Richard Thomas left The Waltons, the sitcom that launched him to television fame, 44 years ago. His character, John-Boy Walton, became one of the most recognizable in television history. However, he left the program in its heyday, leaving everyone wondering why. Even after leaving The Waltons, he continued to work in television, film, and theater in the years that followed. However, as he got older, his popularity waned. After transitioning from lead to supporting roles throughout the years, many people are unaware of his current location, prompting some to speculate that he has died.
Richard Thomas Nearly Died in 1977
The many queries on the internet, such as “Did Richard Thomas die?” only serve to highlight his devoted fan base. After all, he came dangerously near to death in 1977. During a break from shooting The Waltons that year, he took on a movie part. The film was titled September 30, 1955, and he was to portray Jimmy J. Director James Bridges revealed to MeTV that Thomas almost died while doing his own motorbike stunt for a sequence. The actor lost control of his motorbike and was heading straight for a vehicle.
He leaped off the bike before colliding with the vehicle, but he was severely hurt. His injuries had to be included in the plot of The Waltons. That was in 1977, during the height of the show’s success. It was Thomas’ fifth and last season with the show, according to his contract. He chose not to renew his papers and that it was time for him and his character to move on. So, in 1978, he just departed, with no further offers and an unclear future. Regardless, Thomas was great and had no problem finding work in Hollywood or on Broadway.
Is Richard Thomas still alive?
Thomas is, in fact, still alive and well. He is still working in movies, TV series, and theater. As of 2022, the actor is occupied with Ozark, a popular Netflix drama. He joined the show in January 2022 and has featured in nine episodes as Nathan Davis as of this writing. In April 2022, he will play Atticus Finch in a Broadway stage production tour of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.
Thomas has had steady acting work from the beginning of his career. In 2021, he appeared in The Waltons: Homecoming, a TV movie in which he portrayed the narrator. He now has 125 acting credits. Personal life for the actor is also going well. He resides in Manhattan, New York, with his second wife, Georgiana Bischoff. They have a total of seven children.
With his first wife, Alma Gonzales, he had four children: a boy and triplet girls. Her two prior marriages resulted in two daughters. In 1996, they had a son together. His children are all grown up and are doing their own thing. Two of them resided in California as of 2020, three in Bend, Oregon, and two in New York. In a November 2014 interview with Smashing Interviews, he disclosed that his youngest daughter was an aspiring actor and their eldest daughter was a postproduction officer. He was also working on his youngest child’s college applications.