Fact check
“Alan Alda refuses to let Parkinson's disease define him.”
Reasoning
The CBS News article includes Alda's own statement, "I don't let Parkinson's define me," confirming that he refuses to let the disease define him.
On confidence: The claim is directly supported by a primary source quote from Alan Alda.
Important context
The statement is part of Alda's discussion about living with Parkinson's disease and his approach to coping with it.
Evidence
Supporting (1)
- Tier 1 — Primary sourceAlan Alda on fighting Parkinson's with laughter - CBS News
me. And I picked up a sack of potatoes and threw it at 'em. What I was really doing was throwing a pillow at Arlene, my wife." At the time he had no other symptoms: "I had no twitch, no tremor, no problems with my voice." He was 79. A few…
Limitations
The evidence is limited to a single interview; additional sources could further corroborate the claim but are not required for verification. No independent origin corroborated this claim, so it cannot be verified and confidence cannot be high.
- Last verified:
- Oct 4, 2026, 12:20 PM CDT
- Pipeline:
- 2.1.0
- Claim type:
- Factual
Where this claim appeared
Alan Alda on fighting Parkinson's with laughter· Dr. Jon LaPook