Jett Travolta Dead at 16, Update

Son of actors John Travolta and Kelly Preston, teenager Jett Travolta has died after suffering a seizure while vacationing with his family in the Bahamas.

Here’s recent video of Jett. Was he special needs, autisitc or Kawasaki Syndrome?

Police in the Bahamas Saturday planned for an autopsy in the death of Hollywood superstar John Travolta’s teenage son a day after he was found unconscious in the bathroom during a family vacation. Jett Travolta, 16, had a history of seizures since he was a toddler and suffered one on Friday “at around 10:00 am,” the actor’s attorney, Michael Ossi, told CNN. “All attempts to revive him were unsuccessful.” The youth was the only son of the 54-year-old film star — also a trained jet pilot — and actress Kelly Preston, 46. They have a daughter, Ella, aged eight. – from AFP

The Bahamas will use two pathologists to ensure a careful autopsy on John Travolta’s son, who died at the actor’s vacation home in Grand Bahama, the territory’s health minister said Saturday. Dr. Hubert Minnis told The Associated Press that he decided to use a second specialist to guarantee a thorough assessment of what might have caused Jett Travolta’s death. The 16-year-old was found collapsed in a bathroom on Friday after having a seizure and hitting his head on the bathtub, said a police officer who declined to be named because she was not authorized to speak on the matter. He was taken by ambulance to a Freeport hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police Superintendent Basil Rahming said in a statement. – from AP

Rahming did not elaborate on the time or place of the procedure. He said Travolta’s eldest child, who had a history of seizures, had been found unconscious in a bathroom at his family’s home at the Old Bahama Bay resort on Grand Bahama Island on Friday morning. The body was discovered by a caretaker, Rahming said. Jett Travolta had last been seen alive on Thursday and was pronounced dead after being taken by ambulance to Rand Memorial Hospital in Freeport. The Travoltas arrived in Grand Bahama on December 30 for a New Year family get-together at their vacation unit at the Old Bahama Bay hotel resort. They had planned to stay until January 9. Family lawyer Michael Ossi said Travolta and his wife, actress Kelly Preston, were “distraught” over the loss of their son. Both have said previously that he became very sick when he was a toddler and was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease, which leads to inflammation of the blood vessels in young children. – from Reuters

Jett, 16, was diagnosed with Kawasaki disease 16 years ago, leading his parents to blame the chemicals in household cleaners and fertilisers. Travola, 54, and his wife, Kelly Preston, 46, put their son on a detoxification programme based on teachings from the Church of Scientology, but it is not clear if he was also given other medication. The star couple are both practising Scientologists along with other members of the Hollywood A list including Tom Cruise and his wife Katie Holmes. Loretta Mackey, the police spokeswoman in Nassau, said Jett had hit his head while in the bath. He was discovered unconscious and taken to hospital, but was declared dead on arrival. – from Telegraph

No exact cause of death was given, but his parents have said in the past that Jett suffered from Kawasaki Syndrome, a rare condition that can lead to heart disease. Kawasaki disease predominantly affects young children, with 80 per cent of patients younger than five years old, and boys are more likely to suffer with it than girls. The condition is characterised by high fever, skin rashes and a swelling of the lymph nodes, but can lead to heart attacks caused by inflammation of blood vessels in the coronary arteries. Kawasaki disease is one of the most common causes of acquired heart disease among children in the U.S – from Dailymail

But lots of folks just didn’t believe this story, claiming that the boy’s parents’ rigid devotion to the Church of Scientology—a cult that doesn’t eagerly recognize mental illness as anything that vitamins and exercise can’t fix—was causing them to willfully deny what some saw as painfully obvious: that Jett was suffering from autism. Folks picketed the Travolta/Preston family, saying that their refusal to seek treatment for the boy bordered on—or, you know, flat out was—child abuse. Travolta’s brother Joey even produced a movie about the condition, but the family continued to shut down any reports that autism was involved. They hewed to the Kawasaki Syndrome story while a glib world believed there to be some bigger secret truth. – Gawker

So what happened to Jett? Reports indicate he hit his head on a bathtub, but it is unclear whether he was having a seizure at the time, or if he slipped, or if something else preceded his fall. Was this a complication of his bout with Kawasaki disease? Or autism? Or is Jett Travolta retarded?

Many people suspected that Jett was autistic (videos which were once available online that ‘clearly’ demonstrate Jett’s developmental disability can no longer be found), but Travolta and Preston are prominent Scientologists and autism is not recognized by the cult religion:

In the past there have been reports that Jett was autistic, but Travolta always denied it, saying instead that his son suffered from Kawasaki Syndrome, a disease characterized by high fever, skin rash and swelling of the lymph nodes. Travolta follows Scientology, which does not recognize autism.

One of the tenets of Scientology is that mental illness is psychosomatic, and can only be treated through spiritual healing. You may remember Tom Cruise earning significant flak for statements to Matt Lauer concerning mental illness, namely his remark that psychiatry is a pseudo-science. Because of this fundamental belief on behalf of Scientologists, Jett certainly wasn’t treated for autism, and was likely not appropriately treated for Kawasaki disease either (especially if his condition was misdiagnosed, as many people suspect it was). – from here

Flashback:

Seems I’m the last person on the net to hear this rumor, but, I can tell you there have been many times I wondered why it was so impossible to find a current photo of Jett Travolta. You can find tons of his baby pics, and a few of him as a toddler, then they dwindle off. The Travolta’s daughter, Ella Blue is everywhere. She’s a beautiful kid and there are plenty of pics of her, but, no Jett. I just thought Jett didn’t like photos..he’s a teen now and maybe he’s camera shy. I dunno. But, then there’s the fact that Jett is never out with them in public, but, Ella often is. Something is not right about that. Scientology does not recognise Autisim. Ron L. Hubbard called anyone with a mental difficulty “a degraded being.” Scientology has a rabid hatred of psychiatry and judgment of those with psychological problems as lesser humans responsible for their own sickness. Sooo, the Travolta’s blame thier sons disablitiy on “environmental toxins” like carpet cleaning chemicals. But, most people believe Jett is autistic and not getting the help he should have because of his parents beliefs. – from here