Kenneth Easterday (December 7, 1973 – February 12, 2016) was an American man born with the rare disability,

sacral agenesis Sacral may refer to: *Sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property ...

. To improve his mobility, his legs were amputated at the hip when he was six months old.

Life and career

He was born in

Aliquippa, Pennsylvania Aliquippa is the largest city in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States, located on the Ohio River about northwest of Pittsburgh. The population was 9,238 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Formerly the loc ...

. The amputations took place in two stages. The first amputation surgery took Easterday's shin bones, which were used to replace his missing spinal column. At the time of Easterday's first amputation surgery he was only expected to live six months to one year. At six months of age, Easterday underwent a second and final amputation surgery which involved amputating the rest of his remaining legs at the hips. Easterday gained some notability following the 1988 release of the Canadian movie ''

Kenny Kenny is a surname, a given name, and a diminutive of several different given names. In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Irish ''Ó Cionnaith'', also spelt ''Ó Cionnaoith'' and ''Ó Cionaodha'', meaning "descendant of Cionnaith" ...

'' (1988), in which he played a fictionalized version of himself. He was a regular on ''

The Jerry Springer Show ''Jerry Springer'' is an American scripted syndicated tabloid talk show that aired from September 30, 1991 to July 26, 2018. Produced and hosted by its namesake, Jerry Springer, it aired for 27 seasons and nearly 5,000 episodes. The television ...

'' in which he functioned as "The Messenger". He was also the focus of a 2010

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

special titled ''The Man with Half a Body''. Easterday died on February 12, 2016, aged 42.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Easterday, Kenny 1973 births 2016 deaths American amputees American male child actors Amputee actors People with caudal regression syndrome People from Aliquippa, Pennsylvania