Actor. He was the son of legendary stage, and screen actor John Barrymore and actress Dolores Costello Barrymore, nephew of actor Lionel Barrymore, and actress Ethel Barrymore, and the father of actress Drew Barrymore. Born John Blythe Barrymore, John was also known as John Barrymore, Jr. Barrymore's parents divorced when he was an infant, and he only saw his father once or twice before he died in 1942. After the divorce his mother took care of him and tried to turn her son away from the acting bug, instead she sent him to the St. John Military Academy, hoping that her son would later go on to college and get a degree. In 1959, when he was 17, he went against his mother's wishes and went into acting. He signed a movie contract to appear in films, but also went into theatre. His early attempts at acting were nothing but humiliations and disappointments. He would often leave a production after he had already been cast and disrupt filming or the stage act, usually by wanting to change his lesser role for the lead role. If he did not get what he wanted he would leave the production. This caused the film or stage act to stop production and the producers or directors would have to look for a new actor. In 1952 he tried to settle down, marrying Cara Williams, but their marriage was nothing but trouble. Throughout the marriage, he was often arrested for spousal abuse, drunkenness, and varied bouts with the law. In 1954, the couple had a son named John Blyth Barrymore, but this did not solve the problems. The couple divorced in 1959. A year later, he again married, this time to Gaby Palazzolo. During the 1960s he continued to act but still ended up having problems with the law, including drug activity. Around this time he started to keep to himself, or distance himself from the people who knew and cared about him. After his marriage to Gaby, he became involved with Ildiko Jaid Mako, whom he later married. Mako, who became Jaid Barrymore, gave birth to their daughter Drew Barrymore on February 22, 1975. Drew would become a talented actress as well, appearing in such films as Steven Spielberg's "E.T." when she was just 7. The couple later divorced, and again he distanced himself from his family. He continued to appear in films, but then left the limelight and moved into the wilderness where he became a recluse. Before he left Hollywood, he had appeared in nearly 30 films including, "Winchester '73" (1967), "The Clones" (1974), and 21 television appearances including, 'Gunsmoke," "Jericho," and "Rawhide," among many others. Later in life he became very gaunt and thin, often being confined to a wheelchair. He also suffered from both mental and physical illness. In 2003, he appeared before a judge to determine who would act as his guardian as he could no longer look after himself. On hearing about her father's death, Drew Barrymore released a statement to the public through her publicist simply saying, "He was a cool cat. Please smile when you think of him."