We Remember...
James Troesh (Nov. 13th, 1956 –
Oct. 1st, 2011). Troesh, an actor,
 screenwriter and entertainment industry
disability advocate, died at St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, Calif. He
was 54.
Troesh, who lived in Los Angeles, was perhaps best known
for his three-season role as a quadriplegic attorney on "Highway to
Heaven," the NBC drama starring, and produced by, Michael Landon that ran
for five seasons in the 1980s.
Troesh wrote an episode for "Highway to Heaven" and, among
other projects, co-wrote the 2006 film "Color of the Cross" with Jean-Claude La
Marre and Jean Claude Nelson. In recent years, Troesh created the television
pilot "The Hollywood Quad," a sitcom he wrote, produced, directed and starred
in along with guest star Bryan Cranston. The project was a comedic look at
Troesh’s journey in the industry. The program later was turned into a
podcast series.
Troesh was a member of the Writers with Disabilities
Committee of the Writers Guild of America West and the first quadriplegic to
join the Screen Actors Guild. He was the only quadriplegic dual member of WGAW
and SAG.
He was a former president of the Media Access Office and
one-time national chairman of AFTRA’s Performers with Disabilities
Committee. He was active in the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences,
served on the Academy's Performers Peer Group executive committee and
contributed articles to the organization's official publication, Emmy
magazine.
"He was a really good writer, and he was a whiz at
Photoshop (a graphics editing program)," said neighbor and friend Linda Fulton.
To get around his neighborhood, Troesh would maneuver his
power wheelchair with his chin; he wrote at his computer using a stick, or
stylus, he held between his teeth. And on June 10, 1989, in a tandem jump, he
became the first quadriplegic skydiver.
"He had ambition and determination; he was very driven,"
said Fulton, who later became Troesh's primary caregiver. "When he wanted to do
something, he was a force to be reckoned with."
In the 1990s, Troesh was a frequent visitor at the house
of comedian and actor Avery Schreiber, from whom he honed his talent at improv.
Later, he put together a troupe and performed – along with Fulton -- in a
theater across from the apartment where he lived. From his wheelchair, he
taught improv to children.
"His whole life was improv," said Fulton, now the owner of
that theater, named after Schreiber. "(Because he was confined to a
wheelchair), he had to find other ways of doing things."
Dave Troesh, Jim's older brother, remembered that
Schreiber had a huge effect on his sibling.
"Avery gave him a whole lot of confidence in improv," he
said. "(Jim) did motivational speaking; he'd go to schools and talk to kids --
and adults too, (at) senior centers. He took his show on the road."
The WGAW’s 2011 Media Access Awards, held in October,
were dedicated to Troesh, who received the prestigious Michael Landon Award.
The Media Access Awards honor projects and artists that promote accessibility,
improve awareness and champion accurate representations of the disability
experience.
He was the fourth of five children born to Raymond Troesh,
a postal worker, and his wife, Lorna, a homemaker. Growing up in Whittier,
Calif., Jim was "a normal, happy kid," according to Dave Troesh.
When he was 14, while attempting to hook up an antenna to
a home-built radio tower on the roof of his family home, Jim accidentally made
contact with a power line. The resulting power surge sent 240,000 volts through
his body, breaking his neck and knocking him off the 30-foot-high roof. He was
unconscious for days and remained in the hospital about a year before he was
sent home in a manual wheelchair.
His first acting break came in 1984 when he got a part in
"AfterMASH," a TV series that ran for two years. He later was cast in "Highway
to Heaven" after being spotted by Landon. It was the actor, according to Dave
Troesh, who purchased Jim's first power wheelchair, in 1985.
When his stint on "Highway" ended, Troesh found occasional
work on such television shows as "Boston Legal," "Special Unit," "Notes From
the Underground," "Rise and Walk: The Dennis Byrd Story" and "Airwolf."
"It was interesting watching him on TV," said Dave Troesh.
"He called them 'roll-on roles.' He just had a wonderfully dark sense of
humor."
In 1987, he was flown to the opening ceremony of the
Special Olympics World Games, held that year in South Bend, Ind., in a private
plane by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver. "He always joked that his
luggage ended up at Maria Shriver's room," Dave Troesh said.
Though Jim would sound depressed on occasion when talking
to his family, he always appeared upbeat in public, Dave Troesh said. Despite
his disability, "he didn’t dwell on it."
In recent months, Jim Troesh was dropped while being
transferred between his wheelchair and his bed, according to his brother. After
that, "his blood pressure and his (body) temperature would spike," he said. In
September, he was taken to the hospital and later died of what officials there
said was pneumonia, according to Dave Troesh.
Survivors include stepson, Eric; older brothers Dave and
Jack; older sister Ginger; and younger brother Ken. The family has requested
that donations be made in Troesh’s name to Total Improv Kids -- Jim Troesh
Scholarship, c/o Linda Fulton, Avery Schreiber Theatre, 11050 Magnolia Blvd.,
North Hollywood, CA 91601. All contributions will be tax-deductible.
-- By Mike Piekarski from various sources
Click here for more,
We Remember Susan Daniels. Ph. D. |
