"When a leader is held to be divine, his sudden death poses practical problems, for dying is the one thing he is not supposed to do. Indeed, everything was done to stop

[North Korean dictator] Kim Il Sung from doing it. According to Ko Yong Hwan, a North Korean defector and former diplomat, a clinic staffed by two thousand pharmacists, dietitians, biologists, cardiologists, pathologists, and other specialists was established with the sole purpose of finding ways to prolong both Kims' lives. Two teams of men, corresponding in age and body type to the Great Leader and his son, were selected as guinea pigs for experiments with diets and drugs."

[Despite such efforts (and a specially-designed high-tech toilet to analyse his droppings), Kim Il Sung died in 1994. He was 82 years old. Four years later, the constitution was revised to install him as "president for eternity."]