Years before his own death at 71, Robert Carradine spoke openly about his half-brother David Carradine and the heavy toll alcoholism took on his life — and their family.

Robert, known for roles in Revenge of the Nerds and the Disney Channel series Lizzie McGuire, died on Feb. 23 after what his family called a "valiant struggle" with bipolar disorder. According to Deadline, he died by suicide.

In a statement, his loved ones said they were "bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul" and hoped his journey would help reduce the stigma around mental illness, People reported.

Seventeen years earlier, David died in July 2009 after being found in a hotel room in Thailand. Before his death, he had spoken publicly about his alcoholism.

In a 1999 interview, David admitted, "I was drinking every minute I was awake. I got up to a quart and a half a day. Vodka, you name it — I would drink all day long."

Robert also addressed how serious his brother's addiction had become. "It wasn't much fun to hang around David. He was pretty far gone," Robert said at the time. "If he didn't have a drink in his hand, he was on his way to get one."

David Carradine Recalled Sobriety

David later got sober in 1996 and described his recovery in hopeful terms. "I haven't had one bad moment, and I haven't looked back," he said.

"I feel like I'm the sole survivor of a shipwreck and I've reached the beach of a gorgeous tropical island."

The Carradines were part of a well-known Hollywood family. Their father, John Carradine, appeared in classic films such as The Grapes of Wrath and Stagecoach.

According to Yahoo, David became famous for playing Kwai Chang Caine in the 1970s TV series Kung Fu and later starred in Kill Bill.

It was David who first encouraged Robert to try acting. Robert once recalled that he had planned to race cars, not make movies.

When David was offered a role in the 1972 Western The Cowboys, he urged his younger brother to audition instead.

"David said, 'I don't want to be the guy who shoots John Wayne in the back... but hey, there's a bunch of kids in this movie. Why don't you go meet those people? You got everything to gain and nothing to lose,'" Robert remembered. "I thought about that. Everything to gain and nothing to lose."

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Alcoholism