maker’ because when it goes, you’re a goner).”

He added: “ If I hadn’t canceled the second show to go to the hospital, the Doc said I would’ve died tonight. For now, I’m still above ground! But this is what I learned about myself during this crisis: death was always the thing I was most terrified of in life.”

“When the time came, I never imagined I’d ever be able to die with dignity - I assumed I’d die screaming, like my Dad (who lost his life to a massive heart attack). But even as they cut into my groin to slip a stent into the lethal Widow-Maker, I was filled with a sense of calm.”

Smith, 47, added that he had a “great life,” saying he was “loved by parents who raised me to become the individual I am. I’ve had a weird, wonderful career in all sorts of media, amazing friends, the best wife in the world and an incredible daughter who made me a Dad.”

“But as I stared into the infinite, I realized I was relatively content. Yes, I’d miss life as it moved on without me,” the director said.

He added: “But the good folks at the Glendale hospital had other plans and the expertise to mend me. Total strangers saved my life tonight (as well as my friends @jordanmonsanto & @iamemilydawn, who called the ambulance). This is all a part of my mythology now and I’m sure I’ll be facing some lifestyle changes (maybe it’s time to go Vegan). But the point of this post is to tell you that I faced my greatest fear tonight... and it wasn’t as bad as I’ve always imagined it’d be. I don’t want my life to end but if it ends, I can’t complain. It was such a gift.”

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Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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