Tony Bennett’s wife Susan Benedetto says star ‘doesn’t know’ he has Alzheimer’s



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Tony Bennett’s wife, Susan Benedetto, talks more about the singer’s state of health.

Bennett’s family first revealed he was living with Alzheimer’s disease in February, and the 95-year-old music legend took the stage one last time in August, with back-to-back performances at Radio City Music. New York Hall alongside dating collaborator Lady Gaga.

During Sunday’s episode of 60 minutes, Anderson Cooper sat down with Bennett and Benedetto after his last appearance on stage.

“He recognizes me, thank God his children, you know we are blessed in so many ways,” Benedetto told the reporter. “He’s very nice.”

“He doesn’t know he has it,” she added, referring to her Alzheimer’s disease.

Previously, Benedetto said Bennett was unable to understand what the disease is.

Tony Bennett

Tony Bennett

JP Yim / Getty

RELATED: Tony Bennett retires from performing: “His continued health is most important,” says son

During the 60 minutes broadcast, Bennett performed a song with his pianist – recalling every word and note with no sheet music or lyrics in front of him.

“Well, that was really one of the biggest honors I’ve ever had,” said Cooper, 54, thanking Bennett for the song.

“Tony likes to say that he’s on a mission to make people feel good, and he still is,” Benedetto commented, to which Bennett confirmed, “That’s it.”

Dr Gaytari Devi, who diagnosed Bennett with the disease in 2017, said in the 60 minutes interview that the star “knows he’s Tony Bennett and that he knows how to behave like Tony Bennett”.

“It’s an area of ​​the brain that is such an inherently hard-wired part of his brain,” she told Cooper. “And it’s also an area of ​​her brain that gives them real meaning and purpose in her life, and it’s imbued with emotion.”

Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett

Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett

Kevin Mazur / Getty

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She continued, “I mean that’s the other thing about music that sets her apart is that it’s a part of the brain that’s very emotional. Music is housed in different parts of the brain. , including the parts of the brain that process emotions, and therefore it’s easy to get moved when you hear it. ”

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When asked by Cooper if Bennett’s final performance was “a sad story”, Gaga gave her own reflection on the crooner “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”.

“It’s not a sad story,” she said. “It’s touching. It’s hard to see someone change. I think what’s been beautiful about it, and what’s been difficult is seeing how it affects them in some ways, but to see how that doesn’t affect his talent. ”

“I think he’s really pushed something to give the world the gift of knowing that things can change and that you can still be beautiful,” she concluded.

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