Getty Farrah Fawcett shared her son Redmond with fellow actor Ryan O'Neal. Read on for details about Fawcett's son, family, and longtime partner before her death in 2009.
ABC’s This Is Farrah Fawcett airs tonight, May 23, 2019 at 8/7c, and the two hour-long special will give fans of the late Charlie’s Angels actress an inside look at rare video footage, exclusive interviews, and stunning new details on Fawcett’s life before she lost her battle with cancer almost a decade ago.
With all eyes on the late pop culture icon, fans of Fawcett’s might be wondering about her personal life, and if she left behind any family or children when she passed. Here’s what you need to know about Fawcett’s children and family:
1. She Has One Child – a Son Named Redmond O’Neal, Who Blames His Parents For His Issues With Addiction
GettyRedmond O’Neal, Ryan O’Neal, and Farrah Fawcett.
Fawcett left behind one son when she passed away in 2009 – a son named Redmond O’Neal. She shared her son with fellow actor and longtime partner Ryan O’Neal.
The celebrity couple was known for their partying habits during their time together, which ultimately led to a difficult life for Redmond as he was growing up. Redmond blamed his parents for his issues with addiction throughout his life, and claims their negative influence and high-profile notoriety as actors made for a difficult childhood.
“It’s not the drugs that have been a problem, it’s the psychological trauma of my entire life”, he told Radar Online. “My life experiences have affected me the most: fighting with my father, being kicked out and living on the streets, going to jail, being put in a psychiatric ward, being embarrassed all the time, just because of who my parents are.
2. O’Neal Was Previously Been Arrested for Drug Possession & Robbery & Has a Length Criminal Record
GettyRedmond O’Neal at the National Museum of American History.
Redmond O’Neal has a lengthy criminal record, starting with a 2009 arrest, when he was charged with trying to smuggle drugs into the country. In 2011, he was arrested by Santa Monica police after he was stopped for running a red light. After police pulled him over, officers found heroin and drug paraphernalia in his car, according to Heavy. In 2015, O’Neal was also sentenced to three years in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation after violating his probation related to the earlier drug conviction.
In May 2018, O’Neal was also arrested for allegedly robbing a 7-Eleven convenience store in Los Angeles and threatening the clerk with a knife. Fox News reports that Redmond fled the store around 2:30 a.m. before he was picked up by police with a knife that matched the clerk’s description. According to Fox, O’Neal was eventually charged with second-degree robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a smoking device, possession of an injection/ingestion device and two counts of possessing a controlled substance: heroin and marijuana.
3. Redmond Was Also Charged With Attempted Murder in 2018 After Attacking Five Men & Stabbing Two in California
One year ago this month, Redmond O’Neal was charged with attempted murder after the former voice actor was accused of going on a rampage and attacking several men over the course of a few days. According to KABC-TV, O’Neal was charged with punching and stabbing five men in the Venice Beach and Palms neighborhoods between May 2nd and May 5th, 2018.
Police reported that two of the men were seriously injured in the altercation, including one who was stabbed in the face and another who was stabbed in the back. At the time of the attacks, they stated that their suspect was described as having red hair and distinct tattoos, and police quickly named O’Neal as the suspect.
Los Angeles police provided details on each incident, via Huffington Post:
- May 2: A man in Palm Springs is attacked after a white man “with red hair and distinct tattoos” accused him of looking at him. The victim alleges he was punched and the suspect attempted to stab him with a broken bottle. Police said the victim sustained minor injuries to his face.
- May 3: A white male with “red hair and reddish blonde facial hair” is described as a suspect in the beating of a man in the 3400 block of Overland Avenue. The man tells police he’d only attempted to engage the suspect in conversation.
- May 4: A man near Venice Beach is stabbed in the back by a “white suspect with red hair.” The victim says the man attacked him after they made eye contact. A few hours later, another man is found lying in a pool of blood on a sidewalk near Rose Avenue. The victim, according to police, sustained “significant and serious” stab wounds to his face, neck and upper body. Nearby video surveillance captured a white suspect leaving the scene.
- May 5: A white male with “red hair and distinct tattoos” attacks a male employee in a coffee shop on Pacific Avenue. The suspect fled after threatening to stab the employee with a knife.
- May 8: A Santa Monica 7-Eleven store is robbed at knifepoint. O’Neal, who was allegedly found near the scene, is arrested and charged with second-degree robbery, assault with a deadly weapon and possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia.
4. Fawcett Dated Fellow Actor Ryan O’Neal For Several Decades Before Her Death
GettyRyan O’ Neal and Farrah Fawcett attend a party in 2004.
Fawcett and O’Neal dated on-and-off over several decades, and had a tumultuous relationship over the years, fueled by drugs, adultery and alcoholism. The two met through the former’s husband, Lee Majors, and quickly fell in love. Fawcett moved in with O’Neal before her divorce to Majors was finalized.
The celebrity couple were one of the most famous in the world during the 1980s, and despite their obvious love for one another, their respective careers put a lot of distance between the two, and in 1997 Fawcett caught O’Neal in bed with actress Leslie Stefanson, which effectively ended their relationship.
Four years later however, Fawcett and O’Neal reconciled their issues, got back together, and remained together through Fawcett’s battle with cancer (as well as O’Neal’s own battle with chronic myelogenous leukemia). The couple never married, but O’Neal has said in the past that the two were meant to marry on the day his longtime partner passed away.
“I’ve asked her to marry me, again, and she’s agreed,” he wrote in his autobiography Both of Us: My Life With Farrah, stating that they had plans to tie the knot while she was in her hospital bed. “The priest at St John’s Hospital arrives to marry us but administers the last rites instead,” he added.
5. Her Mother, Pauline Alice Fawcett, Appeared in Several Films Alongside Her Daughter & Died in 2005
Fawcett’s mother, Pauline Alice Fawcett, often accompanied her daughter to formal Hollywood functions and was seen alongside Fawcett in several of her films and television shows, including a charity ball at the White House during Ronald Reagan’s administration, according to Chron.
Her mother passed away at the ripe old age of 91. Pauline was married to her husband of 67 years, James Fawcett, and has appeared in the TV series, Chasing Farrah, as well as the 1979 made-for-TV movie, Sunburn, which also starred her daughter.
Tune in tonight at 8/7c to catch ABC’s special This Is Farrah Fawcett.
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Farrah Fawcett Kids & Family: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know