Tatyana Ali appearance on this show talking about former boyfriend's suicide...

[Ireneparalegal]

Did anyone ever catch this show on E! channel? It had two segments and talks abt broken dreams in show business. The second segment talked abt the young actor who eventually committed suicide, . It was very sad and they talked with his ex-girlfriend Tatyana Ali who played Ashley Banks. She was devastated by his death and she was very upset by it as it showed on this program.

http://www.eonline.com/on/shows/brokendreams/


Here is a bio on the actor:

Born in Danbury, Connecticut, Brandis got his show-biz break at the age of six when he landed a recurring role on One Life to Live and appeared in numerous commercials. He moved to Los Angeles with his family at age nine and made guest appearances on shows such as L.A. Law, Who's the Boss?, Murder, She Wrote, Full House, and Kate & Allie.

He received his first starring role in The NeverEnding Story II, and went on to appear primarily in television roles. Of these, he is most famous for his portrayal of scientific prodigy Lucas Wolenczak in Steven Spielberg's futuristic science fiction series seaQuest DSV. He is also well known for voicing Mozenrath in Disney's television series Aladdin, and having played Barry Grabrewski in the film Sidekicks co-starring Chuck Norris. He also starred in the soccer movie Ladybugs with actor/comedian Rodney Dangerfield, and played the young "Stuttering Bill" Denbrough in the 1990 miniseries It, based on the epic horror novel by Stephen King.

During his lifetime he was romantically linked to Tatyana Ali, Heather McComb, Vinessa Shaw and Monica Keena. He accompanied actress Brittany Murphy to her high school prom. He expressed no interest in moving his career towards more directing work rather than acting. He had also auditioned for the role of Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas' Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.


Death
On November 12, 2003, Brandis died from injuries he suffered after hanging himself the previous day. According to his mother, he went out to dinner with friends, then they went back to his apartment at 650 South Detroit Street. His friends reported that he seemed to be agitated and pacing around quite a bit. He left the room, and approximately 15 minutes later, one of his friends went looking for him and found him hanging by a nylon rope in the second floor hallway of his building. His friends cut him down and called paramedics. Despite all efforts to revive him, he was later pronounced dead. The Los Angeles Police Department released a statement regarding his death:

On November 11, 2003, at about 11:40 p.m., a friend of Jonathan Brandis called police to report that the actor had attempted suicide at his apartment, located in the 600 block of Detroit Avenue. Paramedics from the Los Angeles Fire department responded and transported Brandis to Cedars Sinai Medical Center where he eventually died from his injuries. Brandis' death was announced by hospital staff on November 12, 2003, at about 2:45 p.m."[1]
This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (November 2007)

Brandis apparently did not leave a note of any kind. His family was devastated upon receiving news of his death. He had no known personal problems, except for the fact that he was usually quite hard on himself. According to his mother, he had no prior suicide attempts, drank socially and had quit smoking two years prior. Brandis's mother questioned whether his use of the acne drug Accutane may be to blame, citing that one of the clinical side effects was reported to cause psychosis and suicide although there is no conclusive evidence for this. In a People magazine article, friends were quoted as saying he was lonely and depressed about his lagging career. One friend admitted that Brandis drank heavily, and had even mentioned that he might kill himself. He was also said to be upset when his appearance in Hart's War, a role he hoped would be his comeback, was cut from the film.


Filmography
111 Gramercy Park (TV) (2003) .... Will Karnegian
Puerto Vallarta Squeeze (2003) .... Agent Neil Weatherford
The Year That Trembled (2002) .... Casey Pedersen
Hart's War (2002) .... Pvt. Lewis P. Wakely (deleted scenes)
A Fate Totally Worse Than Death (2000) .... Drew
Ride with the Devil (1999/I) .... Cave Wyatt
Outside Providence (1999) .... Mousy
Two Came Back (TV) (1997) .... Jason
Fall Into Darkness (TV) (1996) .... Chad
Born Free: A New Adventure (1996) (TV) .... Randal 'Rand' Everett Thompson
Her Last Chance (1996) (TV) .... Preston
Universal Studios Summer Blast (1994) (TV Special) .... Himself (a guest)
Good King Wenceslas (1994) (TV) .... Prince Wenceslas
seaQuest DSV TV Series (1993) .... Lucas Wolenczak
Saved by the Bell: The College Years (1993)...Himself
Aladdin (1993/I) TV Series (voice) .... Mozenrath
Sidekicks (1992) .... Barry Gabrewski
Ladybugs (movie) (1992) .... Matthew/Martha
Our Shining Moment (TV) (1991) .... Michael 'Scooter' McGuire
The Flash (TV) (1990) .... Terry
Stephen King's It (TV) (1990) .... William 'Stuttering Bill' Denbrough (age 12)
The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter (1990) .... Bastian Bux
Ghost Dad (1990) (voice) .... Additional Voices
Stepfather II (1989) .... Todd Grayland
Oliver & Company (1988) (voice) .... Additional Voice
The Wrong Guys (1988) .... Kid Tim
Poor Little Rich Girl: The Barbara Hutton Story (TV) (1987) .... Lance as Age 11
Fatal Attraction (1987) .... Party Guest
Mystery Magical Special (TV) (1986) .... Jonathan
One Life to Live TV Series (1986) .... Young Kevin Riley Buchanan

[TVFactFan]

well I guess I'm mentally strong then because I been qualified to hang myself but I just keep pushing. all the hobbies/escapes i have allow me to never get down

[Ireneparalegal]

Originally Posted by KingofTVResearch

well I guess I'm mentally strong then because I been qualified to hang myself but I just keep pushing. all the hobbies/escapes i have allow me to never get down

I hear that! Although I have been so depressed I couldn't even get out of bed.

[catlover79]

I remember when those two were dating. I too was shocked and saddened to hear the news.