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David Janssen said that he didn't know how to take time off from acting
"After a couple of weeks, I get restless.”
Though David Janssen was certainly an incredible man, he was only human.
Audiences recognize Janssen as the star of popular crime programs like The Fugitive and Harry O. However, according to an interview with The San Francisco Examiner, Janssen unintentionally took a break from acting in 1968 after separating from his first wife.
“It is almost irresistible, when your life is not going well, not to react to your success by actually flaunting it, to latch onto that misguided concept of fast cars, fast women,” said Janssen.
At that point, the actor had already achieved an unprecedented level of success due to his work on The Fugitive. Though he allowed his baser instincts to guide him for a period of time, Janssen eventually came to terms with the fact that such mindless entertainment simply wasn’t sustainable.
“Perhaps I should be grateful I had money to spend,” said the actor. “Or give away, which is probably a better way to put it. Fortunately, I didn’t give away all of my sanity. I arrived at a point where I realized the way I was living - regardless of how much money I was earning - was non-productive.”
Luckily, Janssen’s love of acting brought him back down to Earth and allowed him to stay on the right track. “Hell, I like to work,” said the actor. “I wouldn’t know how to take off a year or two. I have a lovely house in Malibu where I jog on the beach and relax in the sun. But after a couple of weeks, I get restless.”
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