{"id":22949,"date":"2025-12-15T08:43:37","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T08:43:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=22949"},"modified":"2025-12-15T08:43:37","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T08:43:37","slug":"clinically-dead-for-2-minutes-not-ready-to-quit-steven-adler-relives-nikki-sixx-turning-purple-two-heart-adrenaline-shots-then-ripping-out-ivs-to-run-free","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/?p=22949","title":{"rendered":"\u201cClinically Dead for 2 Minutes, Not Ready to Quit\u201d: Steven Adler Relives Nikki Sixx Turning Purple, Two Heart Adrenaline Shots, Then Ripping Out IVs to Run Free."},"content":{"rendered":"

In the notorious annals of 1980s rock debauchery, few stories are as shocking and vividly recounted as the near-fatal heroin overdose of M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce bassist Nikki Sixx. The terrifying event, which took place on December 23, 1987, saw Sixx declared clinically dead for two full minutes\u2014a moment witnessed by his horrified friend, Guns N’ Roses drummer Steven Adler. The extreme medical intervention that saved Sixx\u2019s life became the direct, adrenaline-fueled inspiration for one of M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce’s most legendary songs, “Kickstart My Heart.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The Kitchen Floor and the \u201cPurple\u201d Death<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The overdose occurred at a party at a house in the Franklin Plaza apartments. Steven Adler, who was present, provided a harrowing eyewitness account of the moment Sixx\u2019s life hung in the balance. Adler recounted the terrifying scene: \u201cI found him lying unconscious on the kitchen floor in a pool of blood,\u201d then later clarified the final, terrifying moments before the paramedics arrived. He described holding Sixx as he slipped away: \u201cHe died in my arms, turning purple.\u201d<\/b> Sixx was clinically dead for two minutes before paramedics were able to intervene. They were forced to administer two shots of pure adrenaline, injected directly into his heart, in a desperate, last-ditch effort to restart his system. The shocking procedure worked, yanking Sixx back from the brink of death.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Adrenaline Shot and the Escape<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The adrenaline shot not only saved his life but provided the name and the theme for one of M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce’s biggest hits. The opening lyrics of “Kickstart My Heart” vividly recall the experience: \u201cWhen I get high, I get high on speed \/ Top fuel funny car’s a drug for me.\u201d But the truly legendary part of the story unfolded immediately after Sixx\u2019s resurrection. As soon as he regained consciousness in the hospital, in a haze of addiction and confusion, Sixx\u2019s focus wasn’t on recovery. His immediate, audacious action has become the stuff of rock mythology: He pulled out the IV tube, ripped off his monitoring equipment, ran to the parking lot in his leather pants, hitched a ride with a couple of fans who recognized him, and drove straight back home to continue using drugs<\/b>\u2014a grim testament to the overwhelming grip of addiction.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Legacy in Rock History<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

The event was a major catalyst. It was a primary inspiration for the writing of the band’s fifth and best-selling album, Dr. Feelgood<\/i> (1989), which included the song “Kickstart My Heart.” Dr. Feelgood<\/i> became M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce\u2019s only album to reach Number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified 6x Platinum by the RIAA. The song “Kickstart My Heart” peaked at Number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains one of the band\u2019s most enduring anthems. While the story is often retold with a degree of dark humor, it represents the absolute peak of the rock and roll excess of the era, and the life-saving intervention ultimately forced Sixx to address his addiction, leading to a long period of sobriety.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the notorious annals of 1980s rock debauchery, few stories are as shocking and vividly recounted as the near-fatal heroin overdose of M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce bassist Nikki Sixx. The terrifying event, which took place on December 23, 1987, saw Sixx declared clinically dead for two full minutes\u2014a moment witnessed by his horrified friend, Guns N’ Roses…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22949"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22949\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnews.topnewsource.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}