He co-created one of the biggest toy franchises in history, and one of the most recognizable icons in Pop Culture. With He-Man and the Masters of the Universe seeing a resurgence in popularity due to the new film in June, Roger Sweet struggles to pay for the mental health care he needs.
On January 23rd, Mr. Sweet was placed in a memory care facility that he and his wife could not afford, while Amazon MGM Studio moves forward with a film adapting a franchise he co-created, Roger Sweet will not see a dime of the proceeds from the new movie. His wife, Marlene Sweet spoke to The Everett Hearld’s Taylor Scott Richmond in an exclusive interview, discussing her husband’s health, how they met, their nearly 40 year marriage, and his work in co-creating the Masters of the Universe toyline. Over the years, Smart and his wife was invited to and attended multiple Comic Conventions over the years, loved interacting with the fans and discussing his work. Now Roger Smart is nearly 91 years old and his dementia has steadily progressed over the last few years. His wife created a GoFundMe at the beginning of February, to help cover the $10,200-per-month cost of the care home, which is not covered by Medicare.
“Roger is now nearly 91 years old and sadly has dementia. His illness has continued to progress, and I have done all I can to take care of his needs at home. He recently went for a walk and returned much later than usual and very tired. I discovered terrible bruising on his side and much disorientation, and when asked what happened he did not recall falling and getting this injury. The doctor sent him to the ER, and after 4 hours of tests they discovered he had two brain bleeds along with the massive bruising on his side. He was admitted to the ICU where he stayed for 3 days, then 4 more days in the main hospital, sleeping most of the time and continuing to be very disoriented, along with refusing to stay put and trying to go walking about. The doctors consider him a high risk for falls and say he must use a walker, considering the dementia and brain bleeds, but he says he does not need it and continues to walk around in his confused state.
Marlene Smart, wife of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Co-Creator, Roger Smart
They decided he must live in a Memory care facility, where he can be monitored and safe. He is now at our chosen care facility and is settling in. He has only been there a few days and his mental decline is sadly continuing. It is devastating to see this happening. Unfortunately these care facilities are not covered by Medicare, and the cost for a patient in his condition is $10,200 a month, well above our monthly income.“
At this moment, the money raised in their GoFundMe has reached over the $50,000 goal, sitting at $53,249 and it is still rising as we speak. The highest donation was from the Mattel Foundation with $5,000. If you want to donate to his GoFundMe, click this link to head on over to their Donation page.
AD: Available Now On Amazon: He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: The Complete Original Series [DVD]
Masters of the Universe is a Sword and Planet-themed franchise created by Mattel. The premise behind the series focuses on a conflict between He-Man (the alter ego of Prince Adam) and Skeletor on the planet Eternia, with a vast lineup of supporting characters in a hybrid setting of medieval sword and sorcery, and sci-fi technology. The series itself spawned a variety of products that include action figures (created by T. Mark Taylor and Roger Sweet), seven animated television series, several comic series, video games, books and magazines, a daily newspaper comic strip, and three feature films. It would also inspire a follow-up series, She-Ra: Princess of Power revolves around He-Man’s sister She-Ra and her rebellion against The Horde on the planet Etheria. The Documentary, Power of Grayskull: The Definitive History of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is available to watch on TUBI.
Source: Everett Hearld, GoFundMe
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