The genteel patriarch on the hit 1970s comedy-drama "Eight Is Enough," Dick Van Patten, has passed away in Santa Monica yesterday. He was 86 years old.
A close family friend and the late actor's publicist, Daniel Bernstein, informed that Patten succumbed to the complications from diabetes.
Born in New York, Patten started his acting career on Broadway at the age of seven and went on to appear in 12 other plays as a teenager. His major breakthrough came with the iconic role of Nels Hansen in the CBS comedy, "Mama," playing sons of a Norwegian-American family in San Francisco.
Patten was a familiar face in show business owing to his multiple appearances on several shows like "Sanford And Son," "I Dream Of Jeannie" and "Love, American Style," CNN reported. But his real shot to fame came with his iconic role of Tom Bradford, a widower and father of eight, in the hit 1970s show "Eight Is Enough."
Patten's character in the ABC comedy-drama was loved by the viewers and the show had a successful run from 1977 to 1981, launching Willie Aames, who played his son, as a teen heartthrob.
Patten also appeared in several "Weird Al" Yankovic videos like "Smell Like Nirvana" and in a 1989 tennis video, "Dirty Tennis," also featuring Bruce Jenner, now known as Caitlyn Jenner.
Apart from acting, Patten had a wide area of interests. The late actor was a serious poker player and a commentator for the World Poker Tour, Huffington Post reported. He was an animal enthusiast as well and co-founded Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Pet Foods in 1989.
The late actor is survived by his three actor sons, Nels, Jimmy and Vincent, as well as Patricia Van Patten, his wife of 62 years whom he first at the age 14 at their professional children's school.