BREMERTON, Wash. (Jan. 16) - Former child actor Joe Pichler, who appeared in two of the "Beethoven" comedies, was missing after leaving a note in his car expressing suicidal thoughts, relatives said.
Well-wishers and relatives joined police, Kitsap County water search and rescue personnel and tracking dogs in unsuccessful efforts to find Pichler, now 18, since his empty car was found last Tuesday at an intersection above a narrow arm of water called the Port Madison Narrows.
Inside the car was a note in which he wrote about wishing to be a "stronger brother" and asking that his belongings go to a younger brother, his family said. Also included were a few poems.
Pichler, a native of Bremerton, was in a commercial for a Seattle department store at age 6. He moved to Los Angeles and appeared in "The Fan" in 1996, "Varsity Blues" in 1999 and the third and fourth installments of the "Beethoven" series, featuring the humorous adventures of a St. Bernard, in 2000 and 2001.
In 2002, he had a leading role in the film "Children on Their Birthdays," a coming of age tale based on a short story by Truman Capote. His TV appearances include a part in "Touched by an Angel."