In late January, the Melrose Place, Fame, and The Waltons actor Morgan Stevens passed away, aged 70. He was found in his Los Angeles home after neighbors reportedly hadn’t seen him in days, but it was further days still before authorities announced the cause of death.
Morgan Stevens became a star thanks to his appearances on-screen. At the beginning of his career, though, he wasn’t even sure that he was to become an actor. Instead, it was quite the coincidence that he turned his interest to acting.
So how did Morgan Stevens rise to fame? And why did he disappear from the screen? Here’s all you need to know.
Becoming an actor is a massive dream for many people. But, just as in virtually all well-paying, high-profile industries, competition is very tough. Put simply, the road to success and stardom is often long indeed.
Morgan Stevens
Some realize that they want to become actors when they’re still children, while others decide later to pursue a career in show business. Then there’s a third category: those who never had their eyes aimed at a career in acting and rather stumble into it accidentally.
Morgan Stevens was of that latter group. The actor actually wanted to pursue a career in the military before suddenly becoming interested in the art of acting.
It turned out to be a good decision! Stevens became a star following appearances on several hit shows, including The Waltons, Fame, and Melrose Place.
Morgan Stevens was born on October 16, 1951, in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Morgan Stevens – early life
A tragic incident marred his childhood when his father passed away when he was just nine years of age. His mother was then left alone to raise three children and had to sell their much-loved family home. Morgan would repurchase it years later.
It wasn’t before he was studying advertising at college that he became interested in acting. By all accounts, Stevens was unhappy with his major, and so decided to take a year off.
He ended up joining the Coast Guard while he attempted to figure out his future. As fate would have it, he was stationed outside of New York City.
Now, there’s usually one or another decisive moment in a person’s life that greatly affects their future. That could be anything from an unexpected job opportunity to finding the right soulmate, and everything in between. For Stevens, being stationed near New York would change his entire life, bringing him close to art of acting.
Stationed near the “Big Apple” meant going to watch shows. Morgan Stevens became a fan of attending both on and off-Broadway plays, and it didn’t take long before he was hugely interested in what they were doing.
A year later, he returned to the University of Tennessee to finish his senior year – and switched his major to theatre arts.
“The moment the curtain went up, I knew this was my life”
Though New York became the spot where Stevens’ interest in acting was fostered, the idea was actually something he had toyed with for a long time in the back of his mind. Luckily, he decided to take a leap of faith in his senior year, and that leap turned into a home run.
“It was something I’d always wanted to do but had hidden away. I’d never even admitted it to myself,” Morgan told the Times-Herald in 1983.
“When I did my first college play – in my third year – the moment the curtain went up, I knew this was my life.”
Of course, many actors decide to head to New York City to get their shot in the acting business. While it’s true that any number of stars have landed their starts there, there are far more who have witnessed tough competition and, ultimately, not been successful in getting a job.
New York was the city where Morgan fell in love with the acting business, but he decided that it wasn’t the place he wanted to find his feet. Instead, after graduating from the University of Tennessee, he left for California.
“I thought I’d have a better chance in California, and I also thought I was going to starve. I’d rather starve in the sunshine than the cold,” he explained.
Stevens – known to family and friends as “Chuck” – was ever confident, but also realistic. He didn’t expect to get a role straight away. Rather, he thought it would “take years” to get a part.
As it turned out, he landed his first gig within six months.
Morgan Stevens – ‘The Waltons’
It’s common within the entertainment industry for beginners to start either by appearing as extras, starring in some sort of commercial, or, if they’re lucky, appearing for a second or two in a film or series. Stevens, though, hit what any aspiring actor might call the jackpot, getting the starring role in a pilot for what was to be the revival of the prime-time soap opera Peyton Place.
Morgan went on to land several more roles, including one in a television Western film called Hunter’s Moon. He also starred in two episodes of One Day At A Time.
Then, in 1981, Stevens got his most significant part to date when he appeared in three two-hour specials of The Waltons, starring as Paul Matthews Northridge, the husband of Erin. Years earlier, he had actually appeared in the classic show as another character named Sam Stadder.
That role proved to be significant in more ways than one. Not only did it grant him much-needed exposure, but it also allowed him to rediscover his southern accent.
“When I first came to California, the accent worked against me. I worked very hard. to get rid of it, although it still slips in with certain words or phrases,” Stevens explained.
“For my Waltons role, I sat down with a tape recorder and really worked… to be sure I sounded souther enough.”
Fast forward to 1982, and Morgan got his big breakthrough. After wrapping up filming mini-series Bare Essence, he got a phone call about a role he was being offered in the television series Fame.
Landed ‘Fame’ role one week before filming started
In that phone call, he was told he had landed the role of drama teacher David Reardon. He was also informed he only had about a week to prepare before they were to start shooting.
“They pretty much just tossed me in,” he recalled. “It took a while to come to grips with my character, who is basically a maverick. His goal is to act. The only reason he’s teaching is that he’s divorced with a 2-year-old child and alimony payments. But the kids at the school get him over the hump, and he finds teaching more thrilling than acting.”
“My character doesn’t always agree with the way things are done at the school, and that’s something I can identify with,” Morgan added. “I have a real problem with authority I don’t deal with it well unless somebody can explain it so I can accept the reasoning behind it.”
Stevens stayed on Fame for “just” 27 episodes. But that was enough to see him attain a spot as a cult actor on the show. After that, he starred in television series and films, including Magnum P.I, MacGyver, The Love Boat, and the NBC series A Year in the Life.
“It doesn’t parallel my own background,” Stevens said of his work on Fame.
“I’m not married, not divorced, have no kids. I want two of the three, though – to be married and have children.
“I’ve been very fortunate to have had such steady work. And I’ve enjoyed all the roles, but Fame is special to me. I’ve always wanted to have a regular, continuing role on a series so I could really develop a character and bring him along through experiences and changes. I think I’m very lucky that I got to do it on Fame.”
Beaten in custody
In the late 1980s, Stevens’s career took a big dip after he had an altercation with the police. He was beaten while in custody, resulting in a broken nose, nerve damage, and a dislocated jaw. He was later cleared of a DUI charge and got an out-of-court settlement, successfully suing the LAPD for $10 million.
Under the agreement – which had to be approved by the City Council –neither side of the case revealed the settlement amount.
“Let’s just say I’m glad this is behind me and I’m looking forward now to resuming my life and career,” Stevens told the Los Angeles Times in 1991.
In the 1990s, Morgan returned to acting. Then, in 1995, he appeared in the popular drama show Melrose Place, playing the role of Nick Diamond. Stevens starred in six episodes of the show, offering what would become one of his most famous performances.
In 1999, Stevens appeared in the Chuck Norris-starring television series Walker, Texas Ranger. That show would actually turn out to be his last ever credit.
Morgan Stevens – private life, cause of death
He lived a very quiet life thereafter, and in fact, not much is known about his personal life at all. What he did following his acting career is sort of a mystery. Sadly, on January 26, 2022, Steven’s life came to an end at age 70.
As first reported by TMZ, the actor was found on the kitchen floor of his Los Angeles home after neighbors who hadn’t seen or heard from him in days placed a call. Local authorities conducted a wellness check at around 11 a.m and found Stevens dead at the scene. At first, authorities said that he had likely died of natural causes, and that there was no sign of foul play.
In early February, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office confirmed Morgan’s cause of death. As they had initially expected, it turned out that he had died of natural causes due to arteriosclerosis cardiovascular disease.
According to John Hopkins, arteriosclerosis is a “slow progressive disease” where arteries thicken or harden. Moreover, it is typically caused by a buildup of plaque in the inner lining of an artery. It can reduce blood flow and oxygen supply to vital body organs and extremities and, when a major artery is blocked, a person may potentially suffer a heart attack, stroke, blood clot, or death.
Morgan Stevens will forever be remembered for his many roles, especially the ones in Melrose Place and Fame. May he rest in peace.
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