Inside Skeet Ulrich's Tragic Childhood

Publish date: 2024-05-09

In 1997, Skeet Ulrich told The New York Times that he considered D.K. Ulrich to be his real father. Thirteen years later, he told Los Angeles Magazine, "I didn't really have a dad." In neither interview did he have much good to say about his biological father, a hotel chef who went unnamed. The man's frequent moves and remarriages made life difficult for Ulrich and his brother Geof. As for their first stepmother, Ulrich remembered her as a harsh, disciplined woman who wanted the boys to eat canned peas without dropping any — using chopsticks.

But finicky eating habits were the least of the boys' worries when their father kidnapped them. Ulrich was only 6 at the time, and for three years, the man moved them around the east coast. When the brothers finally managed to get back to their mother, their father left their lives altogether. Ulrich didn't see the man again until 1996. After making his name as an actor, he found his father living in Baltimore. During their conversation, the father kept bringing up unpleasant memories. To avoid an emotional reaction, Ulrich took a cue from actress Gena Rowlands and focused on straightening the curtains.

Whether the visit with his father helped Ulrich process anything, having children of his own did help him come to terms with his childhood. He told Fatherly that his New York therapist predicted being a father would help him. "I didn't understand that when I was 23, but he was right," he said. "I get to re-experience my own childhood in a new way and be the parent I wish I'd had."

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