Celebrity
Melissa Gilbert Issues Powerful Warning After Former Co-Star’s Tragic Death
Melissa Gilbert honors a former co-star after her tragic death and warns parents of the pitfalls tied to child stardom.
Little House on the Prairie and Hallmark alum Melissa Gilbert took to social media on June 29 to pay tribute to a treasured former co-star. The post came hours after the cause of death emerged for Daveigh Chase, who died on June 16.
Gilbert not only shared sweet memories of having worked with Chase many years ago, but she also had some bold words to share directed at “stage parents.”
On Instagram, Gilbert shared an adorable photo of Chase from when she was a young actress. She wrote, “This is the @daveighchase.official I knew. I shot a pilot for a series with her 20+ years ago.”
The pilot Gilbert shot with Chase would have also starred Heroes alum Jack Coleman as Gilbert’s husband and Kevin Zegers as her son.
Gilbert continued, “I only worked with Daveigh a couple of days but I could see she was bright both in countenance and in mind. She was bubbly, sweet and professional.”
“But there was something else there, a push or need to perform…for her parents,” Gilbert continued.
A former child star herself, Gilbert noted she has been around a lot of “stage parents.” She wrote, “Many child actors grow up just fine, whether they stay in ‘the business’ or not. That is 100% due to really solid, wise parenting.”
Gilbert wrote that child stardom on its own is “not a guarantee of dysfunction.” However, she added, “trouble begins” when the child’s parents lose sight of who they themselves are.
The Little House on the Prairie alum used Chase’s heartbreaking death as a warning to other families. She urged parents of child stars to make sure the family is pursuing it for the right reasons and to involve an accountant to ensure the money is properly managed.
“I would also ask that these parents memorize this sweet girl’s face and her story so that it never happens again,” Gilbert boldly requested.
On June 29, People revealed that the Los Angeles medical examiner’s report regarding Chase’s death listed AIDS and chronic polysubstance use as the causes of death.
Chase had been estranged from her parents for quite some time, reports indicated. After starring in projects such as The Ring and Big Love, as well as voicing the character of Lilo in both a movie and a television series, Chase disappeared from Hollywood.
In recent years, family and friends were said to have searched for Chase on Skid Row in a desperate attempt to help her, to no avail. She died in a hospital at the age of 35.
