- The reason for his suicide was not career woes, as is commonly believed, but because he was in nearly constant pain as his body aged. While small externally, his internal organs were of normal size, and crowded each other over the years. In his last months, he had to sleep in a kneeling position, because lying down made it impossible to breathe.
- Became involved with children's charities during his heyday, including opening a halfway house for runaways and troubled youths. He enjoyed helping children, who found it easy to relate to him because of his height.
- Best remembered by the public for his role as "Tattoo" in the TV series Fantasy Island (1977).
- Due to his resemblance to Felipe González (former president of Spain between 1984-1996), Herve parodied him in a well-known Spanish TV show called Viaje con nosotros (1988). In Spain he is still known as "Felipe Gonzalez's double".
- Committed suicide in North Hollywood, California. Died of self-inflicted gunshot wound.
- Famous for the line "The plane! The plane!" that he said in each episode of Fantasy Island (1977) with his French accent.
- When 12, Villechaize spent six months in an American clinic where doctors tried everything to encourage his growth. It was while he was in the clinic that he started to draw and his parents enrolled him at La Grande chaumiere in Paris where he started painting, and by 16 had a one-man exhibition in Paris.
- Was the director's choice for the role of Gurney Halleck in Alejandro Jodorowsky's "Dune".
- Same height as David Rappaport, who also died of a self-inflicted gunshot.
- Adopted at the age of two by his stepfather, Andre Villechaize, according to his common law wife Kathy Self. Hervé's biological father is unknown.
- His brother Patrick has said that Hervé was of English, French, Italian, and German descent.
- He lived in North Hollywood on W. Killion Street.
- Used to share a room with actor/director/writer Matthew Bright.
- Was friends with Mary Woronov.
- In the early morning hours of September 4, 1993, at his North Hollywood home, Villechaize, aged 50, is believed to have first fired a shot through the sliding-glass patio door to awaken his longtime girlfriend, Kathy Self, before shooting himself. He also left an audio recording of the suicide that included his last words.
- According to Self, Villechaize often slept in a kneeling position so he could breathe more easily.
- In the 1970s, Villechaize performed Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street as a pair of legs peeping out from Oscar's trash can, for scenes that required Oscar to be mobile. These appearances began in the third season, and included the 1978 Hawaii episodes.
- In 1961, he became the youngest artist ever to have his work displayed in the Museum of Paris.
- His ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean off Point Fermin in San Pedro, Los Angeles.
- Hervé Villechaize was a French actor and painter.
- In the mid-1970s, Villechaize had a two-year relationship with actress Susan Tyrrell and shared a home with her in the Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles.
- He began acting in Off-Broadway productions, including Werner Liepolt's The Young Master Dante and a play by Sam Shepard.
- In 1964, Villechaize left France for the United States. He settled in a Bohemian section of New York City, and taught himself English by watching television.
- Villechaize was replaced by Christopher Hewett on Fantasy Island.
- Villechaize was bullied at school for his condition and found solace in painting. In 1959, at age 16, he entered the École des Beaux-Arts to study art.
- In 1980, Cleveland International Records released a single by the Children of the World, featuring Villechaize as vocalist: "Why", with B-side "When a Child Is Born".
- Though popular with the public, Villechaize proved a difficult actor on Fantasy Island, where he continually propositioned women and quarreled with the producers. He was eventually fired after demanding a salary on par with that of his co-star Ricardo Montalbán.
- Villechaize initially worked as an artist, painter, and photographer. He also modelled for photos for National Lampoon before moving on to film.
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