DALLAS (AP) — Philip McKeon, who as a child actor had a long-running role in the 1980s CBS situation comedy “Alice,” has died at age 55, a family spokesman said.
Spokesman Jeff Ballard said McKeon died Tuesday after a long illness. He said further details on where and how McKeon died were being withheld at his family’s request.
Starting at age 11, McKeon played the part of Tommy Hyatt in “Alice” from 1976 to 1985. The character was the mouthy son of a diner waitress played by Linda Lavin.
Around the same time, his younger sister, Nancy McKeon, was playing Jo on the NBC sitcom “The Facts of Life.” The siblings had started out modeling and acting in dozens of commercials before winning the series roles.
Among those tweeting fond memories of McKeon was Charlie Sheen, who acted alongside him in a 1986 episode of Steven Spielberg’s anthology TV series “Amazing Stories.”
Ballard says McKeon had worked for 10 years in the news department of a Los Angeles radio station before moving to Texas about five years ago to be better able to care for his family. He settled in the Hill Country town of Wimberley, about 30 miles southwest of Austin, where he hosted a local radio show.
“Alice” was loosely inspired by Martin Scorsese’s 1974 movie “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” which starred Ellen Burstyn and Kris Kristofferson. The movie’s Tommy, Alfred Lutter, had the role in the TV pilot before being replaced by McKeon.