The Tragic Last Days Of Brian Keith

Towards the end of his life, Brian Keith had suffered so much. He had several health issues and was dealing with the unexpected death of his 27 year old daughter, Daisy. Also during this time, Brian was dealing with some financial troubles.

Before getting into show business, Brian was in the Marines and served in World War 2. After his service, he got into radio and theatre. In 1961, he got the part in a movie Parent Trap, which became a favorite and in 1966, he got the part as Uncle Bill in Family Affair. 

Along with having emphysema, Brian was going through chemotherapy for lung cancer. He had a hard time dealing with chemotherapy both emotionally and mentally. He had quit smoking more than 10 years prior to getting the diagnosis. Brian believed that this was something his daughter wasn’t able to deal with since his cancer was terminal. She committed suicide just weeks before Brian’s own death. 

As he was living with multiple health issues and was in constant pain, Brian was still doing the things he loved, like fishing and continuing to work. He had a supporting role in a mini series called Rough Riders, playing President William McKinley. 

His daughter's death would be too much for the actor to overcome. He wasn’t able to deal with the loss, but this wasn’t the first time that Brian has lost a child. His son, Michael passed away in 1963 at the age of 8 years old. His cause of death was pneumonia. 

On June 24, 1997, Brian took his own life. The police had found him in his home after they were alerted by family members. Brian was 75 years old. 

Unlike his daughter, Brian left a handwritten note in which he wrote "The end is here. I'm finished. The pain is too much. Now it's time for me to join our little Daisy. She needs me. She didn't want to be without me here, so she'll have me again over there. Don't be sad. This had to come soon."

Just a few days before, he talked to his Family Affair co-star Johnny Whitaker and he said that Brian wasn’t feeling well due to the chemotherapy and that he had other problems going on. Both Johnny and Kathy Garver, his other Family Affair co-star attended his funeral. He is interred with his daughter, Daisy at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles.