Current:Home > ScamsWendy Williams spotted for the first time since revealing aphasia, dementia diagnoses -Intelligent Capital Compass
Wendy Williams spotted for the first time since revealing aphasia, dementia diagnoses
View
Date:2025-04-18 07:15:01
"Where Is Wendy Williams?" Fans of the former talk show host who are still wondering this following the February release of a two-part Lifetime documentary on Williams have some answers now.
Williams, 60, has been spotted out and about for the first time since her private legal and medical issues became public earlier this year.
A Newark, New Jersey business shared last week that the former host of the long-running "The Wendy Williams Show," who has not been active on social media since 2022, stopped by to shop at the herbal supplement and holistic health product shop.
Bolingo Balance owner Víctor Bowman posted photos with Williams and her 24-year-old son, Kevin Hunter Jr., on Instagram and Facebook. "Wendy Williams come to my store," Bowman wrote in his Facebook caption. "Much love Queen."
Williams' son responded with an emoji-filled Instagram comment that seemed to indicate his wishes for his mom's well-being: "🙏🏽📈🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽."
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
This outing was the first time Williams has been photographed in public since her team revealed in a February press release that she had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. A few days later, the TV personality's declining health was the subject of "Where Is Wendy Williams?"
The docuseries shows Williams struggling with her health until she is eventually admitted to a treatment facility. In it, her family opens up about her dementia diagnosis while arguing for changes to the guardianship that she was placed under in 2022.
What was Wendy Williams diagnosed with?
In the doc, Hunter claimed his mother was diagnosed with "alcohol-induced" dementia: "They basically said that because she was drinking so much, it was starting to affect her headspace and her brain," he said.
Her diagnosis, according to her team's February press release, was primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.
According to Alzheimers.gov, frontotemporal dementia is characterized by changes "in thinking and behaviors" such as movement, language and emotions that is caused by "a group of disorders that gradually damage the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes." The cause is "not yet fully understood."
Aphasia is a "disorder (that) impairs the expression and understanding of language as well as reading and writing," per the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. It's caused by "damage to one or more of the language areas of the brain," which can be due to a stroke, head injury, brain tumor or a progressive neurological disease.
Wendy Williams was 'under 24-hour medical care,' her guardian said
In the doc, Williams' family also repeatedly criticized the court for appointing a guardian in 2022 to oversee her finances, stating they'd prefer a family member be in the position.
In February, the identity of Williams' temporary guardian – Sabrina Morrissey, an attorney who focuses on guardianships – became public when she filed a lawsuit against A+E Network in an attempt to halt the release of "Where Is Wendy Williams?" Morrissey argued in her filing that Williams "was not, and is not, capable of consenting to the terms" of the contract for filming the documentary.
At the time of the lawsuit, Williams was "under 24-hour medical care and supervision," Morrissey's filing claimed.
Morrissey, who had seen the unreleased documentary's trailer but not the project in its entirety, alleged that "the documentary exploits (Williams') medical condition to portray her in a humiliating, degrading manner and in a false light."
In response, an attorney for A+E Networks argued Morrissey tried to shut down the documentary only after seeing the way Williams' guardianship was depicted in the trailer.
Lifetime, which is owned by A&E Networks, proceeded with airing "Where Is Wendy Williams?" on Feb. 24 and Feb. 25 after an appellate judge said blocking it from airing would be an "impermissible prior restraint on speech" in violation of the First Amendment. The case is ongoing in New York.
In fall 2021, "Wendy" experienced several production delays and employed a rotating cast of guest hosts to take over the show.
However, "Wendy" was canceled in 2022 following Williams' medical leave during a battle with the autoimmune disorder Graves' disease. Williams has since maintained a low profile.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow
veryGood! (6831)
Related
- Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear ready to campaign for Harris-Walz after losing out for spot on the ticket
- Emirates NBA Cup 2024 schedule: Groups, full breakdown of in-season tournament
- Horoscopes Today, August 13, 2024
- Arizona and Missouri will join 5 other states with abortion on the ballot. Who are the others?
- Connie Chiume, South African 'Black Panther' actress, dies at 72
- You Have 1 Day Left to Shop Lands' End's Huge Summer Sale: $10 Dresses, $14 Totes & More Up to 85% Off
- Dear E!, How Do I Dress To Stay Cool in Hot Weather? Fashion Tips To Help You Beat the Heat in Style
- Emirates NBA Cup 2024 schedule: Groups, full breakdown of in-season tournament
- Video shows dog chewing cellphone battery pack, igniting fire in Oklahoma home
- McDonald's debuts Happy Meals for adults, complete with collector cups. How to get yours.
Ranking
- House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
- Yankees await MRI as Jazz Chisholm deals with possible season-ending UCL injury
- First-day tragedy: Student, struck by mom's car in drop-off line, in critical condition
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Outside Hire
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Ernesto intensifies into Category 1 hurricane north of Puerto Rico
- Texas church demolished after mass shooting. How should congregations process tragedy?
- Flavor Flav offers Jordan Chiles bronze clock after medal controversy
Recommendation
A New York Appellate Court Rejects a Broad Application of the State’s Green Amendment
Love Island U.K.'s Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury Break Up One Year After Engagement
US Army soldier pleads guilty to selling sensitive military information
Best Halloween Fashion Finds That Are Spooky, Stylish, and Aren’t Costumes—Starting at $8
Daughter of Utah death row inmate navigates complicated dance of grief and healing before execution
Olympic Judge Defends Australian Breakdancer Raygun’s “Originality”
Why should an employee be allowed to resign instead of being fired? Ask HR
Utility will pay $20 million to avoid prosecution in Ohio bribery scheme