Before his 12th birthday, actor Willie Aames had already appeared in hit shows, including Gunsmoke, Adam-12, and The Courtship Of Eddie’s Father.
Willie, now 65, became a household name in the 70s after landing a starring role in the beloved sitcom Eight Is Enough.
He played Tommy Bradford, one of the offspring of Tom Bradford (portrayed by Dick Van Patten), in the series that aired from 1977 to 1981.
His career continued to flourish as he took on the role of TJ Latimer in Family and later played Buddy Lembeck on the popular 1980s sitcom Charles in Charge.
During his peak years on Eight is Enough, Willie was earning over one million dollars annually, but when the work disappeared, his world came crashing down.
Confronted with bankruptcy and the threat of losing his home, Willie found himself sleeping rough in parking lots and even hiding under bushes after becoming homeless.
He revealed to Entertainment Tonight, “At the very peak [of Eight Is Enough] I was making a little over a million dollars a year. Then suddenly there was no job, no bank account, no wife, no child. I never dreamt it could happen that fast.
“I found myself virtually homeless. I stayed with friends when I could, slept in parking garages or slept in the park. It was shameful. I remember laying underneath the bushes thinking, ‘Is this how it turns out? Is this how my life really turns out?'”.
During a 2017 interview with Studio 10’s Angela Bishop, Willie candidly discussed his money troubles, confessing he had made numerous “stupid decisions”. “I made some really stupid decisions in my life and I’m proud of them. That’s a strange thing to say,” he confessed.
“There are a lot of things that I care not to repeat, but the fact of the matter is I made those choices.”
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He continued, “Never once did I ever see a producer say, ‘Hey, let’s get this guy addicted to drugs, that’ll sell more movies.’ It doesn’t happen that way. This is a business.
“They want it to be successful and they want you to be successful. My parents didn’t do it to me, the business didn’t do it to me, somebody else didn’t.”
Willie acknowledged making his own “poor choices” which ultimately cost him dearly. “I lost everything. At one point I went from eating at the White House to sleeping in the bushes and brought myself back again,” he said.
“Nobody gave me a hand up. I mean, you know, I was sleeping in the bushes at the Hollywood Bowl at one point, homeless, lost everything.”
Eventually reaching a crucial moment, Willie remembered, “I had to sit there and go, “Get your BLEEP together. I mean what’s the deal? Nobody is going to do it for you.
“I had a choice. I could either start over at 47…or choose to be a victim. So, what did I do? I became your favorite celebrity satellite installer and I learned a trade, and then I went to work on a cruise ship.”
Willie managed to make a successful career pivot, working as a cruise director for Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
He made his return to the acting scene in 2016 and has since been featured in several film and TV productions, including Hallmark Channel films like Dater’s Handbook and “Love in the Limelight.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.the-express.com ’
