"There is Not Much Demand for One Twin"
January 11, 2013 9:41 AM   Subscribe

Vivian Brown, one of San Francisco's iconic Brown Twins has passed away. She had Alzheimer's and had suffered a bad fall several months ago. Her twin, Marian has been receiving an outpouring of assistance from fans and friends.
posted by agatha_magatha (21 comments total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
Such sad news. I remember seeing them downtown together regularly. Always together. Always smiling. Always dressed to the nines, spreading cheer.


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posted by trip and a half at 9:44 AM on January 11, 2013 [1 favorite]


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posted by OverlappingElvis at 9:48 AM on January 11, 2013


There's nothing grand about growing old.
posted by Windigo at 9:48 AM on January 11, 2013 [1 favorite]


I took it as the sign of a good day if I spotted them out and about.

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posted by kuppajava at 9:53 AM on January 11, 2013 [3 favorites]


There's much to be said for growing old with panache, though.
posted by small_ruminant at 9:53 AM on January 11, 2013 [9 favorites]


I used to see them all the time. Like kuppajava said, it was always fun to see them
posted by Sassenach at 10:02 AM on January 11, 2013 [1 favorite]


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posted by sharkitect at 10:25 AM on January 11, 2013


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It must be shattering to be a surviving twin.
posted by kinnakeet at 10:33 AM on January 11, 2013 [4 favorites]


I spent this Christmas week helping my father clean out his mother's house, where she's lived for 30+ years, because it had become clear that she was no longer able to care for herself, or even to notice that her house was in unlivable condition, or stay focused on the task of moving long enough to accomplish it herself.

She's not too bad, yet. She has a lot of good days, still. And, fortunately, she has enough money saved to afford the care she needs.

So, yeah, I don't generally see the purpose of railing against inanimate concepts. But man, fuck you, Alzheimer's.

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posted by kagredon at 10:34 AM on January 11, 2013 [10 favorites]


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posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 10:35 AM on January 11, 2013


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posted by gingerbeer at 10:37 AM on January 11, 2013


This picture is so incredibly sad.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 10:56 AM on January 11, 2013 [3 favorites]


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It was always a treat to go to the city; seeing them made it even more fun.
posted by mogget at 11:27 AM on January 11, 2013


My Mom and I were regularly in Union Square on Saturdays and it was always so nice to see them arm-in-arm, in matching outfits, looking fine and being just one more thing that makes San Francisco the gem that it is.

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posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:43 PM on January 11, 2013


I remember the first time I saw them, I knew somehow that meant I finally really lived in SF.
I miss The City and those nice ladies.
posted by pywacket at 1:05 PM on January 11, 2013 [2 favorites]


So does the surviving twin not have Alzheimer's? They aren't clear about that, and I would think that would be of great interest to the medical community.
posted by Malor at 1:53 PM on January 11, 2013 [3 favorites]


Marion does not have Alzheimer's (that I know of). I actually saw her walking on the arm of a younger man recently (scandal!). It was good to see her out and not by herself.

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posted by whatever at 2:00 PM on January 11, 2013 [2 favorites]


"Even identical twins, who share all their genes, differ in their vulnerability. The study found only a 45 percent concordance rate for identical male pairs. This means that of all pairs where one twin has Alzheimer's, 55 percent of the healthy twins either will never get the disease or will develop it later in life."
posted by timsneezed at 2:05 PM on January 11, 2013 [2 favorites]


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I saw Marion by herself in Uncle Vito's a few months ago.
posted by mike3k at 11:06 PM on January 11, 2013


I remember teh first time I saw them, I'd walked up to catch the California line. They were amazing, I wanted so badly to take a photograph but felt it would be rude because I didn't know who they were back then.

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posted by infini at 1:06 AM on January 12, 2013


I'm a little confused by the fact that she could only afford $30 to see her sister twice a week but she ate a $20 meal at a diner daily. Surely she could have eaten at home (Meals on Wheels?) and saved that money to visit more often. Unless that's only been happening since her sister died.

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posted by IndigoRain at 5:37 AM on January 12, 2013


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