California people are very aware of helping and rescuing animals, but I don't know if it's that way around the rest of the country.
From the time I was 8 years old I was on almost every radio show there was.
I appreciate Eight is Enough. It made me recognizable.
I come from New York originally, but Californians have been wonderful about animals. These animals are so nice and so good and so sweet and intelligent. It's a crime not to help them.
I love cats.
I was a child actor in radio, and there's not many of us left.
I was in 27 Broadway plays, and three of them got the Pulitzer Prize.
I've probably had more jobs than any other actor living.
I've seen people that don't treat their animals well and yet their animals are still just as loving to them even though they're not treated that well. It's very hard to find that kind of loyalty and love and affection in human beings.
It was just an accident; I was never going to come out here.
One week we'd go to Brooklyn; the next week to the Bronx; the next week to Manhattan. Every week I'd buy a different pet.
People don't like to feed live mice and rats to their snakes. Now we have a regular meat food that they will eat. Ninety percent of the snakes will eat this food and love it.
She just appeared in my back yard one day. I heard this squealing and I thought it was a baby bird. She never really had a mother. She can't meow.
The only honest reaction and true loyalty we get is from our animals. Once they're your friends, you can do no wrong.
To be hungry must be awful.
We donate a lot of food to rescue organizations.
We have a feral cat in our backyard called AC, which stands for Abandoned Cat. Someone moved away and left the cat. She's very timid.
We waited until we perfected the dog food, and then we worked on the cat food. Even though it's not going through the roof the way the dog food is, I think it will catch on eventually.
We're feeding all these zoos. And that's getting bigger and bigger.
(On the 1981 cancellation of "Eight Is Enough" (1977)): "Nobody called me to tell me it was canceled. I read it in the paper".
Father of actors Nels Van Patten, James Van Patten and Vincent Van Patten.
Former child and juvenile actor, still performing.
Brother of actress Joyce Van Patten. They appeared together as children in Reg'lar Fellers (1941), and, decades later, in Making It (1971).
Father of actor James Van Patten, with whom he appeared in Lunch Wagon (1981).
He appeared in 'Weird Al' Yankovic's "Smells Like Nirvana" and "Bedrock Anthem" music videos.
He was cast in "Eight Is Enough" (1977) because he was friends with the president of ABC, the network which ran the show. The producers wanted another actor for the part, but Van Patten was cast.
Honorary mayor of Sherman Oaks, California, USA. [2001]
Half-brother of Timothy Van Patten. Uncle of Talia Balsam.
Tom Bradford, Van Patten's character on "Eight Is Enough" (1977), was ranked #33 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" [20 June 2004 issue].
Father-in-law of Shana Hiatt, Nancy Valen and Eileen Davidson.
Ex-brother-in-law of Martin Balsam.
Suffered a diabetic stroke in January, 2006.
Son of Richard Byron Van Patten and wife Josephine Rose Acerno.
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