On May 27, 2011 Jeff Conaway passed away from pneumonia and damage from continued drug use. I first met Jeff on Halloween 2010 at the Horrorjunkies.com launch party. As a child I would watch Grease the movie, in which Jeff was a co-star, over and over. When I met Jeff it was like meeting one of my hero's. He was a kind, sweet man, that believed in God and was kind to everyone.
While I was in Montana visiting my daughter Jeff called me and we spoke about a charity event that I wanted him to perform at. While on the phone with him, I asked if he would talk to my 22 year old daughter, and give her the biggest thrill of her life. He told me "of course." She was so excited that she immediately went to her facebook and made sure that the whole world knew that she had spoken to Kiniki, Jeff's character from the film Grease. This was a very kind thing to do.
The next time I saw Jeff, was on December 4, 2010. Jeff and his girlfriend Vikki Lizzi agreed to come and perform for an event that Actress Cher Rue and myself were throwing at the Ecco Ultra Lounge in Hollywood. Jeff was having a very difficult time getting around after his accident, in 2010, where he broke his hip, arm, and neck. The pain was evident when you looked at his face. Yet he still came out to support Variety the children's charity and help out his friends at Wentworth Public Relations.
Vikki and Jeff had previously recorded an album together, and got up on the stage to give the audience an amazing performance. Jeff couldn't stand, but sat stationary on a stool while he sang. Never before had I been as happy as I was that night.
On January 7, 2011 Jeff went in to surgery and had a hip replacement. Things seemed like they were turning around for him with this new leash on life. However, he faced a set back when he took a fall, and wound up once again relying on the pain medications to get through the day. Vikki was worried for Jeff's health, as she had seen the signs of his addictions many times before, and feared for the worst.
The last time I heard from Jeff was on May 9, 2011, the day before he was found in his home. He had called me, and left me a voice message wanting to check in and see how I was doing. I never got the chance to speak with him, as he went into the hospital the very next day.
Vikki wanted to be by his side, but was forbidden by Jeff's sisters who had filed a restraining order against her, keeping her from her partner of seven years. In speaking with Vikki we learned that Jeff was in a coma and not likely to make a recovery. Having spent the past seven years as Jeff's girlfriend, she was beside herself with grief at not being allowed to spend what turned out to be the last days of his life.
On May 27, 2011 Jeff's immediate family made a decision to finally take him off of life support, which in turn ended his life. It was a sad, sad day for all who knew him.
Comments