Eighty is Not Enough (PDF)

In his riveting memoir, beloved actor Dick Van Patten reflects on his prolific career, vibrant life, and the people who shaped both. From growing up during the Great Depression when poverty and racially based ideologies dominated America, to witnessing the advent of television and its subsequent influence on culture, Dick Van Patten's life is a rich record of change and progress in America and Hollywood.

Van Patten commenced his career by lighting up the Great White Way as a child star alongside Broadway staples such as Tallulah Bankhead, Melvyn Douglas, Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, early influences who fueled his relentless thirst for acting and stardom. Although perhaps best known for his role playing the mild-mannered "everydad" in the seventies sitcom 'Eight is Not Enough,' Dick Van Patten has appeared in thousands of television, film and radio roles viewed by millions of people.

Van Patten divulges anecdotes, both amusing and emotional, that paint a fuller picture of many eminent entertainment idols. He chronicles throwing back drinks with notorious Hollywood producer Robert Evans, forming his family's close friendship with television icon Farrah Fawcett, rooming with the legendary Burt Lancaster, and living next door to the eccentric Michael Jackson and clan, just to name a few.