How Trauma May Have Affected David Cassidy
Some might ask. What traumas did someone as rich and famous as David Cassidy suffer?
Thats just itfame and fortune do not make someone immune to painful tragedy and trauma, and every person is affected differently. And despite his good fortune, Cassidy suffered several emotionally-difficult experiences:
- His parents divorce when he was very young
- Abandonment from his father
Lets take a closer look at each of these might affect someone.
Who Was David Cassidy
Born in New York City in 1950, David Cassidy rose to fame as the heartthrob of the 1970s musical TV series The Partridge Family. In addition to being popular on television, the fictional family scored radio hits with songs such as “I Think I Love You.” After the show’s conclusion, Cassidy continued to perform in concerts and with theater productions, and in later years he opened up about his struggles with substance abuse.
The Battle Over Merchandise
According to David, Sony Pictures Television made over $500 million in merchandise based on the show, of which he saw only $15,000. When they make bubblegum cards and comic books of you and youre on the back of cereal boxes, and they own your name and likeness, as they did, he told Yahoo, they can make anything they want. David Cassidy guitars, lunchboxes, magazines, pillowcases, dresses, Colorforms, books anything they could sell to kids.
I saw 15 grand. Now, thats corrupt. But I broke it through. I was the breakthrough person in merchandising. I busted through the gate, and the rest of them just stormed through. But I was the first person to renegotiate and get a piece of the show, the first person to get anything from these people. Its little in comparison to today, but it was a lot then, and you have to put things in their proper perspective. I would have $80 million instead of $8 million now. But thats fine. Its great. I did it when I did it, and I have no regrets about doing it. I got to do something that three or four, maybe 10 people in the history of the world lets see, The Beatles, Elvis, Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Valentino got to do. Maybe nine or 10 people in the history of the planet.
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Spreading The Word About Dementia
After more than a decade of experience with dementia and long-distance caregiving, Cassidy realized he could impact millions of people, including caregivers, with his story. I wanted to use my notoriety to help others. I wanted to educate others and tell my story, he stresses.
He approached several Alzheimers and dementia organizations that jumped at the chance to have him as a spokesperson. Today, he does speaking engagements across the country and shares hard facts with the public. The last of the baby boomers are nearing retirement. People are living longer due to advancements in healthcare, medical research and pharmaceutical innovations. Even with new Alzheimers and dementia care facilities being built, they wont have the manpower to handle what will soon be an epidemic, Cassidy warns.
Cassidy also makes a point of speaking directly to dementia caregivers. To all the caregivers, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Without you, your elderly relatives could not possibly survive, he acknowledges. I want caregivers to know how vital they are, how brave and strong they are. They are important and special to me.
There Are About 10 Million New Cases Of Dementia Every Year
David Cassidy, a teen idol from the 1970s, died on Tuesday, after suffering from dementia for two years.
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David Cassidy, a teen idol from the 1970s and one of the stars of the hit television show the Partridge Family, died Tuesday, after suffering from a disease expected to afflict over 100 million people in the next three decades: dementia.
The 67-year-old performer, who died from organ failure in a hospital surrounded by family and friends, first revealed he had dementia earlier this year after falling on stage and forgetting the lyrics mid-performance. Some critics incorrectly assumed he was intoxicated. Soon after, he retired. His mother and his grandfather had dementia, and he said during an interview with Dr. Phil earlier this year, A part of me always knew this was coming.
See: This is the one thing you must do if youre caring for someone with Alzheimers
Dementia is a neurological illness that affects the mind and memory, and it can affect a persons ability to perform everyday tasks. There are numerous types of dementia, including Alzheimers disease, Parkinsons disease and Huntingtons disease, according to the Alzheimers Association.
More than 47 million people worldwide have dementia, with about 10 million new cases every year. The number of people with dementia is expected to rise to 75 million in 2030 and 132 million by 2050, according to the World Health Organization.
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He Wasn’t Down With Don Johnson
In David Cassidy’s heyday, he was as big a celebrity as one could become. He once told Entertainment Weekly that his “fanzine” publisher received up to 25,000 letters from adoring fans per day. Naturally, Cassidy rubbed shoulders with some other huge stars of the era, including Don Johnson of Miami Vice.
Cassidy wasn’t impressed with the ’80’s TV icon. In his book, C’Mon, Get Happy…Fear and Loathing on the Partridge Family Bus,” Cassidy describes Johnson as “a blatantly rude egomaniac, who snubbed him badly at a party.” Cassidy later told the Star Tribune, “I was more than kind to him in the book. I don’t call him every name I could.” He added, “If I saw him today, he’d probably apologize. He needs friends, because he doesn’t have many. In Hollywood you hear Don Johnson stories. You never hear David Cassidy stories.”
Shots. Fired.
Overwork Burnout And Excessive Drinking
I feel burnt up inside. Im 24, a big star in a position that millions dream of, but the truth is I just cant enjoy itI was definitely the most isolated Ive ever been. Id be working seven days a week for most of the year and it never let up. When I got home, I isolated myself, just so I could rest.
~ David Cassidy
After four almost non-stop years of Cassidymania, the young star was exhausted. He wanted to stop doing live tours and even quit his TV show, so he could focus on songwriting and in-studio recording.
Four decades later, researchers at the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health in Helsinki conducted a study looking at the connection between working long hours and excessive drinking. They analyzed 61 separate studies involving 330,000 people from 14 different countries, including Australia, Germany, United Kingdom, and the United States, and their findings were revealing.
Compared to those who just worked around 40 hours a week, those who put in longer hours were:
- 13% more likely to drink at risky levels.
- 11% more likely to be heavy drinkers.
Significantly, the association was consistent across socioeconomic, geographical, or gender boundaries.
Dr. Mariana Virtanen, who led the study, said, We think that some people may cope with excess working hours with habits that are unhealthy, such as using alcohol. The symptoms they try to alleviate with alcohol may include stress, depression, and sleep disturbances.
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Kelly Ripa And Mark Consuelos Post Pics Of Son Joaquin’s Prom Ni
In never-before-seen footage David Cassidy reveals that he never suffered from dementia as previously believed.
The former teen idol, who died in November 2017, is the subject of a new A& E ‘Biography’ documentary special, David Cassidy: The Last Session, premiering June 11. The documentary is a mix of never-before-heard audio tapes from 1976 and footage from Cassidy’s final session where he was recording a tribute to his father, Jack Cassidy.
“I just met with the doctor and I have liver disease,” Cassidy tells the documentary crew on the phone in a sneak peek of the two-hour special. “My life has changed dramatically. The first few days I was unconscious and near death. The last week or so my memory has come back.”
“That’s such a blessing. That means I’m cognizant of my surroundings. That I’m alive and it’s daytime, and I know what day of the week it is,” Cassidy continues before revealing that he never had dementia, but rather was continuing to drink excessively.
“There is no sign of me having dementia at this stage of my life. It was complete alcohol poisoning. And the fact is, I lied about my drinking,” Cassidy, who was 67 when he died, reveals. “The head doctor at the hospital, she said, ‘I believe that your dementia was directly related to your alcoholism.’ You know I did it to myself, man. I did it to myself to cover up the sadness. And the emptiness.”
“I was in denial, but a part of me always knew this was coming,” he said.
Here’s more on Cassidy’s life:
David Cassidy Says He Lied About Stopping Drinking Never Had Dementia In New Documentary
David Cassidy at the ABC Disney Summer press tour party in Pasadena, Calif., on Aug. 8, 2009. Credit: AP / Dan Steinberg
In a documentary shot weeks before his death from liver and kidney failure in November at age 67, singer David Cassidy admits that the dementia he suffered last year was temporary and not progressive, and had been triggered by the alcoholism he had publicly denied.
I just met with the doctor, and . . . I have a liver disease, Cassidy says in an audio recording with Saralena Weinfield, supervising producer of the A& E special David Cassidy: The Final Session, airing Monday. My life has changed dramatically. The first few days I was unconscious and near death, he continues in the undated excerpt released Wednesday. The last week or so my memorys come back. Thats such a blessing, he goes on. That means Im cognizant of my surroundings. That Im alive and its daytime and I know what day of the week it is!
He adds, There is no sign of me having dementia at this stage of my life. It was complete alcohol poisoning. And the fact is, I lied about my drinking.
The issue was more complicated, he concedes in Wednesdays audio excerpt. The head doctor at the hospital, she said, I believe that your dementia was directly related to your alcoholism, tying the two together, he said, adding, I did it to myself, man. I did it to myself to cover up the sadness. And the emptiness.
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Early Experimentation Later Troubles
I didnt know who I was, and I did a lot of f-ing around, experimenting not smack, but grass and speed and psychedelics. I had some bad trips tripping for kicks in the worst, most paranoid places But I wasnt taking drugs seriously. I didnt want to be a junkie. A few of my friends died, committed suicide actually.
~ David Cassidy
Like many young people at the time, Cassidy experimented with a variety of mind-altering substances. At 16, he even made a pilgrimage during theSummer of Love to the Mecca of counterculture at the time, the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood in San Francisco.
Within the context of his later problems, this is notable because during the adolescent and teenage years, the human brain is still developing, and continues to do so until the early to mid-20s. This means that any substance use will have a magnified effect on the underdeveloped and vulnerable brain.
Some of the consequences to brain health and function include:
This research clearly demonstrates that by experimenting with drugs as a teenager and young adult, David Cassidy set the stage for addictive disorders as an adult.
His Lifelong Battle With Booze
In the handful of years prior to his dementia claim, David Cassidy made multiple headlines for his ongoing battle with alcohol. According to People, he was arrested for DUI in 2010, then again in 2013 and 2014. Shorly after his third DUI arrested, Cassidy who had been in and out of rehab confessed to being an alcoholic.
“If I take another drink, I’m going to die, physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. I’m dead,” Cassidy told CNN‘s Piers Morgan in March 2014. “You know, they say it’s a slippery slope… It’s not a slippery slope. It’s from 12:00 to 6:00 on the clock and the whole face is ice. One sip, one drink, because there is no such a thing, not to an alcoholic. You have one and you’re you’re done. I’d be done.”
Unfortunately, it seems Cassidy never kicked the habit. In the aforementioned A& E documentary promo, Cassidy admits the dementia lie was all a ruse. “The fact is that I lied about my drinking,” he says in the film. “I did this to myself to cover up the sadness and the emptiness.”
Read Also: Difference Between Dementia And Senility
The Third Time Wasn’t A Charm
David Cassidy met Kay Lenz on a blind date in 1977. Two and a half months later, they were married, according to People, though the “whirlwind romance” would only last four years. In retrospect, Lenz told People that she wasn’t equipped to handle the fame that came along with marrying a teen idol and that there was no single thing that broke them up. She was just “unhappy,” although she wasn’t sure why.
Just as Cassidy’s marriage to Lenz was winding down, he reconnected with Meryl Tanz, an old acquaintance he knew through a shared passion for horses. After a chance meeting with the South African horse breeder at a race in Illinois, Cassidy fell head over heels. “We haven’t been apart since. In his rock days, he was remote. Now he has time for me,” she told People. But again, the romance wouldn’t last. Cassidy and Tanz split just two years later in 1986.
Cassidy’s third marriage would be his longest. He wed Sue Shifrin-Cassidy in 1991. Though they went strong for more than two decades, they split in 2015, in what became an ugly, albeit secretive settlement that resulted in Cassidy declaring bankruptcy and selling his South Florida home, according to the Sun Sentinel.
David Cassidy: Man Undercover
David decided to take a more dramatic turn when he appeared on a 1978 episode of the NBC cop anthology series Police Story, which resulted in this 10-episode spin-off. The show pre-dated and must have played some inspiration for 21 Jump Street, which aired a decade later. In Man Undercover, set in LA, hes police officer Dan Shay who in each episode goes undercover to take down his targes beginning with becoming a part of a high school drug ring.
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What Can We Learn From The Life Of David Cassidy
I did this to myself to cover up the sadness and that emptiness.
~ David Cassidy
The most important takeaway from the life and death of David Cassidy is that ANYONE can struggle with substance abuse, even people who appear to have it all. Cassidy was rich, famous, handsome, talented, and adored by millions of people around the world, but he still felt an emptiness that only alcohol could fill, albeit only temporarily.
Next, the powerful influence of genetics cannot be ignored. With two close relatives who were alcoholics, Cassidy was at heightened risk of AUD before he ever took his first drink.
Also, Cassidys lack of connection with both his father and his own daughter, as well as his three failed marriages, highlights the importance of having a strong persona support system. Maybe if he had been able to forge closer bonds with others, Cassidy wouldnt have needed alcohol to ease his sense of isolation.
Further, at the end of his life, alcoholism had faded Cassidys looks, damaged his memory, sapped his energy, and destroyed his health. In a very real way, he served as a warning, by resembling his own Before and After picture.
Finally, we see the value of honesty over denial. If Cassidy had been able to honestly admit to a drinking problem decades ago, perhaps he would have gotten the help he needed way back then.
And that could have saved his life.
Reached so high, almost made it, didnt I?
Alcohol Use Disorder In The United States
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcohol is the most used and abused intoxicating substance in the world.
- Nearly 90% of US adults self-report drinking at least once.
- Greater than 70% admits to past-year alcohol use.
- Over half reports past-month use.
- Within the past 30 days, 1 out of every 14 alcohol users drank heavily
- More than 1 in 4 engaged in risky binge-drinking.
- Right now, 15 million US adults have AUD, diagnosed or not nearly 10 million men and over 5 million women.
- Tragically, however, just over a million receive specialized professional treatment in any given year.
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