Throughout the late?70’s and into the 80’s, Dick Van Patten made himself a welcome fixture in homes and hearts across the country in his role on the small screen as loveable dad, Tom Bradford, on ?Eight is Enough?. This well-loved, family-oriented series ran on ABC from 1977-1981, earning numerous award nominations and garnering Van Patten?s character a #33 ranking in TV Guide?s list of the? ?50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time?.
?Eight is Enough? represented a time of family values and nostalgia and Van Patten shined especially as the somewhat old-fashioned dad who, though imperfect, always came through in the end with fatherly phrases that are still considered gems.
I recently had the opportunity to meet one of television?s most prolific actors when I was introduced to?Dick Van Patten and his wife Patricia at?a Los Angeles event. There was a warm familiarity as if I were running into an old friend. After enjoying some time with both of them, Dick graciously agreed to do an interview with us.
I was eager to know more about the life story of this beloved actor I?d admired for years.
I asked Dick about his beginnings as an actor and?was surprised to learn that he has worked as an actor for over 70 years, opening on Broadway?when he was only?7 years old. But he was not your typical child actor. With all the horror stories?about child actors having difficult segues into life as successful adults, Van Patten proves a rare exception to the rule. He had a prolific career as a child, participating in over 600 programs for kids and performed on a CBS radio show called ?Let?s Pretend.? Van Patten credits his parents in large part for his ability to transition gracefully into adulthood. ?My parents prepared me for the realities of life. They taught me that anything can end at any time and that?s ok. They were very supportive of me and loved me very much,? Van Patten told me of his parents, Josephine and Richerd Van Patten.
Of course, Van Patten had little time to worry about his career ending after childhood. From the time he opened on Broadway with Melvyn Douglas in “Tapestry in Gray”, going at the time by Dickie Van Patten, he has enjoyed consistent success as one of television and film?s most enduring actors.
Significantly, Dick was cast in television?s first-ever series ?I Remember Mama? which was broadcast live every Saturday morning from 1949-1958, on which he played a character named Nels Hansen. Years later he would name one of his sons Nels.
During the run of ?I Remember Mama,? Dick married his childhood sweetheart Patricia Poole. The two met as junior high students at the Professional Children?s School, a school in Manhattan for working child actors. ?We were childhood sweethearts, says Van Patten. ?I had a crush on her but it was hard because I?d go out on the road with a show.? After years spent like this, they were finally able to unite and have been married for 54 years.
After ?I Remember Mama? ended, Dick enjoyed steady work on many popular television shows, including ?I Dream of Jeannie,? ?The Six Million Dollar Man,? ?McMillan and Wife,? ?Maude,? ?Wonder Woman,? and ?The New Dick Van Dyke Show.? His resume reads like a history of television from its inception. From 1970-1972 he starred with Herschel Bernardi on the series ?Arnie? and followed that up with a role on the short-lived Mel Brooks series, ?When Things Were Rotten.?
His career also boasts several Broadway highlights: he starred as Ensign Pulver in Mister Roberts and took on supporting roles in The Tender Trap, Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?, and Don?t Drink the Water.
But it was in 1977 that Dick took on the role for which he is probably best known. Van Patten was cast in the pilots for ?Eight is Enough? and ?Love Boat,? and shot the two simultaneously. When both pilots got picked up, it was up to CBS to determine his fate, and they decided he should be Tom Bradford on ?Eight is Enough.? The show ran for 5 seasons and made Van Patten one of America?s favorite TV dads.
When ?Eight is Enough? ended in 1981, it certainly didn?t mean an end to Van Patten?s career. It didn?t even slow down. He continued working steadily as a guest star on many renowned television series (including ?The Love Boat?), toured in a production of Neil Simon?s The Sunshine Boys with Frank Gorshin (the Riddler on television?s ?Batman?), appeared in Spaceballs, High Anxiety, Freaky Friday, and The Shaggy D.A. and starred on ?WIOU,? a series which lasted only 26 episodes.
In recent years Van Patten has continued to stay busy and working. He?s appeared on ?Arrested Development,? ?7th Heaven,? ?Family Guy,? and ?Touched By An Angel?? and many more. An active contributor to non-profit animal charities, he has also created a line of all-natural pet food called ?Natural Balance Pet Foods” (?www.naturalbalanceinc.com?), available at Petco and other pet stores. He also authored Launching Your Child?s Career in 
Show Business (1999) and Dick Van Patten?s Totally Terrific TV Trivia (2007). He has three sons: Nels Van Patten, Jimmy Van Patten, and Vincent Van Patten. Nels is a tennis instructor, Jimmy just finished filming ?Saw 3? , and Vincent Van Patten is a commentator for the World Poker Tour. He has 3 grandsons from Vincent.
Some of his favorite restaurants in the Los Angeles area are Dan Tana?s and Chin Chin. Among his favorite actors is Al Pacino and Martin Short. His advice to actors today, ?Don?t get discouraged.? Just go for it, whether you make it or not. You won?t succeed if you don?t try.?
Van Patten?s been fortunate to span not only 7 decades as an actor, but as a successful business man, writer, father and husband. He continues to be happily married to Pat, and the two live in Studio City, CA.
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