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Revision as of 10:17, 31 October 2005 by Guy Harris (talk | contribs) (Grammar fixes.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)There are many toilet-related injuries and some toilet-related deaths throughout history and in urban legends.
In young boys one of the most common causes of genital injury is when the toilet seat falls down while using the toilet . Smaller children have the chance of drowning if they fall into the toilet. Other injuries can be caused by the feet slipping or the toilet bowl collapsing under the weight of the occupant.
The 2000 Ig Nobel Prize in Public Health was awarded to three physicians from the Glasgow Western Infirmary for a 1993 case report on wounds sustained to the buttocks by collapsing toilets.
Famous occurrences
George II of Great Britain died on the toilet on 25 October 1760 from an aortic dissection. Film producer Don Simpson (19 January 1996) and and actress Lupe Vélez (13 December 1944) both died from substance abuse, with the latter committing suicide by using secobarbital.
Edmund II of England died of natural causes on 30 November 1016, though some report that he was stabbed in the bowels while attending the privy. Similarly, Uesugi Kenshin, a warlord in Japan, died on 19 April 1578 with some reports stating that he was assassinated on the toilet.
It is often reported that Elvis Presley died on the toilet after suffering a heart attack, with gastrointestinal problems combined with a weak heart causing his death. These details were not confirmed by the coroner, however, though the event did take place in the bathroom. The belief that Elvis died on the toilet is so widespread that popular culture often parodies that event. Examples of this are Eminem's music video Without Me and the Married With Children episode I'm going to Sweatland.
Novelist Evelyn Waugh died on 10 April 1966 after having put on a lot of weight. The sleeping pills he took, combined with a heavy intake of alcohol, cigars and little exercise, weakened his health, and there have been many reports that he died on the toilet.
Catherine the Great died of a stroke on 5 November 1796, with some believing that it occurred while she was on the toilet.
Occurrences in popular culture
In the 1994 Kevin Smith film Clerks. a man dies while masturbating on the toilet in a convenience store. By mistaken identity and complete unawareness to the situation a girl then has sexual intercourse with the dead man.
Urban legends
There has been a range of urban legends reported regarding the dangers of using a toilet in a variety of different situations. All of them have been shown to be false. These range from the presence of poisonous spiders to terrorists booby trapping the seat in order to castrate their targets . Other common stories relate to the use of vacuums in the toilets of aeroplanes .