Bill Plaschke, the iconic Los Angeles Times sports columnist, has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
He announced it in a column in the Sunday newspaper, writing, “I’ve got Parkinson’s, and it hurts to even say it.
“I’m still mobile, still active, I don’t have the trademark tremors that distinguish the famously afflicted Michael J. Fox or the late Muhammad Ali but, damn it, I’ve got it.”
Plaschke, who also recently bid farewell to his recurring role on ESPN’s Around the Horn, revealed he got the diagnosis four years ago — and kept it secret. To keep up with his regular lifestyle, Plaschke takes an “immense” amount of medication and works out at Kaizen Kinetics in L.A.
An eight-time Associated Press National Sports Columnist of the Year, Plaschke has chronicled the sports scene in Los Angeles for nearly three decades. From the death of Kobe Bryant to the arrival of LeBron James and Shohei Ohtani, Plaschke has remained at the center of sports for Angelenos into his 60s.
Now we know that for much of this time, the legendary sportswriter has been dealing with a nasty neurodegenerative disease that affects his mobility, his speech, and even his ability to smile on FaceTime with his granddaughter.
The column is as much an ode to the staff and compatriots at Kaizen as a diary entry about his experience with the disease.
Writes Plaschke: “Until now, my condition has only been known to my family. Not even my bosses knew. I didn’t look like Parky, I didn’t act like Parky, so why should I publicly reveal something so personal and embarrassing?
When Plaschke and the other seniors at Kaizen lace up boxing gloves to get a workout in, they are punching Parkinson’s the face as much as the dummies they train on. Plaschke hopes to keep fighting and doing what he loves as a columnist for the Times.
“I have Parkinson’s. But, by God, it doesn’t have me,” he wrote.