Weeks after Ryan O’Neil‘s home was destroyed in the LA fires, his son, Patrick O’Neil, is reminiscing about the sentimental memories made at the beachfront home in Malibu.
Patrick, the son of the late Academy Award nominee, spoke with Fox Business Network about how the sudden loss of the home — which Ryan shared with longtime partner Farrah Fawcett — has impacted his family and explained why they may not be able to rebuild the “legendary’ house.
“The house that my dad bought and built from 1972 on created so many wonderful memories for me and my family,” Patrick said. “My sister Tatum, my brother Griffin, my younger brother Redmond, my dad, Ryan and Farrah. I mean, we’re talking about, I met Steve McQueen in that house. Van Morrison walked up the house. Brad Pitt, beat him in pool in that house. I mean, it was legendary. We had some great times playing frisbee with my dad on the beach. I’m going to keep all these memories. I lost a lot of mementos. Those are just things. But I’m going to keep the memories. And I pray for all these people that are suffering right now. I really do.”
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O’Neal and Fawcett lived together in the Malibu home for several years before the actress died in 2009. The “Paper Moon” actor died from congestive heart failure in 2023.
While Patrick’s memories are forever with him, he’s unsure if he’ll be able to rebuild the family home.
“I’m not sure I’ll be able to afford to live here,” he admitted. “I don’t know about insurance. How much is it going to cost to rebuild a house there? … We had two, you know, original houses that were smaller next to us. Are they going to build giant big houses? And it’s just, you know, I just don’t see how, I don’t see that I have the means and the ability to rebuild and live in Malibu anymore, sadly.”
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Despite the unfortunate circumstances, Patrick said his dad would have most likely used humor to push through.
“My dad had a wicked sense of humor, so he might have made a joke to find a way to get a laugh out of the most tragic situation,” he admitted. “He was very, very strong. He probably would have been one of those that wanted to stay in the house. And, you know, we would have had to drag him out, literally.”
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“He was very strong. He would have been resilient. He would have found a way to rebuild for sure,” he added.
Ryan’s daughter, Tatum O’Neal, confirmed the home had burned down via a social media post last month.
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“It’s the saddest ever so sad I could cry,” she wrote on Threads. “My father’s house is gone Malibu gone.”
Fox Business Network correspondent Max Gorden contributed to this post.
