12 Classic TV Stars Who Drank Themselves To Death

Classic TV stars, and the drinking stories that got told wrong. Nine television legends. Not every death in this countdown was caused by alcohol. They made America laugh. They brought families together around the television. What connects them is the documented role alcohol played in their lives, their careers, their health, or their final chapters. A drinking problem is not the same thing as a cause of death. Their struggles do not erase what they made, and their deaths are not entertainment. Nicholas Colasanto played Coach, the bartender on Cheers. He struggled with alcoholism for years, got sober through Alcoholics Anonymous in 1976, and stayed sober. He died at 61 of a heart attack. He had a longstanding heart condition and had missed episodes because of his health. He did not die of alcohol poisoning. Recovery belongs in this story too. Victor French played Isaiah Edwards on Little House on the Prairie and Mark Gordon on Highway to Heaven. His friend Michael Landon described his drinking as a serious toll. French died in June 1989, age 54, of lung cancer. Contemporary obituaries named cancer, not alcohol. His drinking was part of his life. It was not the confirmed cause of his death. Jerry Doyle played Michael Garibaldi on Babylon 5, then moved into talk radio. He died in Las Vegas in July 2016, age 60. The Clark County coroner later told reporters he died from complications of chronic alcoholism. The death was classified as natural. This is one of the cases where the medical finding named chronic alcoholism directly. Kevin Lloyd played Detective Constable Tosh Lines on The Bill. In April 1998 he was dismissed after arriving for work intoxicated. He entered a clinic in Staffordshire, left, and drank. On May 2, 1998, he returned intoxicated, went to bed, and died. He was 49. Later accounts connected his death to asphyxia associated with alcohol and sedative medication. Dependence is a medical condition. A relapse can turn fatal fast. Mark McManus played Detective Chief Inspector Jim Taggart. In May 1994 he was hospitalized with severe jaundice and pneumonia. He died in Glasgow on June 6, 1994, age 59. Contemporary reports announced pneumonia. Later accounts connected that pneumonia to liver failure after years of heavy drinking. That is a documented alcohol-related death, not a story about someone who simply liked a drink. Michael Elphick played Ken Boon in Boon and Harry Slater in EastEnders. He sought help through Alcoholics Anonymous in the early 1990s. After his partner, Julia Alexander, died of cancer in 1996, he drank heavily again. In September 2002 he collapsed and died at 55. Obituaries described a long battle with alcohol. That is an illness, not a punchline. Larry Hagman played J.R. Ewing on Dallas and Major Tony Nelson on I Dream of Jeannie. He later spoke about drinking through the Dallas years. In 1992 he was diagnosed with cirrhosis tied to years of heavy drinking. He stopped. In 1995 he had a liver transplant after a tumour was found. He died in November 2012, age 81, of complications from throat cancer. He did not drink himself to death. The drinking damaged his liver. Cancer killed him years later. Derek Newark worked steadily in Dad's Army, Doctor Who, and other productions while struggling with alcohol. On August 11, 1998, he died at 65. Accounts say a heart attack brought on by liver failure after years of heavy drinking. The heart attack was the immediate event. The liver failure was part of the medical story. Howard Rollins played Detective Virgil Tibbs on In the Heat of the Night. He struggled with substance abuse, including alcohol, and was dropped from the series in 1993 because of drug-related problems. He died in December 1996, age 46, of complications of lymphoma. Addiction affected his career. It was not the documented cause of his death. Which story surprised you most? Tell me in the comments. Subscribe to Hollywood Hidden Files for more stories about the lives behind the legends. classic tv, hollywood legends, old hollywood secrets, vintage hollywood, celebrity secrets, little house on the prairie, eastenders, babylon 5, cheers, in the heat of the night, dallas tv show, i dream of jeannie, alcohol addiction, alcoholism, larry hagman, highway to heaven, dads army, old hollywood #ClassicTV #HollywoodLegends #OldHollywood #CelebritySecrets #LittleHouseOnThePrairie