Jack Cassidy: Difference between revisions
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[http://davidcassidyfansite.com/InPrintPages/News1970Dec27Port%20ArthurNews.pdf While Shirley's parents supported her professional ambitions, they wer opposed to her involvement with suave sophisticated Jack Cassidy. After all, he was married, although separated, and had a child. "Besides that, he was an actor!" explained Shirley. ] |
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He suffered from [[alcoholism]] and displayed increasingly erratic behavior..<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Shirley |authorlink1=Shirley Jones|last2=Ingels |first2=Marty|authorlink2=Marty Ingels |last3=Herskowitz |first3= Mickey |title=Shirley & Marty: An Unlikely Love Story |year=1990 |publisher=William Morrow & Company |location=New York |isbn=0-688-08457-5 |page=49}}</ref> In December 1974, he was hospitalized in a [[Psychiatry|psychiatric]] facility for 48 hours.<ref>''C'mon, Get Happy'', p. 204-205</ref> At that time, Jones found out that he had been previously diagnosed with [[bipolar disorder]].<ref>''Shirley & Marty'', p. 52</ref> David wrote about his father's [[bisexuality]] in his autobiography, a fact he discovered only after his father's death.<ref name=scotsman>{{cite news | first=Jackie | last=McGlone | title=Still a daydreamer | url=http://living.scotsman.com/features/Still-a-daydreamer.3356877.jp | date=2007-03-24 | work=The Scotsman | accessdate=2008-07-06 }}</ref> |
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Revision as of 17:16, 30 September 2011
Jack Cassidy | |
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| File:Jack Cassidy.jpg | |
| Born | John Joseph Edward Cassidy March 5, 1927 |
| Died | December 12, 1976 (aged 49) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1946–1976 |
| Spouse(s) | Shirley Jones (1956-1974) Evelyn Ward (1948-1956) |
John Joseph Edward “Jack” Cassidy (March 5, 1927 – December 12, 1976) was an American actor of stage, film and screen.
His frequent professional persona was that of an urbane, super-confident egotist with a dramatic flair, much in the manner of Broadway actor Frank Fay. Cassidy perfected this character to such an extent that he was cast as the legendary John Barrymore in the feature film W.C. Fields and Me. The role of the vain, shallow, buffoon-like newsman Ted Baxter on TV's The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977) was written with Cassidy in mind.[1] However, Cassidy turned down the role, feeling that it was not right for him, and the part went to Ted Knight. Cassidy later appeared as a guest star in a 1971 episode as Ted's highly competitive and equally egocentric brother, Hal.
Biography
Early years
Cassidy was born in Richmond Hill, New York to William Cassidy, who was of Irish descent, and Charlotte Koehler, who was of German descent. He achieved his greatest success as a musical performer on Broadway, appearing in Alive and Kicking, Wish You Were Here, Shangri-La, Maggie Flynn, Fade Out - Fade In, It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, and She Loves Me, for which he won a Tony Award. He also received Emmy Award nominations for his television performances in He & She and The Andersonville Trial.
On television he became a frequent guest star, appearing in such programs as Bewitched, Get Smart, That Girl, Columbo, Hawaii Five-O, Match Game and McCloud. He lent his charming wit to game shows, and co-starred with Ronnie Schell in a TV revival of Hellzapoppin'. Cassidy also co-starred in the movie The Eiger Sanction with Clint Eastwood.
Personal life
Cassidy was married twice. His first wife was actress Evelyn Ward. Together they had a son, David Cassidy. After divorcing in 1956, Jack married actress Shirley Jones. David and Shirley later starred together in the sitcom The Partridge Family. Jack and Shirley had three sons, Shaun, Patrick, and Ryan, and divorced in 1974.
[http://davidcassidyfansite.com/InPrintPages/News1977March10TheValleyNews.pdf Shirley Jones uses the words " truly proud" to describe the emotions she's felt toward Shaun and her two younger son's, Patrick 15 and 11 year old Ryan, in these days of adjustment to the death of their father Jack Cassidy. Since that terrible day in December when Jack perished in an apartment house fire, says Shirley."I have watched my boys become men in front of my very eyes. They have handled it marvelously." They miss him and I miss him terribly, too"; she says of the man she divorced in 1975, "They talk about Jack a lot, talk about how lucky they were that he was their father. He took me our first date to the Eiffel Tower Restaurant and ceremoniously announced he wanted to marry me. I laughed and told him he was crazy. But my Heart was leaping.
"But", said Shirley, "Jack went ahead with his wooing". When I said 'yes'.he asked my father formally for my hand in marriage. He took me our first date to the Eiffel Tower Restaurant and ceremoniously announced he wanted to marry me. I laughed and told him he was crazy. But my Heart was leaping.
Death
In 1976, Cassidy was living alone in an apartment in West Hollywood, California. Some time in the early morning hours of December 12, 1976, he lit a cigarette and fell asleep or passed out on a couch, which then caught fire and the flames spread throughout the apartment. His body was found on the floor, as if he had been trying to crawl to the sliding glass doors but was overcome by smoke inhalation.[2] He was officially identified by the signet ring he wore, bearing the Cassidy family crest. He had had six of these rings made (one each for his four sons, one for his brother, and one for himself) while researching his family history.[3] Coincidentally, he had starred in a 1971 episode of the TV series Night Gallery, called "The Last Laurel", in which he played a character who accidentally killed himself while sleeping.
Awards
Cassidy was nominated for two Emmy Awards: in 1968 for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Comedy, for He & She, and 1971 for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for the film The Andersonville Trial (1970). Cassidy was approved for a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005 and fundraising efforts are currently under way to fund the dedication ceremony.
Stage
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Filmography
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References
- ^ Cassidy, David; Deffaa, Chip (1994). C'mon, Get Happy ... Fear and Loathing on the Partridge Family Bus. New York: Warner Books. p. 50. ISBN 0-446-39531-5.
- ^ C'mon, Get Happy, p. 211-212
- ^ Jack Cassidy's IMDB biography
External links
- Jack Cassidy at Find a Grave
- Jack Cassidy at the Internet Broadway Database
- Please use a more specific IOBDB template. See the template documentation for available templates.
- Jack Cassidy at IMDb
- A Star For Jack
- The Last Laurel at IMDb
- 1927 births
- 1976 deaths
- Accidental deaths in California
- Deaths from fire
- American film actors
- American musical theatre actors
- American stage actors
- American television actors
- Bisexual actors
- American people of German descent
- American people of Irish descent
- LGBT people from the United States
- People from New York City
- People from Queens
- People self-identifying as alcoholics
- People with bipolar disorder
- Tony Award winners