Eric Dane, known for his roles in “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Euphoria,” tragically lost his battle with ALS ten months after publicly sharing his diagnosis, during which time he began losing the ability to speak.
LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 09: (EXCLUSIVE ACCESS) Actors Eric Dane (L) and Patrick Dempsey pose during the 33rd Annual People’s Choice Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on January 9, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images for PCA)
Patrick Dempsey described his final interactions with his “Grey’s Anatomy” co-star on Virgin Radio, saying, “I feel really so sad for his children. I was corresponding with him, we were texting, so I spoke to him about a week ago, and some friends of ours went in to see him, and he was really starting to lose his ability to speak. He was bedridden and it was very hard for him to swallow, so the quality of his life was deteriorating so rapidly.”
Eric Dane arrives at a promotional event for the series “Euphoria,” in Los Angeles, April 20, 2022. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
Dempsey went on to describe his positive memories of Dane, saying, “He was the funniest man – he was such a joy to work with, and I want to just remember him in that spirit because any time he was on set, he brought so much fun to it. He had a great sense of humor. He was easy to work with. We got along instantly. First scene was him, you know, in all his glory, coming out of the bathroom with the towel on, looking amazing, making you feel completely out of shape and insignificant.”
“There was never really any competition. There was just this wonderful mutual respect,” Dempsey added. “He’s wickedly intelligent, and I’m always going to remember those moments of fun that we had together and celebrate the joy that he did bring to people’s lives and the real loss is for us who don’t have them anymore.”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 04: Eric Dane attends the LA Premiere of HBO’s “Euphoria” at The Cinerama Dome on June 04, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
The “Made of Honor” actor praised Dane for bringing awareness to ALS in his final days. “It just reminds us that we all have to celebrate every day like it’s our last day,” Dempsy said. “It’s something that we have to remember and certainly in a world where there is just so much crisis and there is so much tragedy that we really need to be grateful for every moment that we have.”
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