The 9/11 attacks cost the lives of 2,977 innocent people, along with the 19 hijackers but a handful of celebrities had extraordinary escapes
Nearly a quarter of a century on from the 9/11 atrocities, the reverberations from the four coordinated al-Qaeda suicide strikes continue to resonate across the globe.
Two passenger jets were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, whilst a third aircraft was piloted into the Pentagon. A fourth plane plummeted in Pennsylvania following a heroic struggle between crew, passengers and the terrorists aboard, thwarting its mission to hit another target, believed to be the White House, reports the Mirror US.
The four crashes claimed the lives of 2,977 innocent souls, alongside the 19 hijackers. Amongst the victims were several recognisable figures, including David Angell, the mastermind behind beloved television programmes such as Cheers and Frasier. The news comes as Donald Trump says Charlie Kirk ‘could have been President’ after ally shot dead.
Yet a select few celebrities experienced remarkable near-misses from the devastating assaults, either by missing flights that were subsequently hijacked or calling off meetings in the ill-fated towers.
Seth MacFarlane
The brains behind popular animated series including Family Guy and American Dad, plus live-action comedies such as Ted, A Million Ways to Die in the West and the Star Trek spoof The Orville, Seth MacFarlane was scheduled to board American Airlines Flight 11 from Boston to Los Angeles on the morning of September 11, 2001.
“I was booked on that flight, and I was drinking the night before, and I was hungover,” he subsequently disclosed during an interview.
“I missed the plane by about ten minutes,” he revealed. “It was a very close call for me.”
After rescheduling his flight, Seth decided to take a nap.
However, upon waking up a few hours later and turning on the news, he discovered that a tragedy had occurred – and that he’d narrowly avoided it.
Mark Wahlberg
Like Seth MacFarlane, the Oscar-nominated star of films such as The Departed and Boogie Nights was initially booked on American Airlines Flight 11.
However, he altered his plans at the eleventh hour, opting to fly to Toronto for a film festival instead.
The hard-man actor faced severe criticism after suggesting that he could have prevented the hijackers. In a magazine interview six months post-tragedy, Wahlberg stated: “If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.'”
Deena Burnett-Bailey, whose husband Thomas Burnett was one of the passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 who successfully fought the hijackers, told TMZ she was offended by Wahlberg’s comments:
“I think hindsight is 20/20 and it’s insignificant to say what you would have done if you weren’t there.
“The plan for Flight 93 was foiled by heroes. For him to speculate that his presence on board could have stopped everything is silly and disrespectful.”
In 2012, he encountered fresh criticism for reiterating the remark during a chat with Men’s Journal. Wahlberg subsequently issued an apology, stating: “I deeply apologise to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive, it was certainly not my intention.
“To suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible.”
Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson, the self-proclaimed “King Of Pop” allegedly had a breakfast appointment at the World Trade Center on that tragic morning. Yet, according to his elder brother Jermaine, he had stayed up very late talking with his mum and overslept.
Jermaine penned in his 2012 autobiography, You Are Not Alone Michael: Through a Brother’s Eyes: “Thankfully, none of us had had a clue that Michael was due at a meeting that morning at the top of one of the Twin Towers.
“We only discovered this when Mother phoned his hotel to make sure he was okay. She, Rebbie and a few others had left him there around 3am. ‘Mother, I’m okay, thanks to you,’ he told her. ‘You kept me up talking so late that I overslept and missed my appointment.'”
Sarah Ferguson
When the attacks occurred, the Duchess of York’s charity, Chances for Children, maintained an office on the 101st floor of the North Tower at the World Trade Center. She had been scheduled to pop into the office following an early-morning chat with NBC’s Matt Lauer.
Her car, en route to the World Trade Center, was caught in traffic, meaning she was still on her way when the planes struck.
“The Duchess of York is desperately upset for everyone involved in this terrible tragedy,” her spokesperson stated at the time. “It is unbelievable, she was just a few minutes away when the explosion took place.”
Following the collapse of the Twin Towers, the charity’s mascot – a doll named Little Red – was discovered amidst the debris by photographers. Years later, the duchess proposed a children’s book based on the doll’s story, but publishers rejected it, fearing it would offend American readers.
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