Heather Thomas, who turned 66 on September 8, was known for her leading role alongside Lee Majors in The Fall Guy. She was on track for a successful Hollywood career. However, when the actor’s mother arrived on set after the show’s climax had been taped, the stunning blonde ran to the hospital, fearing her father had an emergency.
The family and friends who received her at the Santa Monica hospital assured her that her father, Leon, was fine and that it was her who was concerned.This was only the beginning of a new path for the 28-year-old woman, whose personal life and profession were radically revolutionized following her hospital stay. Keep reading to find out what happened to the former 1980s pinup lady!
At the age of 14, the girl hosted an NBC series called Talking with a Giant, in which she and four other teenagers questioned celebrities. To advance her career as an actor, director, and writer, Thomas, now 66, studied film and theater at UCLA, and the year before graduation, she appeared in the short-lived comedy series Co-Ed Fever (1979).
In 1980, the Connecticut-born performer landed her first main part in the TV series The Fall Guy, playing the sidekick to Lee Majors, who earned global renown in the 1970s for his performance as Steven Austin in The Six Million Dollar Man. Thomas, who portrayed Jody Banks, a stuntwoman-bounty hunter on the popular action show, was admired by the male populace, who saw her as a sex symbol, a term about which she confesses she has mixed feelings.
“There’s obligatory condescension that goes with that,” Thomas told People. “You fit that archetype, the blonde bimbo. But at the time, I was just having fun.” Unfortunately, she was having too much fun with the drug use, which had begun before to her role as Jody Banks. Her substance use began in sixth grade, when she began using narcotics to maintain consistently high marks. Thomas explained, “I was taking acid and getting straight A’s. I just thought it was mind-expanding.
Her intellect evolved from child to adult, and so did the medications she took. Thomas began taking cocaine while at UCLA, and her drug troubles worsened after a year on The Fall Guy in 1981. Also, feeling compelled to live up to her sex symbol status, the 5-foot-7 Thomas grew obsessed with weight and began taking Lasix, a diuretic that can produce significant lethargy.
To combat her weariness, she took additional cocaine for a boost of vigor. “Initially, I was in a honeymoon phase with the medicine. I felt like I was receiving a lot of value for my money. It allowed me to stay up all night and work all day the next day,” she stated, insisting that she never used cocaine on set. “Cocaine is not allowed on set. that’s not cool to do that anymore. It’s just a private hell.
Despite her assertions, a source close to the performer told People that her drug usage was jeopardizing her career. “Word got out about Heather,” the person stated. “People knew she had a problem.”Thomas dropped from 125 to 105 pounds and fell asleep in between takes. Thomas stated, “Sometimes I was in a minicoma.” She then passed out in front of Majors, who called her manager, who contacted her mother. When the series finale of The Fall Guy concluded, her mother, Gladdy Ryder, a former special education teacher, stepped on set and informed her daughter that her father was in the hospital.
Rushing to St. John’s Hospital, the author of “Trophies” was greeted by family and friends eager to see her admitted into the hospital’s three-week drug treatment program.”It was a big relief to me,” Thomas said of that day, adding that when she arrived at detox, she had pneumonia, scarred lungs, and swollen kidneys. “I had been riding a roller coaster and wanted to get off. If my family hadn’t intervened, I’d probably have continued on my course until I lost my job or died.”
She continued, “…The doctors said I should have been dead three years ago.” Thomas committed to recovery and surrounded herself with like-minded people who would help her achieve her drug-free goals. That’s when Thomas, 28, met and married Allan Rosenthal, a co-founder of Cocaine Anonymous, from whom she later divorced in September 1986.
The same month, she was hit by a car while crossing the street, causing significant damage to both legs.After detox, divorce, and surgery to heal serious damage to one of her legs, Thomas returned to work in minor roles in TV shows. She has also appeared in films such as Cyclone (1987) and Red Blooded American Girl (1990), co-starring Christopher Plummer from Canada.
With her tribulations behind her, Thomas began a new life in the 1990s, marrying entertainment lawyer Skip Brittenham in 1992 while attempting to restore her career. Thomas became the stepmother to his two children, Kristina and Shauna, and gave birth to her only biological child, India Rose, 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 stated to Reuters.
Heather had a brief reappearance in 2017 with the film Girltrash: All Night Long, one of her 26 acting credits. The Zapped! actor, who is mostly focused on writing, stated that it was not a lack of roles that drove her away from acting, but rather stalkers who repeatedly invaded her privacy. “I was being stalked. I once had a person climb over the fence with a knife. I had two tiny kids who absolutely needed to be raised, so that was it. But I suppose I’m old enough now that people won’t disturb me as much.”
Thomas is also now an activist, having previously served on the boards of the Rape Foundation and the Amazon Conservation Team. Identifying as a feminist–a deceptive moniker for a former sex symbol–Thomas emphasized the significance of both. “When I was younger, I did what others instructed me to do, but when I got older, I refused to sacrifice myself. I desired power and independence.
This provided me with a home as well as the reputation necessary to gain in. Allowing someone to see your body is not inherently bad. I do not believe I betrayed myself. “I don’t believe being a feminist requires you to be ashamed of your body,” she remarked.It’s unfortunate that Heather Thomas was unable to restart her acting career, but we’re glad she received the assistance she required and is now on a lifelong journey of rehabilitation.