Maureen Kennedy Salaman | |
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| Born | Maureen Kennedy (1936-04-04)April 4, 1936 Glendale, California, U.S. |
| Died | August 17, 2006(2006-08-17) (aged 70) Atherton, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Populist |
| Spouses |
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| Children | 2, includingSean |
Maureen Kennedy Salaman (April 4, 1936 – August 17, 2006) was an American author, proponent ofalternative medicine, and candidate of theAmerican Independent Party forVice President of the United States in the1984 election.
Salaman was born in 1936 inGlendale, California. Her father, Ted Kennedy, served in theUnited States Navy and was killed inWorld War II when Maureen was a child. The family then relocated toSan Mateo County, California.[1]
Salaman claimed to be a nutritionist with a Master of Science degree fromDonsbach University, an unaccredited entity, and was prominently involved inalternative medicine. She was elected president of theNational Health Federation, an alternative medicine lobbying group, in 1982. She held that position, with two interruptions, until her death.[2] Critics noted that she had been "very active in promoting questionable cancer remedies".[3] PsychiatristStephen Barrett ofQuackwatch wrote that her books "contain hundreds of unsubstantiated suggestions for using foods, dietary supplements, and herbs for a wide range of diseases and conditions."[4]
Salaman was nominated on thefar-right American Independent Party's ticket in 1984 along withBob Richards, a former Olympic pole vaulter. They received 66,324 votes (0.07%).[5]
Salaman married Gerard Morton in 1957, and that marriage produced two children,Sean and Colleen. The couple divorced, and after several years she married Frank Salaman. In 1976, Frank Salaman was charged with conspiracy to smugglelaetrile into the United States. He was found guilty by a jury in 1977, fined $10,000, and placed on probation for three years.[6][7] Maureen Salaman was an outspoken advocate of laetrile usage as a cancer preventive and treatment. In 1999, she married a third time, to Ross Burdette Gordon.
Salaman died at her home inAtherton, California in 2006 frompancreatic cancer.[8]