JACKI LYDEN, Host:
WEEKEND EDITION profiled him back in 1999.
M: See how close you can get to it? Now he's on the alert. You want me to hold that down there?
LYDEN: He told us that he had built up an immunity to the snake bites by injecting himself with a mix of cobra venom. He said he wasn't sure if that venom cocktail contributed to his good health and vitality.
HAAST: I have no proof, but I'm active from morning 'til night, seven days a week. So when I'm 100, if I'm doing just what I'm doing now, then I'll say, yes, it's the venom.
LYDEN: It must have been. Bill Haast died of natural causes at the age of 100.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
LYDEN: You're listening to WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.