The actress was 24 years old when she appeared in small roles in shows like Days of Our Lives and many more.
That '70s Show was a hugely popular TV show that paved the way for a lot of stars into mainstream Hollywood. In fact, Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher have turned out to be successful movie stars. Topher Grace, Danny Masterson, Laura Prepon, Wilmer Valderrama too did well in their careers which makes the life of their co-star Lisa Robin Kelly even more tragic in comparison.
Born in Southington, Connecticut, on March 5, 1970, Kelly always wanted to become an actress and wanted to make a big name in the industry. At the age of 24, she made minor appearances in shows like Married with Children, Days of Our Lives, and X-Files.
“She used to come back [at Christmas time] and talk about how she was trying to make it out there. Then she came back and was talking about how she was making it out there," her cousin, John Kelly told Record Journal, as cited by Mamamia.
Finally, in 1998, she found the role of her dreams. She was a part of something where her role would be watched by a lot of people in That '70s Show. She played the role of Eric Forman's promiscuous sister, Laurie Forman.
The success of the show made it Fox network's most popular show. Everything and everyone related to the show seemed to be doing well, except for Kelly. According to Looper, substance abuse started ruining her career. Things became more clear in 2001 when she, from being a show regular, got abruptly written off by the end of season three in 2003.
Kelly later confessed to ABC News that alcoholism was the reason for her disappearance. "I had lost a baby. As a result of that, I lost it - I lost everything, and I was abusing alcohol." Even though her acting career came to a halt along with a heartbreaking loss, the downward spiral of her personal life was still in the spotlight.
Kelly was then arrested in 2010 for driving under the influence for which she pled guilty and served 12 months under unsupervised probation. Later in 2012, her roommate and ex-boyfriend John Michas claimed that she had beaten him up and she was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of felony spousal abuse. Denying the claims and expressing her wish to work again, Kelly told TMZ, "He must have scratched himself or done something to himself. I am clean and sober and I have made a lot of progress. I am completely innocent. I weigh 105 pounds. I could never hurt him. I just want to start working again."
According to Fox News, at 42, the actress married Robert Joseph Gilliam, 61, in November of 2012, and in the same year, the couple was arrested after a disturbance call at their home. They were both charged with assaulting one another. In December 2012, she posted on her Facebook page that she wished to go back to acting, hoping she'll "be working again soon." She added, "I look fine, Im sober [sic] and married. Im not selling out to do lame projects or appear on gossip shows or anything of that nature."
To the world of the internet, she looked fine but that wasn't the truth. Her life was just getting more out of control. According to TMZ, Gilliam wanted the actress to give all her money to him. When she didn't agree, he attacked her. In 2013, she divorced him and got a restraining order against him as well.
In June 2013, she took to Twitter to share the relieving news and penned, "I am having a great day............, free at last, free at last. LMFAO. I AM OFFICIALLY DONE WITH MY MARRIAGE." But, what's disturbing is the fact that she was arrested the night before on suspicion of DUI (Driving Under the Influence) after the Law enforcement officials got a call about a car parked on the freeway that was blocking a traffic lane. They found Kelly still inside the car.
Two months after the arrest, she checked herself into rehab, at the Pax Rehab House in Altadena, California, realizing she needed help with alcoholism. Sadly, just a few days later she passed away in her sleep because of multiple drug intoxication. Kelly was just 43 years old, as per Mamamia.
Her agent Craig Wyckoff confirmed the tragic news and said, "Lisa had voluntarily checked herself into a treatment facility early this week where she was battling the addiction problems that have plagued her these past few years. I spoke to her on Monday and she was hopeful and confident, looking forward to putting this part of her life behind her. Last night she lost the battle."
A life full of potential and a bright future came to an end too soon.
References:
https://www.mamamia.com.au/lisa-robin-kelly-death/
https://www.looper.com/20780/really-happened-lisa-robin-kelly/]
https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/lisa-robin-kelly-70s-show-star-explains-domestic-16077412
https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/that-70s-show-star-lisa-robin-kelly-arrested-in-north-carolina
https://www.tmz.com/2013/07/05/that-70s-show-lisa-robin-kelly-divorce-restraining-order/
