Richard Thomas Almost Killed Himself While Doing His Own Motorbike Stunt

Richard Thomas left The Waltons, the sitcom that brought him to television fame, 44 years ago. His character, John-Boy Walton, has become one of the most recognizable characters in television history. However, he left the show in its prime, leaving everyone wondering why. Even after leaving The Waltons, he continued to work in television, film and theater in later years. However, as he got older, his popularity dwindled. After moving from lead to supporting roles for many years, many people are unaware of his current position, leading some to speculate that he is dead.

Richard Thomas almost died in 1977

Many queries on the internet, such as “Is Richard Thomas dead?” only serves to highlight his devoted fan base. After all, he was dangerously close to death in 1977. During his break from filming The Waltons that year, he was in a movie. The film was titled September 30, 1955 and he would play Jimmy J. Director James Bridges revealed to MeTV that Thomas nearly died while performing a stunt motorcycle stunt for a scene himself. . The actor lost control of his motorcycle and crashed into a vehicle.

He jumped off his bike before colliding with the vehicle, but he was seriously injured. His wound 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 final season with the show, under his contract. He chose not to renew his paperwork and it was time for him and his character to move on. So in 1978, he left, with no further offers and an uncertain future. Despite this, Thomas was still great and had no trouble finding work in Hollywood or on Broadway.

Is Richard Thomas still alive?

In fact, Thomas is still alive and well. He is still working in movies, TV series and stage. Since 2022, the actor plays the main role in Ozark, a popular Netflix series. He joined the show in January 2022 and has appeared in nine episodes as Nathan Davis as of this writing. In April 2022, he will play Atticus Finch on Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird production tour on Broadway.

Thomas has had a steady acting job since the beginning of his career. In 2021, he appeared in The Waltons: Homecoming, a TV series in which he played the narrator. He currently has 125 acting credits. The actor’s personal life is also going well. He lives 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 son and three daughters. Her two previous marriages resulted in two daughters. In 1996, they had a son together. His children are all grown up and have their own jobs. Two of them reside in California in 2020, three in Bend, Oregon, and two in New York. In a November 2014 interview with Smashing Interviews, he revealed that his youngest daughter is an aspiring actress and their eldest daughter is a post-production officer. He is also preparing a college application for his youngest child.