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CNN Live At Daybreak
Jason Priestley Injured in Racing Accident
Aired August 12, 2002 - 05:25 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COSTELLO: Chad, you heard about Jason Priestley?
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I did. He crashed there in Kentucky.
COSTELLO: How did that happen? There was just a little bit, an oil spill on the race track?
MYERS: They had some oil on the track and then they put oil dry down, which is kind of like kitty litter. And if you've ever -- and you can do this as a person. You can take yourself and as you look at the kitty litter, you can kind of slide on it. It almost becomes like you're walking on some ball bearings. And he slid on that oil dry, which is just basically little pieces of sand, and spun up into the wall.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, and he was going 180 miles an hour when he hit that wall head on.
MYERS: Yes, which probably scrubbed a little bit of that speed off, yes. But you could see the nose of the car that he was racing really just flattened. And I could tell as soon as I saw the car that his feet were going to be injured, but then we know he had more injuries than that.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, very serious injuries. Actually, he's in the hospital this morning in Kentucky.
We want to get more now from CNN's Chris Osborne.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS OSBORNE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Most of us came to know him as nice guy heartthrob Brandon Walsh on "Beverly Hills 90210."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brandon.
JASON PRIESTLEY: Candice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Welcome home.
PRIESTLEY: Thank you.
OSBORNE: But long before millions followed his every move, in fact, since he was five years old, Jason Priestley wanted to be an actor. He grew up in Vancouver, Canada, then made his way to Hollywood. Several years back, Jason told CNN he's a Canadian who's OK with his all American image.
PRIESTLEY: I think that just has to do with being from Canada, you know? All those Canadian guys are nice guys.
OSBORNE: Adored by millions on "90210" as the smart, good kid, Priestly sought to break out from his Brandon Walsh persona. So he appeared in scores of movies, including 1993's "Tombstone" and this movie in 1997, "Love and Death On Long Island."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All those babes don't want to see you lonesome.
PRIESTLEY: Sure. Like I'm Mr. Popular.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm going to make you Mr. Popular, and that's a promise.
OSBORNE: But in addition to countless TV and film appearances, Priestley took on other challenges in the entertainment business, producing and directing a handful of films, including a rockumentary about the Bare Naked Ladies in 1999 called "Bare Naked in America."
From heartthrob to thrill seeker, outside the Hollywood world, Priestley sought extreme action, racing cars, beginning in 1991, winning his first race in 1998. Priestley said he loves the sport, but loves his Hollywood life and lifestyle too much to race full time.
In Atlanta, Chris Osborne, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And, again, he's in the hospital this morning. We'll keep up update on his condition throughout DAYBREAK.
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