A persistent online hoax or exaggerated story claims a “richest man” was cryogenically frozen with plans to be revived after 50 years (often tied to 2017). This refers to James Hiram Bedford, a psychology professor who became the first person cryopreserved in 1967—but he wasn’t the richest man in America, and no revival has occurred.
The Real Story: James Bedford, Not a Billionaire
The man at the center of this legend is Dr. James Hiram Bedford (1893–1967), a retired psychology professor from California who wrote books on career counseling. He was not one of the richest men in America (that title at the time belonged to people like J. Paul Getty or Howard Hughes).
On January 12, 1967, Bedford died at age 73 from kidney cancer that had spread to his lungs. He had arranged in advance to be cryonically preserved — the first person in history to undergo the procedure after legal death.
- His body was packed in ice shortly after death and then cryopreserved using early cryonics techniques (involving chemicals and liquid nitrogen at around -196°C / -320°F).
- The procedure was performed by members of the newly formed Cryonics Society of California.
- Bedford left money in his will to support cryonics research, and his family helped defend the arrangement in court.
His body was initially stored by his family, then transferred in 1982 to the Alcor Life Extension Foundation in Arizona, where it remains today — still in cryopreservation, over 59 years later.
Some viral posts exaggerate him as a “millionaire” or “richest man,” but he was a middle-class academic who chose cryonics out of personal interest in life extension.
Why the “50 Years” and “Revival” Part Is a Myth
- There was never a specific plan to revive him exactly after 50 years (e.g., in 2017). Cryonics organizations like Alcor store bodies indefinitely with the hope that future technology (nanotechnology, advanced medicine, or cell repair) might one day repair damage from aging, disease, and the freezing process itself.
- No one has ever been successfully revived from cryopreservation. The process causes significant cellular damage (ice crystal formation, dehydration, toxicity from cryoprotectants), and current science considers full-body revival impossible with today’s technology.
- Claims of revival in 2017 (or any specific year) are completely fabricated for clicks. Bedford remains frozen at Alcor alongside hundreds of other cryopreserved individuals (whole bodies or just heads/brains).
How the Myth Started and Spread
- Early cryonics was sensationalized in the 1960s and 1970s.
- Similar false rumors (like Walt Disney being frozen) have circulated for decades.
- Social media, TikTok, and YouTube amplified distorted versions: adding “richest man,” inventing a precise 50-year revival date, or claiming he woke up wealthy.
- The story taps into deep human desires — cheating death, immortality, and futuristic tech — making it highly shareable even when inaccurate.
The Current State of Cryonics
Today, cryonics is a niche but real industry. Major organizations include:
- Alcor (Arizona)
- Cryonics Institute (Michigan)
- KrioRus (Russia)
Hundreds of people (including some wealthy tech enthusiasts) have signed up or been preserved. Costs range from tens of thousands to over $200,000 for full-body preservation, plus ongoing storage fees. Some billionaires (like Peter Thiel) have expressed interest or support for ideological reasons, but none of the world’s current richest individuals are known to have been cryopreserved.
Scientists remain divided: some see theoretical future potential in molecular repair, while most view it as highly speculative or pseudoscientific given the massive damage from death and freezing.
