Baywatch star Michael Newman has tragically died at the age of 68.
Newman rose to fame in the ’90s after playing a lifeguard on the long-running series, starring alongside Pamela Anderson and Carmen Electra.
The heartbreaking news was confirmed by Newman’s close friend, Matt Felker, who revealed the late actor died “from heart complications” on Sunday, October 20, according to PEOPLE.
The 45-year-old, who directed the recent Hulu docuseries After Baywatch: Moment in the Sun, shared that Newman was “surrounded by his family and friends”.
“I got to see Mike the last time he was conscious and he looked [at] me and in typical Mike fashion said, ‘You’re just in time,'” Felker revealed to the outlet.
Newman endured an 18-year battle with Parkinson’s disease.
He was first diagnosed at the age of 50 in 2006 and devoted his later years to fundraising for the Michael J Fox Foundation.
In a heartfelt interview with PEOPLE this August, the late actor opened up about his desire to raise awareness about the condition through his own experiences.
“This terminal disease has allowed me a lot of thinking time, which I maybe didn’t want, but it’s brought me wisdom,” he said. “My body has changed so slowly that I hardly notice it, yet I am constantly reminded that Parkinson’s has now become the center of my life.”
Newman revealed he took 10 medications a day and would often wake up “jittery,” adding: “I am cherishing the days that I get to be on this earth with family and friends. I’m taking life seriously.”
He said that his life mantra is, “It’s not a run-through,” and concluded: “All those things that you thought you were going to do with your children and grandchildren, pictures we were going to take, all the plans I had… stopped.”
Newman was the only member of the Baywatch cast who was actually a lifeguard. He was also a firefighter who balanced his on-screen career with his full-time career.
Once the show concluded in 2001, he returned to firefighting before hanging up his helmet 25 years later.
The late star is survived by his wife of 36 years, Sarah, their children Chris and Emily, and their one-year-old granddaughter, Charlie.
Our thoughts are with Newman’s family and friends at this time.
In her memoir, Lisa Marie Presley shares that when she and Michael Jackson first started their relationship, he was still a virgin.
In her memoir, released after her death, Lisa Marie Presley says that when she and her second husband, Michael Jackson, started their relationship, he was a virgin. Michael Jackson, known as the “King of Pop,” passed away from a heart attack in 2009 at the age of 50, just weeks before his final tour was set to begin.
Michael Jackson married singer Lisa Marie Presley in 1994, but they divorced two years later. Presley passed away in January 2023 at the age of 54 due to complications from weight loss surgery. The two first met in 1975 when Lisa was just seven years old at a Jackson Five concert in Las Vegas, where her father, Elvis Presley, was also performing.
Their romance didn’t start until about 20 years later, when Lisa Marie was 26 and Michael was 35. They got married shortly after Lisa divorced her first husband, Danny Keough, with whom she had two children.
In her book From Here to the Great Unknown, released on October 8 and finished by her daughter Riley Keough, Lisa Marie Presley shared that Michael Jackson told her he was still a virgin when they got together. He mentioned that he had only kissed Tatum O’Neal and had a non-physical relationship with Brooke Shields. He also said Madonna once tried to hook up with him, but nothing happened. Lisa Marie admitted she was nervous about doing something wrong.
She added that when Michael decided to kiss her for the first time, he took the lead in everything. The physical side of their relationship started quickly, which surprised her because she thought they might wait until marriage. But Michael told her, “I’m not waiting!”
In her memoir, Lisa Marie Presley wrote about how their relationship grew. Michael Jackson told her, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m completely in love with you. I want us to get married and for you to have my children.”
At first, she didn’t know what to say, so she replied, “I’m really flattered, I can’t even talk.” She added that by that time, she had fallen in love with him too.
Macmillan
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