Michael set to cash in from the starvation of his wife; CBS plans May movie
World Net Daily | 4/2/05 | World Net Daily staff
On CBS in May: Terri TV movie
Network to rush biopic to little screen for sweeps
Posted: April 2, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com
CBS is rushing a Terri Schiavo TV movie into production so that it can air the biopic during the May ratings sweeps.
There is no word on whether the network has secured the cooperation of either the Schindler family, Terri's parents and siblings, or Michael Schiavo, her estranged husband.
There are reports Michael Schiavo is entertaining offers of book, movie and TV deals for Terri's story. Industry sources say Schiavo is likely to be offered up to $2 million for a book deal and up to $2 million for a movie or TV deal.
CBS' Terri story reportedly will feature "Felicity" star Keri Russell to star as America’s tragic heroine and Dean Cain of "Lois and Clark" as the husband who relentlessly seeks an end to her life.
Terri Schiavo was the brain-injured Florida woman at the center of an intense euthanasia battle played out on an international stage. She died Thursday 9 a.m. Eastern time after 13 days of court-ordered starvation.
The news came shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected yet another appeal by her parents, Robert and Mary Schindler.
The Schindlers had pleaded with son-in-law Michael Schiavo to allow them to be with their daughter in her final hours, but according to family spokesmen, they were not present when she died.
The decision by the Supreme Court not to intervene was the sixth since 2000. The emergency request argued the federal courts did not consider whether there was enough "clear and convincing" evidence that Terri Schiavo had expressed a wish not to live in her current condition. The trial court in Pinellas County, Fla., determined she was in a persistent vegetative state. The Schindlers countered that assessment with statements from neurologists who claimed she was in a "minimally conscious state," able to respond to stimuli.
Terri Schiavo's life-sustaining feeding tube was removed by court order March 18 after a decade of bitter legal wrangling between Michael Schiavo and the Schindlers, who insisted their daughter had a strong will to live.
Her body was taken to the Pinellas County medical examiner's officer for an autopsy. It then will be cremated and interred in Pennsylvania, according to Michael Schiavo's wishes.
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who promoted state and federal legislation to save Schiavo, said Terri Schiavo's death was "heartbreaking."
"I wish I could have done more; that's the sadness in my heart," he told reporters. "... For the last year and a half, this has been a front-burner issue ... in this office."
But Bush said, "in the end, there were limitations on what we could do."
Some legal analysts, while respectful of Bush's efforts, criticized the governor for not using the executive powers they believe he had to take Terri Schiavo into protective custody.
Bush filed a motion to that end with Pinellas Circuit Court Judge George W. Greer, who had presided over the case for seven years, but was rejected.
The governor's critics maintain, however, he did not need judicial permission to act.
President Bush, who rushed back to Washington during a vacation last week to sign a bill giving federal courts jurisdiction in the case, addressed Terri Schiavo's death at the beginning of a press conference:
"Today millions of Americans are saddened by the death of Terri Schiavo. Laura and I extend our condolences to Terri Schiavo's families. I appreciate the example of grace and dignity they have displayed at a difficult time. I urge all those who honor Terri Schiavo to continue to work to build a culture of life, where all Americans are welcomed and valued and protected, especially those who live at the mercy of others. The essence of civilization is that the strong have a duty to protect the weak. In cases where there are serious doubts and questions, the presumption should be in the favor of life ... ."
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, who helped lead the legislative effort in Congress, said Schiavo's death "is a moral poverty and a legal tragedy."
"This loss happened because our legal system did not protect the people who need protection most, and that will change," he said. "The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior, but not today. Today we grieve, we pray, and we hope to God this fate never befalls another. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Schindlers and with Terri Schiavo's friends in this time of deep sorrow."