David Cassidy on the Web
How it all went pear-shaped for the Partridge boy
January 21, 2000
By Tim Cooper
Evening Standard (London)
SEVENTIES heartthrob David Cassidy, whose face once adorned the bedroom walls of teenage girls the world over, has brought his life story to the screen by producing a two-hour biopic.
It even includes a cameo performance by Cassidy himself singing a duet with Andrew Kavovit, the newcomer who plays him in the film. British star Malcolm McDowell plays Cassidy's jealous father. In his heyday, Cassidy, who will be 50 in April, was so popular that hotels banned him because of the masses of fans who would turn up.
He became an overnight star in the hit TV series The Partridge Family, with his real-life stepmother Shirley Jones playing his screen mother. Before long he launched a hugely successful solo career, dominating the pop charts alongside The Osmonds, The Jackson Five and The Bay City Rollers.
The film reveals for the first time how miserable he was despite the fame and adulation. "I was just too busy to enjoy all the good things," he admits.
The "good things" he enjoyed were far from the clean-cut image he presented to his public, consisting largely of as much sex, drugs and alcohol as he could manage.
Behind the scenes he was also frustrated by his rocky relationship with his father, alcoholic actor Jack Cassidy. "I was hurt that he was so hurt and bitter about my success," he adds.
The TV film, based on the singer's memoirs C'mon, Get Happy - Fear And Loathing On The Partridge Family Bus, chronicles Cassidy's rise to fame and his plummet back to obscurity, beset by drug and money problems.
Despite his name and image earning $500million, he ended up with $15,000, having signed away his rights before his popularity exploded. In the Eighties he returned to acting and rebuilt his reputation, earning an Emmy nomination and appearing on Broadway and in the West End, where he took over from Cliff Richard in Time in 1987 and went on to revive Blood Brothers, his appearance prompting the biggest surge in bookings for nine years.
"Musically, I never became what I thought I could become," he laments, although he has found happiness with his third wife and eight-year-old son, and professional success producing and starring in Las Vegas stage productions.
