Ryan O’Neal has died at the age of 82.
The actor, best known for 1970’s “Love Story” and the soap opera “Peyton’s Place,” died “peacefully” on Friday “with his loving team by his side,” his son, Patrick O’Neal, revealed on Instagram.
“My father Ryan O’Neal has always been my hero. I looked up to him and he was always bigger than life,” Patrick gushed in his caption, which was accompanied by a photo of a beautiful sunset at the beach.
“He is a Hollywood legend. Full stop,” he continued in his lengthy message before highlighting some of his projects, which include “What’s Up, Doc?” (1972), “Paper Moon” (1973), “Barry Lyndon” (1975), “A Bridge Too Far” (1977), “The Driver” (1978) and “The Main Event” (1979).
Patrick, whose mother is actress Leigh Taylor-Young, further memorialized his father’s career in a second post, writing, “He was so skilled at his craft, worked so hard, and just loved acting plain and simple.”
“Highly intelligent and an avid reader and journal writer.”
“He was adept at memorizing pages of dialogue in an hour.”
“I hope he felt proud of his career but he was very humble.”
The broadcaster, 56, also gushes over Ryan for not only being an irreplaceable star, but an incredibly supportive dad.
“The best and most loving and supportive dad, and I am just so lucky to have had him,” he penned.
“And he supported me in my sports broadcasting career more than anyone other than my wife Summer. If I lacked confidence, he gave me his.”
Ryan was also known as the life partner of actress Farrah Fawcett, a relationship Patrick celebrated in a third Instagram tribute.
“Ryan never bragged. But he has bragging rights in Heaven,” he wrote.
“Especially when it comes to Farrah. Everyone had the poster, he had the real McCoy.”
“And now they meet again. Farrah and Ryan. He has missed her terribly. What an embrace that must be. Together again.”
Although they never married, Ryan and Fawcett were an iconic Hollywood couple between 1979 and 1997.
They rekindled their love in 2001 and stayed together until the actress’ death in 2009.
The duo shared a son named Redmond.
Ryan is also survived by his actress daughter, Tatum, and his actor son, Griffin — from whom he was formerly estranged.
Griffin previously told Vanity Fair his and Tatum’s fractured relationship with their father was a result of his drug habits, even claiming he “insisted” that he tried cocaine at the age of 11.
“He was a very abusive, narcissistic psychopath. He gets so mad he can’t control anything he’s doing,” Griffin recalled in the 2009 interview.
Ryan knew he hadn’t been the perfect dad, even admitting to the magazine he was a “hopeless father.”
“I don’t think I was supposed to be a father. Just look around at my work — they’re either in jail or they should be,” he added.
Redmond experienced several run-ins with the law over the years and is currently staying at San Bernardino, Calif.’s Patton State Psychiatric Hospital on charges of attempted murder, assault, robbery and more.
The “Bones” actor shared Griffin and Tatum with Joanna Moore, to whom he was married between 1963 and 1967.
He is also survived by five grandchildren.
Pvnew reached out to Ryan’s representatives for comment.
His death comes months after Radaronline reported he was hoping to reconnect with Redmond as his health declined.
“Now Ryan doesn’t believe he has much time left, and he wants to hug Redmond and tell him how sorry he is he couldn’t keep his promise to his mother,” a source told the outlet.
The accomplished actor was diagnosed with leukemia in 2001 and prostate cancer in 2012.
He also suffered from diabetes and heart problems.
