On June 7, 2009, the Tony Awards kicked off with a blast. Poison was asked to perform during the ceremony. That made perfect sense, considering the musical Rock Of Ages was up for five Tony awards that year, including Best Musical. Poison’s hit song “Nothin’ But A Good Time” is a big part of that particular musical. So, Bret Michaels, along with the other members of Poison, took to the stage and delivered one heck of a performance of “Nothin’ But A Good Time”, complete with dancers in the background.
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When the song wrapped up, the band members pivoted back and climbed back onto the set platform to fist-bump and celebrate their killer performance. Michaels, however, was slow to make it to the set platform. A large wall prop descended from the ceiling, likely to cover the front set platform to mark the end of the performance. The prop struck Michaels in the head and knocked him backwards as he was exiting to the stage rear.
The moment was caught live on camera. The whole thing wasn’t just embarrassing, either. Michaels allegedly suffered a broken nose. And it gets worse from there.
The Debacle That Injured Bret Michaels and Landed a Lawsuit in the Laps of CBS Execs
The following year, Michaels suffered from a brain hemorrhage that nearly took his life. Michaels and his legal team claimed that being struck in the head at the Tony Awards the previous year likely caused the hemorrhage. So, they filed a lawsuit against both the Tony Awards and CBS for unspecified damages.
By mid-2012, both parties announced that they had reached a settlement agreement. The amount of money that Michaels received was never disclosed. There’s a (arguable) chance that the Tony Awards injury had a hand in his health issues. But, the truth behind how severe the injury actually was has never been revealed.
It makes some sense why Michaels would assume the 2009 Tony Awards injury would have a hand in the health issues he suffered in 2010. That particular year was very rough for Michaels, but he came out on top.
“2010 was, without question, a roller coaster year for me,” Michaels later said. “But when you have an amazing family, and you still have a lot of music left to make, and you have such incredible and supportive fans behind you, you’re going to fight until the very last breath before you throw in that towel.”
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
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