I spent the little I had just to see my granddaughter smile on her birthday. But before she even saw me, her other grandma called me a beggar and wanted to have me thrown out, like I didn’t matter at all.
Five years.
That’s how long I had been living in silence…
Silence after Linda, my wife.
Silence after Emily, our daughter.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
Every morning, I woke up more from habit than will. I opened the kitchen window, breathed in the cold air, and sat at the same table, watching the same patch of light crawl across the wall.
When it reached the shelf with the teacups, I knew morning had come.
And that I was still alone.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
It had started that winter. Linda had fallen ill. She was shivering, coughing, and barely eating.
“I’ll call an ambulance,” I told her that evening. “We’re not playing games here, honey.”
“Oh, Frank, come on,” she waved her hand from under the blanket. “We can’t afford another medical bill. I’ll drive to the pharmacy myself. It’s five minutes.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
“Linda, please,” I begged. “Don’t go. I’ll go. Or we’ll call a taxi.”
“I’m not a child. Just give me the keys, okay?”
I stood in the hallway holding her purse, watching her pull on her coat. For a moment, I thought of stopping her. But I didn’t.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
She smiled.
“I’ll be back soon. Put the kettle on.”
I did.
But she never came back.
Her car slid off the road on black ice. A truck didn’t stop in time.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
At the funeral, I held myself together until Emily approached. I tried to explain.
“Sweetheart… it was an accident. I tried to stop her.”
She didn’t meet my eyes.
“You should’ve tried harder. If you’d just once stood your ground… And now she’s dead. Because you let her leave.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
I wanted to speak, to explain, to shout…. But the words never left my throat. So, that was the last time we spoke.
Since then — nothing.
I called every few months. Sent little notes. Photos from the past — her first bike ride, Christmas by the fireplace.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
Sometimes I left voicemails like:
“Hi, Emily. It’s Dad. Just wanted to hear your voice.”
But the silence remained. No replies. Not even a card for Christmas.
I learned how to live cheaply. Slept in my coat in winter when the radiator barely worked. Lived on tea and dry toast.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My pension wasn’t much, but I saved every spare penny. I stashed it in an old biscuit tin in the wardrobe, under my folded shirts.
It was my safety net. For when I got too sick to care for myself. For the time when no one would be around to help me. I never touched that money. Not for food, not even when my shoes had holes in them.
Better to freeze now than beg later.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
One morning, I stared at the latest electric bill. The numbers blurred in front of me.
“That’s it. I’ve had enough.”
On the grocery store bulletin board, I noticed a handwritten note:
“Looking for a part-time janitor at Little Pines Preschool. Morning shift.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I stood in front of it for a long time. Eventually, I pulled off the tab with the number and slipped it into my coat pocket.
I thought I was just taking a job. I had no idea I was about to find the one thing I never dared hope for.
***
I started working at the preschool the following week.
I woke up at dawn, drank strong coffee, pulled on my old brown sweater, and stepped out into the still-dark morning.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Where there had once been silence, finally there was laughter. Tiny faces, bright jackets, and backpacks tangled with dinosaurs and mermaids.
I didn’t feel like an outsider. Quite the opposite.
“Good morning, Frank!”
The kids always shouted the moment I opened the gate.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I became part of their morning ritual. They waved at me with mittened hands, brought me leaves and chestnuts, they insisted we “absolutely must plant.”
But one little girl stood out from the rest from the very beginning.
“Are you a real shovel master?” she asked seriously on my first day, as I raked up wet leaves near the playground slide.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Well, depends on how you look at it,” I said, scratching the back of my head. “I don’t have a diploma, but I’ve got years of experience.”
She laughed — a big, honest laugh, without fear of the new stranger.
“I’m Sophie. And I’m the boss of the Yellow Bunnies group.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I smiled.
“Very pleased to meet you, Miss Bunny. My name is Frank.”
After that, Sophie was always nearby.
If I fixed a fence, she held the nails. If I swept the yard, she wiped the benches with a cloth. She was like a small sun — endlessly curious, a little bold, not like the other kids.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Do you have a dog?”
“Were you ever a famous singer?”
“Have you ever flown to the moon?”
I answered every question as if it were the most important thing in the world. Sophie nodded seriously, as if filing that information away for later.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
One afternoon, as we sat together on a bench, she pulled a pendant out from under her sweater. Small, round, silver. Delicate engravings around the edge.
My breath caught.
“What a beautiful necklace. Who gave it to you?”
“My Mom! And she got it from my grandma.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
She patted the pendant proudly.
“It brings good luck. Mom says, ‘Wear it when you’re sad — Grandma will be right there with you.’”
I managed a weak smile.
I knew that pendant.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I had picked it out myself for Linda in a jewelry store 30 years ago. Linda had given it to Emily on her 18th birthday.
I remembered whispering back then:
“For our little star.”
I wanted to say something. Anything. But I just nodded.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Do you have a granddaughter?” Sophie suddenly asked, looking straight into my eyes.
I swallowed hard.
“Maybe I do. Maybe I don’t. I don’t really know.”
“That’s sad,” she said thoughtfully. “How can someone not know about their own granddaughter?”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I shrugged, staring down at the faded sand under our feet.
“Sometimes people get lost. And sometimes… others lose them.”
Suddenly, Sophie grabbed my hand.
“My birthday’s coming up soon. I’ll be five! Will you come?”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
“If you invite me,” I smiled, “I’ll definitely be there.”
“I’ll make you a special invitation myself, okay?”
“Okay.”
“There’s going to be lots of balloons! And cake! But don’t bring me a present, please. I already asked Mom for a piano, but she said it’s too much. Cake’s enough.”
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“I’ll think about it. Maybe someone will show up with music anyway.”
Sophie laughed joyfully and ran back to her group.
I stayed sitting there on the bench. I didn’t know for sure. But my heart was already shouting — that was her. That was my granddaughter.
And if I was wrong, so be it. But if I was right…
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
***
The restaurant buzzed with music and laughter. Bright balloons floated against the ceiling, and a giant pink cake stood proudly on a long table surrounded by gifts.
I stood quietly near the entrance, holding a small box in my hand — a tiny piano charm on a silver chain, wrapped carefully, trembling slightly in my fingers.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I had ironed my old white shirt until it nearly shone. My brown jacket, worn but clean, hung loose on my shoulders.
I wasn’t anyone special there. Just a man at the edge of someone else’s celebration.
Across the room, I saw Sophie. Her hair was tied up in two bouncy pigtails, her eyes lighting up when she spotted me.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
She began waving, her face beaming, but before she could get close, a hand clamped down on her shoulder.
Marianne. My daughter’s MIL. Tall, sharp-eyed, her pearl suit immaculate.
She bent low to Sophie, whispering harsh words into her ear, before steering her away, casting a glance at me. Recognition flickered across her face. Her mouth twisted into a tight smile, a hunter spotting a trapped prey.
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“Well, look who crawled out from under a rock,” she said, just loud enough for others to hear.
“How touching. Thought you’d come begging, old man?”
I stiffened. “I’m here because Sophie invited me. Not for anything else.”
Marianne’s laugh was cruel.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, of course. That’s why you disappeared for five years, right? Left poor Emily to grieve alone while you drank yourself into oblivion?”
I opened my mouth to protest, but the injustice caught in my throat. Behind Marianne, I saw Emily returning with a tray of cupcakes. She hadn’t seen us yet.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
Marianne leaned closer, her voice a hiss:
“You think you can just show up and they’ll welcome you with open arms? After everything?”
I shook my head.
“I never left. I wrote. I called. I sent letters. Every Christmas, every birthday…”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
She laughed again, low and bitter.
“And what letters? What calls? Emily never got anything from you.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Emily finally looking at us. Frowning. Approaching.
“You’re lying,” I said, louder this time.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Am I? Then where were all those precious letters?”
Emily was close now, close enough to hear.
“I sent you letters too!” she blurted out, her voice cracking. “I wrote… I wrote so many times… birthday cards, Christmas cards… You never answered!”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My heart lurched.
“I never got them. Not one.”
For a heartbeat, silence hung between us. Emily turned slowly to Marianne, horror dawning in her eyes.
“You said… You said he didn’t want anything to do with me. You told me he didn’t care.”
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Marianne’s face hardened.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“I protected you. He’s a burden, Emily! Always was. I did what I had to do.”
“You stole my letters,” Emily said, her voice rising. “You lied to me! For years!”
A few guests were watching now, their smiles fading into uncomfortable glances.
“And you,” Emily turned on me, tears brimming. “You thought I didn’t care either.”
I nodded, throat too tight to speak.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Suddenly, a delivery truck pulled up outside. Two men climbed out, wrestling a small upright piano onto the sidewalk.
“Delivery for Sophie!”
I looked down at my shoes.
“I don’t have much,” I said quietly. “Just my pension. But I saved for that. For her.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Pexels
Emily covered her mouth with her hands, shaking her head.
“I thought you didn’t love me anymore.”
“I never stopped loving you. Not for a second.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Without warning, Emily stumbled forward and threw her arms around me, squeezing tightly, as if afraid I might vanish.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry, Dad.”
I held her back, my chest breaking open from years of silence and grief.
Meanwhile, Marianne stood frozen, pale and rigid, ignored by everyone around her.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Sophie, clutching a balloon, peeked out from behind a chair.
“The storm ended?”
Emily wiped her eyes and knelt beside her.
“Sophie… This is your grandpa. The best man in the world.”
Sophie looked up at me, grinned, and said, loud and clear:
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“So… you do have a granddaughter after all, huh? Now you really know.”
For a second, the whole world seemed to hold its breath. I laughed and dropped to my knees to pull her into my arms.
We had lost so many years. But standing there, holding Sophie in my arms, I knew — the best ones were still ahead.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
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The sultry Heather Thomas of ‘The Fall Guy’ struggled with addiction – but look at her now, at 66
Known for her starring role opposite Lee Majors in The Fall Guy, Heather Thomas–who turned 66 on September 8–was poised for a hugely success Hollywood career.
But when the actor’s mother showed up on set after the show’s finale was filmed, the gorgeous blonde rushed to hospital, believing that her father had an emergency.
The family and friends who greeted her at the Santa Monica hospital let her know that her dad, Leon, was fine, and that it was her who had their concerns.
This was just the beginning of a new journey for the then 28-year-old woman, whose personal life and career completely transformed after that visit to the hospital.
Keep reading to find out what happened to the former pinup girl of the 1980s!
Gifted with the talent and natural movie star beauty that rivalled Farrah Fawcett and Heather Locklear, Heather Thomas did what she was born to do.
Playing Jody Banks, a stuntwoman-bounty hunter on the popular action show, Thomas was adored by the male population who viewed her as a sex symbol, a title which she admits to having mixed feelings.
“There’s obligatory condescension that goes with that,” Thomas told People. “You fill that archetype, the blonde bimbo. But at that point, I was just having fun.”
Unfortunately, she was having too much fun with the inclusion of drugs, a habit that started before her role as Jody Banks.
Her substance use dates to the sixth grade when she started using drugs to maintain steady top grades. Thomas said, “I was taking acid and making straight A’s. I just thought it was mind expanding.”
As her mind evolved from child to adult, so did the drugs she consumed.
At UCLA Thomas started using cocaine and in 1981, one year into her role on The Fall Guy, her drug problems escalated.
Also, feeling like she had to live up with her sex symbol title, the 5-foot-7 Thomas became obsessed with weight, and started taking Lasix, a diuretic that can cause severe lethargy.
To counteract the lethargy, she took more cocaine for a burst of energy.
“At first I was in a honeymoon stage with the drug. I felt that I was getting a lot for my money. It enabled me to stay up all night and then work all the next day,” she said, claiming that she never used cocaine on set. “Cocaine is not approved of on sets. It’s not clubby to do it anymore. It is just a private hell.”
Contrary to her claims, a source close to the actor told People that her drug use was derailing her career. “Word was out on Heather,” the source said. “People knew she had a problem.”
Thomas dropped from 125 to 105 pounds and was falling asleep between takes. Thomas admitted, “Sometimes I was in a minicoma.”
And then she passed out in front of Majors, who called her manager, who called her mother.
When the series finale of The Fall Guy wrapped, her mom, Gladdy Ryder–a former special education teacher–appeared on the set and told her daughter that her father was in hospital.
Rushing to St. John’s Hospital, the author of “Trophies” was greeted by family and friends who were ready to see her admitted into the hospital’s three-week drug program.
“It was a big relief to me,” Thomas said of that day, adding that when she checked into detox, she had pneumonia, scarred lungs and inflamed kidneys. “I’d been on a roller coaster and I wanted to get off. If my family hadn’t intervened, I probably would have gone on my merry way until I lost my job or I died.”
She added, “…The doctors said I should have been dead three years ago.”
Committed to recovery, Thomas surrounded herself with like-minded people who would benefit her goals of being drug-free. That was when Thomas, 28 at the time, met and married Allan Rosenthal, the co-founder of Cocaine Anonymous, whom she divorced in September 1986.
The same month, she suffered serious injuries to both legs when she was struck by a car while crossing the street.
After detox, divorce and surgery repair major damage in one of her legs, Thomas returned to work with smaller roles in TV series. She can also be seen in films like in Cyclone in 1987 and the 1990 Canadian film Red Blooded American Girl with Christopher Plummer.
With her troubles behind her, Thomas started new in the 1990s and while trying to revive her career, she married entertainment lawyer Skip Brittenham in 1992. Taking on the new role as the stepmother to his two daughters, Kristina and Shauna, Thomas also gave birth to her only biological child, daughter India Rose who was born in June 2000.
“So when I had about 45 restraining orders out, and I was on everything from a toilet seat cover to an ashtray–and I was in love, and [then] had two little girls–I decided to give it up and write for a while,” she told Reuters.
In 2017, Heather made a brief comeback in the movie Girltrash: All Night Long, one of her 26 acting credits in her career.
Focused mostly on writing, the Zapped! actor said it wasn’t a lack of roles that drove her from acting, but the stalkers who persistently breached her privacy.
“I was getting so stalked. I had one guy climb over the fence with a knife one time. I had these two little girls and they desperately needed raising so that was that. But I think now I have gotten so old that people won’t bother me much.”
Thomas is also now involved as an activist and formerly served on the board for the Rape Foundation and Amazon Conservation Team.
Identifying as a feminist–a duplicitous title for a former sex symbol–Thomas explained the power of both.
“When I was young, I did what people told me to do but when I was older, I didn’t compromise myself. I wanted power and freedom. This gave me a house and the notoriety to get into the door. There is nothing horrible in letting people see your body. I don’t think I betrayed myself. I don’t think being a feminist means you should be ashamed of your body,” she said.
It’s really sad that Heather Thomas was unable to revive her career in acting again but we’re happy that she got the help she needed and is now in a lifelong journey of recovery.
There are so many wonderful shows of the 1980s and we loved seeing her in the role of Jody Banks in The Fall Guy with the Six Million Dollar Man Lee Majors!
We’d love to hear what you have to say about Thomas and her recovery!
Known for her starring role opposite Lee Majors in The Fall Guy, Heather Thomas–who turned 66 on September 8–was poised for a hugely success Hollywood career.
But when the actor’s mother showed up on set after the show’s finale was filmed, the gorgeous blonde rushed to hospital, believing that her father had an emergency.
The family and friends who greeted her at the Santa Monica hospital let her know that her dad, Leon, was fine, and that it was her who had their concerns.
At only 14 the girl hosted an NBC series called Talking with a Giant, a show where she and four other teens interviewed celebrities.
Wanting to take her career to the next level–as an actor, director and writer–Thomas, now 66, then studied film and theater at UCLA, and the year before she graduated, she appeared in the short-lived comedy series, Co-Ed Fever (1979).
Heather Locklear and Heather ThomasPosted by Back to 80s on Saturday, June 5, 2021
In 1980, the Connecticut-born actor won her first leading role in the TV series, The Fall Guy, playing the sidekick to Lee Majors, who in the 1970s, gained global recognition for his performance as Steven Austin in The Six Million Dollar Man.
Playing Jody Banks, a stuntwoman-bounty hunter on the popular action show, Thomas was adored by the male population who viewed her as a sex symbol, a title which she admits to having mixed feelings.
“There’s obligatory condescension that goes with that,” Thomas told People. “You fill that archetype, the blonde bimbo. But at that point, I was just having fun.”
Unfortunately, she was having too much fun with the inclusion of drugs, a habit that started before her role as Jody Banks.
Her substance use dates to the sixth grade when she started using drugs to maintain steady top grades. Thomas said, “I was taking acid and making straight A’s. I just thought it was mind expanding.”
As her mind evolved from child to adult, so did the drugs she consumed.
At UCLA Thomas started using cocaine and in 1981, one year into her role on The Fall Guy, her drug problems escalated.
Also, feeling like she had to live up with her sex symbol title, the 5-foot-7 Thomas became obsessed with weight, and started taking Lasix, a diuretic that can cause severe lethargy.
To counteract the lethargy, she took more cocaine for a burst of energy.
“At first I was in a honeymoon stage with the drug. I felt that I was getting a lot for my money. It enabled me to stay up all night and then work all the next day,” she said, claiming that she never used cocaine on set. “Cocaine is not approved of on sets. It’s not clubby to do it anymore. It is just a private hell.”
Contrary to her claims, a source close to the actor told People that her drug use was derailing her career. “Word was out on Heather,” the source said. “People knew she had a problem.”
Thomas dropped from 125 to 105 pounds and was falling asleep between takes. Thomas admitted, “Sometimes I was in a minicoma.”
And then she passed out in front of Majors, who called her manager, who called her mother.
When the series finale of The Fall Guy wrapped, her mom, Gladdy Ryder–a former special education teacher–appeared on the set and told her daughter that her father was in hospital.
Rushing to St. John’s Hospital, the author of “Trophies” was greeted by family and friends who were ready to see her admitted into the hospital’s three-week drug program.
“It was a big relief to me,” Thomas said of that day, adding that when she checked into detox, she had pneumonia, scarred lungs and inflamed kidneys. “I’d been on a roller coaster and I wanted to get off. If my family hadn’t intervened, I probably would have gone on my merry way until I lost my job or I died.”
She added, “…The doctors said I should have been dead three years ago.”
Committed to recovery, Thomas surrounded herself with like-minded people who would benefit her goals of being drug-free. That was when Thomas, 28 at the time, met and married Allan Rosenthal, the co-founder of Cocaine Anonymous, whom she divorced in September 1986.
The same month, she suffered serious injuries to both legs when she was struck by a car while crossing the street.
After detox, divorce and surgery repair major damage in one of her legs, Thomas returned to work with smaller roles in TV series. She can also be seen in films like in Cyclone in 1987 and the 1990 Canadian film Red Blooded American Girl with Christopher Plummer.
With her troubles behind her, Thomas started new in the 1990s and while trying to revive her career, she married entertainment lawyer Skip Brittenham in 1992. Taking on the new role as the stepmother to his two daughters, Kristina and Shauna, Thomas also gave birth to her only biological child, daughter India Rose who was born in June 2000.
“So when I had about 45 restraining orders out, and I was on everything from a toilet seat cover to an ashtray–and I was in love, and [then] had two little girls–I decided to give it up and write for a while,” she told Reuters.
In 2017, Heather made a brief comeback in the movie Girltrash: All Night Long, one of her 26 acting credits in her career.
Focused mostly on writing, the Zapped! actor said it wasn’t a lack of roles that drove her from acting, but the stalkers who persistently breached her privacy.
“I was getting so stalked. I had one guy climb over the fence with a knife one time. I had these two little girls and they desperately needed raising so that was that. But I think now I have gotten so old that people won’t bother me much.”
Thomas is also now involved as an activist and formerly served on the board for the Rape Foundation and Amazon Conservation Team.
Identifying as a feminist–a duplicitous title for a former sex symbol–Thomas explained the power of both.
“When I was young, I did what people told me to do but when I was older, I didn’t compromise myself. I wanted power and freedom. This gave me a house and the notoriety to get into the door. There is nothing horrible in letting people see your body. I don’t think I betrayed myself. I don’t think being a feminist means you should be ashamed of your body,” she said.
It’s really sad that Heather Thomas was unable to revive her career in acting again but we’re happy that she got the help she needed and is now in a lifelong journey of recovery.
There are so many wonderful shows of the 1980s and we loved seeing her in the role of Jody Banks in The Fall Guy with the Six Million Dollar Man Lee Majors!
We’d love to hear what you have to say about Thomas and her recovery!
If you just took a walk down memory lane, step back in time again and read about the iconic model Twiggy – and press here to see how she looks today, at 73.
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