As loved ones and fans grieve the death of Robert Carradine, Jamie Lee Curtis is mourning her first boyfriend.
Following Carradine’s death at age 71, the Oscar-winning actress paid tribute to the late actor, whom was her “first crush” before they dated during the 1970s, becoming “a little family” with his daughter Ever Carradine in their Laurel Canyon home.
“I woke up to the news that Robert Carradine died. I met him live on television on The Dinah Shore Show when they had a bunch of second generation actors, we would call them now nepo babies, Veronica, Cartwright, and Bobby and I came on last and Bobby rearranged where we were all sitting so that he could sit next to me and he kissed me, live on television,” she recalled on Facebook.
“A very public meet cute. His 3-year old daughter, Ever, now a talented actress, had suffered a terrible burn from hot water and was in the burn unit and I met her for the first time there, this little girl wrapped in gauze with the biggest smile on her face and the most beautiful eyes. We became a little family, in a dirt floored house in Laurel Canyon, and it was my first experience with domesticity and motherhood and partnership. I remember walking with Ever to the little Canyon market and bringing our laundry down to the laundromat below and folding her little clothes for the first time and the simplicity and beauty of Laurel Canyon in the late 70s.”
Curtis continued, “Bobby had made a movie with Melanie Griffith and they were lovers and later in my life Melanie and I became colleagues and ride or die best friends and we remain so to this day and she was the one who told me about his passing. Bobby was a race car driver and he drove fast and furious in a Corvette on Mulholland. It’s a miracle we weren’t killed. One day I remember the sun hitting his face and me turning and looking at him and saying ‘Wait, were you in the movie The Cowboys? Were you Slim?’ He was my first crush in the movies and I didn’t realize it. He also starred in a movie with my husband, Christopher Guest The Long Riders where a group of different sets of brothers all portrayed these real life historical brothers. We remained friends after we broke up and Ever and I have as well. The long and winding road. Rest in speed and humor and love, Bobby.”
On Monday, Carradine’s family announced that he died by suicide after a 20-year struggle with bipolar disorder. “It is with profound sadness that we must share that our beloved father, grandfather, uncle, and brother Robert Carradine has passed away,” they said in a statement.
“In a world that can feel so dark, Bobby was always a beacon on light to everyone around him,” the family continued. “We are bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul and want to acknowledge Bobby’s valiant struggle against his nearly two-decade battle with Bipolar Disorder. We hope his journey can shine a light and encourage addressing the stigma that attaches to mental illness. At this time we ask for the privacy to grieve this unfathomable loss. With gratitude for your understanding and compassion.”
