Los Angeles — Adam Rich, the child actor with a page mop who charmed TV viewers in the late ’70s as “America’s Little Brother” in “Eight Is Enough,” has died. He was 54 years old.
Rich died Saturday in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles, Lt. Amy Earl of the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office said. The cause of death is still under investigation but is not considered suspicious.
Rich had a limited acting career after playing Nicholas Bradford, the youngest of eight children, on the ABC drama that ran from 1977 to 1981.
He had several encounters with police regarding drugs and alcohol – and sought treatment at the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage.
Rich suffered from a type of depression that defies treatment, and he tried to erase the stigma of talking about mental illness, says advertising analyst Danny Derani. He unsuccessfully tried experimental treatments over the years and remained sober.
Derani said he and others close to Rich had been worried in recent weeks when they couldn’t reach him.
“He was just a kind, generous, loving soul,” Dirani told the Associated Press. “Being a famous actor isn’t necessarily what he wanted to be… He didn’t have an ego, not an ounce of it.”
Copyright © 2023 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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