David Cassidy, teen heartthrob of 'The Partridge Family,' dies at 67
22 Nov 2017
LOS ANGELES - David Cassidy, a singer and actor whose androgynous features and jaunty voice made him a 1970s teen heartthrob on the The Partridge Family television show, died on Wednesday at age 67, his publicist said.
Cassidy, who was diagnosed with dementia in his 60s, entered a Florida hospital over the weekend and succumbed to organ failure. He died in the hospital's intensive care unit, his publicist, Jo-Ann Geffen, said in a telephone interview.
Geffen released a statement from his family that said Cassidy died surrounded by loved ones with joy in his heart and free from the pain that had gripped him for so long.
With dark hair cascading over his shoulders, hazel eyes and a look that emulated many rock stars of the day, Cassidy was cast at 19 in The Partridge Family for his sex appeal to girls, not his singing. When the show's producers discovered Cassidy's melodious voice, he became lead singer in the family band.
He played the teenager Keith Partridge whose widowed mother - portrayed by his stepmother, Shirley Jones - formed a touring pop band with her offspring, traveling to gigs in a multi-colored bus.
The sitcom produced a number of hit songs, including I Think I Love You, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard chart in 1970, the year the show debuted.
The Oscar-winning Jones was his mentor as well as his co-star, and the two remained friends and collaborators long after the show ended in 1974.
Cassidy, who lived in Florida late in life, was married three times and is survived by his son, Beau, and his daughter, Katie, who have both had their own careers in show business. - AP