The death of child actor Adam Rich was confirmed by a statement sent by his publicist on Sunday. Rich is famous for his mop-top pageboy hairdo and portrayal as “America’s younger brother” in the television comedy “Eight is Enough.” He was 54.
According to Lieutenant Aimee Earl of the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner Coroner’s Office, Rich died on Saturday at his home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Investigators were attempting to determine the circumstances surrounding the death, but there was no evidence to suggest foul play.
Rich, who was only eight years old at the time, was cast as Nicholas Bradford in the ABC blockbuster series that aired from 1977 until 1981. Following this, Rich’s acting career was short-lived.
After repeated run-ins with the law, he finally checked himself into the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage to receive treatment for his alcoholism and substance abuse.
Rich, according to his publicist Danny Deraney, struggled with an untreatable form of depression, and he aggressively attempted to reduce the stigma associated with discussing mental illness. Throughout the years, he attempted several alternatives and unproven treatments to no avail. Deraney adds that he and a couple of Rich’s close friends were concerned when they were unable to contact him for a few weeks.
In a statement, Deraney described her husband as “an exceptionally great, generous, and compassionate soul.” “Becoming a renowned actor was not always his dream career. Not even a trace of pride existed in him.”
Additionally, Deraney tweeted about her recollections of time spent with Rich. “When Adam and I spoke on the telephone, we typically discussed baseball.” Although he supported the Los Angeles Dodgers more than I did, we were both fervent New York Yankees fans. Perhaps there is something you are lacking… “Meeting John Lennon in New York City the day before his death in December 1980”
Rich has been transparent on Twitter about his battles with mental health and substance misuse, and in October he announced that he has been sober for seven years. While encouraging his nearly 19,000 followers to continue battling their addictions, he admitted he was not flawless by highlighting his arrests, several stays in rehabilitation, multiple overdoses, and “numerous detoxes and relapses.”
In September, Rich tweeted that “humans were not designed to accept mental illness.” It’s amusing that some people believe these individuals are weak or lack willpower, while the opposite is true. To overcome these types of ailments, a person must be extraordinarily resilient, or a warrior.
Rich posted a vintage photo of himself with famed child actor Mickey Rooney on Instagram.
As he stated in a tweet, “Everyone used to tell me, ‘You are the contemporary Mickey Rooney. He stated, “But when Mickey Rooney himself said it to me, it meant so much more.”
Might magazine played and published a hoax in which Rich participated approximately 27 years ago. The imposter claimed the star was murdered in 1996 outside a Los Angeles nightclub during a robbery. The article’s intended criticism of American celebrity culture was revealed as parody, rendering the satire ineffective.
“The level of confidentiality we maintained was insufficient, in my opinion.” “The audience could not understand the humor,” Rich expanded in an interview with the Chicago Tribune the following day. “I have no desire to visit the afterlife.”
Rich, portrayed by Dick Van Patten, was the younger sibling of a generation of television viewers as the son of a man who had to raise eight children by himself after the death of his wife and the actress who portrayed her during the first season of production. Dick was the name of Dick Van Patten’s younger brother.
According to IMDB.com, between 1981 and 1982, Rich starred in the television series “Code Red,” and between 1983 and 1985, he portrayed Presto the Magician in the role-playing game “Dungeons & Dragons.” In both reunion television films for “Eight is Enough,” he reprised his role.
However, the majority of his acting work consisted of guest-starring roles in episodes of popular television series such as “The Love Boat,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “Silver Spoons,” and “Baywatch.” On IMDB, his sole acting credit is a 2003 episode of “Reel Comedy,” in which he portrayed Crocodile Dundee.