- Kienast quintuplets
The Kienast quintuplets (born
February 24 ,1970 ), consisting of three girls (Amy, Sara and Abigail) and two boys (Edward and William Jr., known respectively as Ted and Gordon) were the first American set of survivingquintuplets to be conceived through the use offertility drugs . They were born to William "Bill" Kienast, a salesman, and his wife Peggy Jo, who already had two children also conceived through the use of the fertility drugPergonal . They were only the second set of surviving quintuplets born in the U.S. so news of their birth atColumbia-Presbyterian Medical Center inNew York made international headlines. They were brought home to Liberty Corners, New Jersey onApril 27 ,1970 , two months after they were born. [ [http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/news/journal/journal-o/fall-2003/75years_2650.html#Anchor-34-44867 "Blessings Multiplied"] ] As babies and toddlers they were featured on numerous talk shows and commercials, andGood Housekeeping magazine had an exclusive deal to publish four articles about them in their first two years. [ [http://www.zunshine.com/kienast/biography.html "Kienast Quints Bio"] ] . Despite the commercials the family began having financial problems. Bill Kienast had struggled in establishing two businesses, and in 1983 the family would have had their home foreclosed upon if not for the intervention of a local industrialist. In 1984 Bill Kienast committed suicide by carbon monoxide inhalation, which made national headlines. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9C05E0DE1539F936A35750C0A962948260 "Quintuplets' Father Lost Struggle In The Limelight"] ]In May 2001 the quintuplets, then 31, and their mother gave an interview to
Good Housekeeping , their last known national media appearance. [ [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-10882822_ITM "The Kienast Quints All Grown Up"] ]References
External links
* [http://www.zunshine.com/kienast/index.html The Kienast Quints fansite]
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