Tribute: Alan Thicke

We mourn the loss of actor/composer Alan Thicke, best remembered as the understanding and affectionate dad on “Growing Pains.” The good-natured star never hesitated to spoof his home country of Canada and his own image, appearing as a version of himself on “How I Met Your Mother” and this year’s hit series, “This is Us.”

Here he talks about an especially memorable episode of “Growing Pains.”

Thicke was a versatile performer, appearing as a talk show and game show host and composing theme songs for other television shows, including “The Facts of Life.” He also played a talk show host on the soap opera “The Bold and the Beautiful” and was on the writing staff of the parody talk show series “Fernwood 2Night.” He wrote books tied to his image as “America’s Dad,” including How to Raise Kids Who Won’t Hate You.

His son, musician Robin Thicke, wrote: “”My Father passed away today. He was the best man I ever knew. The best friend I ever had. Let’s all rejoice and celebrate the joy he brought to every room he was in.”

May his memory be a blessing.