Alan Thicke Of 'Growing Pains' Fame Dead At 69
BURBANK, Calif. (CBSNewYork/CBS News) -- Actor Alan Thicke, known for his role on the television series "Growing Pains," has died at the age of 69.
Carleen Donovan, who is a publicist for Thicke's son, singer Robin Thicke, says the actor died from a heart attack on Tuesday in Los Angeles. She had no further details.
Thicke, a native of Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada, is survived by his three sons -- Robin, Brennan, and Carter -- as well as his wife Tanya.
He was reportedly playing hockey with his son Carter just before his fatal heart attack, as CBS2's Tony Aiello reported.
Thicke rose to fame as a talk show host in Canada, but his attempt to replicate that success in America with "Thicke of the Night" only lasted one season.
On ABC's "Growing Pains," Thicke played father and psychiatrist Jason Seaver. He starred alongside Joanna Kerns, Kirk Cameron, Tracey Gold, Jeremy Miller and Ashley Johnson, and Leonardo DiCaprio also appeared as a cast member in the final season. The show ran from 1985 until 1992.
Thicke most recently appeared on season two of "Fuller House," on Netflix. He is also known for his appearance on "How I Met Your Mother," and for hosting a variety of shows and events including the Disney Christmas parade, the "Celebrity Cooking Showdown," and "Dancing Pros Live."
He was also a frequent pitchman for ads on Sirius.
Thicke was also a song composer. He worked on theme songs for several popular sitcoms, including the theme songs for "Diff'rent Strokes" and "The Facts of Life."
Son Robin found success in pop music, including the 2013 megasmash "Blurred Lines."
Two years ago, Thicke joked about using his son's success to boost his own career.
"I am perfectly happy to exploit him to the fullest possible degree," he said at the time.
Robin Thicke told the Los Angeles Times his father was "the greatest man I ever met" and "always a gentleman."
"I saw him a few days ago and told him how much I loved and respected him," Robin Thicke told the Los Angeles Times.
This past September on "The Trend," 1010 WINS' Rebecca Granet interviewed Alan Thicke and his wife Tanya to discuss the most recent season of their new show "Unusually Thicke" on POP TV.
"It goes everywhere from hilarious and heartwarming and insightful to cringe-worthy," Thicke said in the interview. "My wife is capable of just about anything."
Thicke also talked about "Growing Pains" in the interview with Granet.
"I'm very proud of 'Growing Pains' what it stood for," Thicke said. "That dad, Jason Seaver, was the kind of guy I would aspire to be if I had 12 writers telling me how to deal with my kids. But proud of the legacy of that show, too."
POP TV President Brad Schwartz released a statement on Thicke's passing.
"We are deeply saddened to hear of Alan's passing. He was a part of our Pop family and was a tremendous talent," Schwartz said in the statement. "He was also for all who knew him, an amazing father and a true gentleman. We had the privilege to work with America's Favorite Dad and his loss is one that is deeply felt."
Thicke's manager, Larry Thompson, said in a statement to CBS News that "Over 35 years I signed Alan Thicke for management five times. He fired me five times. He always said I was the Billy Martin of his life."
The Los Angeles County Coroner's office says Thicke's death was not reported to them.
Numerous celebrities offered condolences via Twitter late Tuesday. Actress Candace Cameron Bure noted that Thicke's own last tweet was about "Fuller House."
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