Anatoliy Kashpirovsky, famous Soviet-era hypnotist, dies at 87

Anatoliy Kashpirovsky, the controversial Soviet-era psychotherapist and hypnotist, has died at the age of 87. He passed away in a Moscow hospital in the early hours of October 3.

Kashpirovsky gained massive popularity during the Perestroika era through televised hypnosis sessions that drew millions of viewers across the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. He claimed to be able to treat various ailments, ranging from psoriasis to tumors, using only his voice and suggestion. While his methods were a cultural phenomenon, they were widely criticized by the scientific community; the Russian Academy of Sciences labeled his practices as “pseudoscience.”

Reports regarding the exact cause of death vary. Hospital director Sergey Rudikh indicated the death was unexpected, following a sudden drop in blood pressure that led to cardiac arrest. However, family representative Yuriy Mamaev stated that Kashpirovsky had been battling stage four stomach cancer with metastases in the lungs and brain, which eventually led to organ failure.