28 years after the death of Chris Farley, his brother, Tom Farley, recalled the comedian’s zest for life and carefree approach. Farley tragically died from a drug overdose at the age of just 33. He was considered one of comedy’s finest and is widely remembered in the community.
Tom Farley remembers brother Chris Farley on 28th death anniversary
Chris Farley was not only a comedian on stage but a brilliant personality off it. He often left people inspired by his carefree nature and zest for life.
It has been 28 years since the star’s demise. Authorities found him dead in his Chicago apartment from an apparent drug overdose on December 18, 1997. He was only 33 years old at the time.
“People come up to me all the time and say, ‘Oh, I miss your brother.’ It’s like, yeah, they miss the celebrity, they miss the laughter — as I do. But I want them to miss the brother I miss,” Tom Farley told PEOPLE in a recent interview.
Since his brother’s death, Tom has been a champion of substance abuse prevention and mental health advocacy. He also serves as community outreach director for Recovery.com.
Tom still remembers Chris as the annoying younger brother he shared the bed with. But he also remembered Chris as a lifelong comedian and prankster. “Here was this guy that was known for his characters — and yet, if you look at every one of Chris’s characters, it was Chris,” he recalled, “Every time he showed up in a skit on SNL, I’m like, ‘Oh, he used to do that in front of our aunts and uncles.”
Tom proceeded to recall a story about their Disneyland visit, where Chris pulled off a prank on their father, indicating how Chris had naturally been the comedian from a young age.
While discussing Chris’s addiction issues and his larger-than-life persona, Tom recalled that Chris was also a man of deep faith. He said, “First of all, he had more faith than anyone — like he was always going to church,” and added, “We were camp counselors in college, and just to watch Chris … you know,..He was like the Pied Piper, just leading these kids on these adventures. He was Peter Pan.” Tom added, “He was great.”
Originally reported by Sourav Chakraborty on ComingSoon.
