In addition to being part of Perry’s TV family, Fairchild knows the actor’s real-life family—including his father John Bennett Perry, her costar on the ’80s dramas Flamingo Road and Falcon Crest.
“I knew his dad back in the day,” she added. “And the loss of a child—the loss of especially such a wonderful, giving and talented child when everything seemed to be doing so much better—it was just very sad.”
In fact, the 74-year-old still remembers Perry “bounding over” to her on their first day of work together and telling her, “‘Oh, you won’t remember me, but I used to hang out on the set of Flamingo Road and Falcon Crest with you, with my dad.'” Once she realized who his father was, she thought, “‘God, this little kid I used to hang out with is now an adult.'”
And quite a charming one at that.
“Just the sweetness, the kindness, the effervescence, the way he lit up a room and was so funny and kind and generous to everyone, that’s the way I remember him,” Fairchild shared. “It’s very sad to see what’s happened when it looked like he was doing so much better. So, I think the loss of such a talent, such a lovely person that I remember as this really promising young actor, very funny, very sweet, it’s just very sad.”