Post by The Ultimate Nullifier on Jun 24, 2015 6:48:34 GMT -6
deadline.com/2015/06/dick-van-patten-dies-eight-is-enough-star-1201452208/
Dick Van Patten Dies: ‘Eight Is Enough’ Star, Broadway Charmer Was 86
Betty Buckley, Van Patten’s co-star on Eight Is Enough, told Deadline: “I am deeply saddened to hear about Dick Van Patten passing away. I am grateful that I got to see him and his lovely wife Pat when I was in Los Angeles in late January. He taught me so much when I worked with him on Eight Is Enough. He was our rock, our leader, our role model. His vast career in theater, film and television was awe inspiring. He was the consummate professional, a wonderful actor, master of comedy and a kind and generous human being. Every day on set he was a happy, jovial person, always generous and ready to play, tease and always keep us all laughing. His love for life and his beautiful family were an inspiration. I loved him very much. I send my love and deepest condolences to his wife Pat, sons, Nels, Jimmy and Vincent, his sister Joyce and brother Tim.”
Dick Van Patten, star of the ’80s TV series Eight Is Enough among many other programs, died early this morning at Saint John’s Hospital in Santa Monica of complications from diabetes. He was 86.
Van Patten began work as a child actor (at age seven), primarily on the stage in his native New York before segueing to TV, appearing in more than 30 Broadway shows. His first role was in 1935 in Tapestry In Gray which starred Melvyn Douglas. He was billed as ‘Dickie Van Patten,’ his name on the Playbill for Thornton Wilder’s 1942 game-changer The Skin Of Our Teeth, in which he played the Telegraph Boy. He appeared in 27 Broadway shows, including Mister Roberts, Lovers And Other Strangers and his last play, Herb Gardner’s Thieves, in 1974.
He took off on television as Nels Hansen in the 1949 TV series I Remember Mama, which ran from 1949 to 1957, but it was his role as patriarch Tom Bradford on Eight Is Enough (1977-81) for which he is best known. He also had guest stints on The Love Boat and appeared on The New Dick Van Dyke Show, Happy Days and One Day At A Time. His most recent credits include Hot In Cleveland, That ’70s Show and Arrested Development.
Van Patten also starred in the TV series When Things Were Rotten and WIOU. He was a staple among 1970s TV shows with guest-starring roles in episodes of such popular shows as Sanford and Son, The Streets of San Francisco, Adam-12, Emergency!, Happy Days, Love Boat and then later on Touched By An Angel, Family Guy and Growing Pains.
He also co-starred in several Disney films and has appeared in three films directed by Mel Brooks, including High Anxiety, Spaceballs and Robin Hood: Men in Tights. He also appeared in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, Soylent Green and the Oscar-winning Charly.
In addition to Van Patten’s decades-long work as an actor, he was a businessman and dedicated animal advocate. He co-founded Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Pet Foods in 1989 and, in 2008, established National Guide Dog Month to raise awareness and money for non-profit guide dog schools in the United States.
He was the older brother of actress Joyce Van Patten, the older half-brother of film director Tim Van Patten and the uncle of actress Talia Balsam.
He is survived by his wife Patricia Van Patten, (a former June Taylor Dancer), who he has been married to for 62 years as well as his three actor sons, Nels, Jimmy and Vincent.
Dick Van Patten Dies: ‘Eight Is Enough’ Star, Broadway Charmer Was 86
Betty Buckley, Van Patten’s co-star on Eight Is Enough, told Deadline: “I am deeply saddened to hear about Dick Van Patten passing away. I am grateful that I got to see him and his lovely wife Pat when I was in Los Angeles in late January. He taught me so much when I worked with him on Eight Is Enough. He was our rock, our leader, our role model. His vast career in theater, film and television was awe inspiring. He was the consummate professional, a wonderful actor, master of comedy and a kind and generous human being. Every day on set he was a happy, jovial person, always generous and ready to play, tease and always keep us all laughing. His love for life and his beautiful family were an inspiration. I loved him very much. I send my love and deepest condolences to his wife Pat, sons, Nels, Jimmy and Vincent, his sister Joyce and brother Tim.”
Dick Van Patten, star of the ’80s TV series Eight Is Enough among many other programs, died early this morning at Saint John’s Hospital in Santa Monica of complications from diabetes. He was 86.
Van Patten began work as a child actor (at age seven), primarily on the stage in his native New York before segueing to TV, appearing in more than 30 Broadway shows. His first role was in 1935 in Tapestry In Gray which starred Melvyn Douglas. He was billed as ‘Dickie Van Patten,’ his name on the Playbill for Thornton Wilder’s 1942 game-changer The Skin Of Our Teeth, in which he played the Telegraph Boy. He appeared in 27 Broadway shows, including Mister Roberts, Lovers And Other Strangers and his last play, Herb Gardner’s Thieves, in 1974.
He took off on television as Nels Hansen in the 1949 TV series I Remember Mama, which ran from 1949 to 1957, but it was his role as patriarch Tom Bradford on Eight Is Enough (1977-81) for which he is best known. He also had guest stints on The Love Boat and appeared on The New Dick Van Dyke Show, Happy Days and One Day At A Time. His most recent credits include Hot In Cleveland, That ’70s Show and Arrested Development.
Van Patten also starred in the TV series When Things Were Rotten and WIOU. He was a staple among 1970s TV shows with guest-starring roles in episodes of such popular shows as Sanford and Son, The Streets of San Francisco, Adam-12, Emergency!, Happy Days, Love Boat and then later on Touched By An Angel, Family Guy and Growing Pains.
He also co-starred in several Disney films and has appeared in three films directed by Mel Brooks, including High Anxiety, Spaceballs and Robin Hood: Men in Tights. He also appeared in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, Soylent Green and the Oscar-winning Charly.
In addition to Van Patten’s decades-long work as an actor, he was a businessman and dedicated animal advocate. He co-founded Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Pet Foods in 1989 and, in 2008, established National Guide Dog Month to raise awareness and money for non-profit guide dog schools in the United States.
He was the older brother of actress Joyce Van Patten, the older half-brother of film director Tim Van Patten and the uncle of actress Talia Balsam.
He is survived by his wife Patricia Van Patten, (a former June Taylor Dancer), who he has been married to for 62 years as well as his three actor sons, Nels, Jimmy and Vincent.