Blog #295: A Tribute to Jason David Frank (1973-2022)
- Jeffrey Snyder
- Nov 28, 2022
- 3 min read
Let’s be honest here, I certainly did NOT see this coming.
When I was growing up in the 90’s, the one franchise that seemed to be the dominate force in my life was Power Rangers. For 10 seasons right up through till “Wild Force,” I made Power Rangers a part of my life along with Disney and a few others.
But what made Power Rangers so appealing for me was the character of Tommy Oliver played by Jason David Frank. So, when I heard that Jason died early Sunday morning, I was baffled and wondering how this could happen to someone so great in the lives of those who lived and breathed Power Rangers? He was promoting upcoming convention appearances and had many people excited to see him at those appearances.
I mean, in recent years, Jason David Frank was a fixture at conventions and at comic book shops being a brand ambassador for the Power Rangers franchise. Tommy Oliver to Power Rangers was just like Mickey Mouse to Disney or Bugs Bunny to Warner Brothers.
Even though I have long since stopped watching Power Rangers 20 years ago, the news that Jason David Frank had died was almost too much to mentally process.
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As it turns out, Jason David Frank had taken his own life in a Texas hotel room after arguing with his second wife. His death also brought out skeletons that were in his closet for God knows how long and as such, it got me thinking about being in a similar situation as he did. Unlike me, Jason David Frank had been going through a lot in his life: a divorce, the death of his brother, three of his four children having drug problems and at the time of his suicide, going through another divorce with his second wife.
You see, I think I may have mentioned this in a previous blog, but there were times that I desperately wanted to leave this world, much like Jason David Frank did. Plenty of times I thought about throwing my life away because I couldn’t handle life that was in front of me, being in stressful situations and wanting to run and hide.
Having a neurodiverse mind is challenging because there is so much to process especially when it comes to my sensory processing disorder that is part and parcel of my autism.
There were times were I felt like I didn’t want to live, that I wanted to break a pact that I made with my mother, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Whenever I had suicidal thoughts, I would often say to myself that I wish I did what Robin Williams did in 2014.
Why didn’t I do it? Why am I still here doing what I do best?
Because I have a lot to live for. I have a hell of a lot of people who need me on Earth right now and I know for a fact that suicide would be a sin in the eyes of God. I often viewed suicide as a last resort to solve my problems, but it was problems that were temporary, and suicide is a permanent solution.
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In the case of Jason David Frank, he had to wear a mask whenever he was out in public because of the pain he was having away from the public eye. Wearing that mask was a contributing factor to his suicide because he didn’t want to disappoint his fans by cancelling upcoming appearances for the sake of his mental health.
Now, it makes me wonder what Jason David Frank could have done to save his own life? Should he have had to seek out professional help instead of trying to mask with his comic con appearances? I don’t know and I don’t think we may ever know the full extent of the situation.
In my case, I was fortunate enough to have a strong support system that prevented me from thinking about taking my own life. In a way, I am sort of like Jason David Frank to the autism/neurodiversity community. I make appearances and I devote my time and effort to helping those affected by autism/neurodiversity and disability day in and day out.
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But either way, this is an enormous loss not just to those who grew up watching Power Rangers but also is a sign that we still have a long way to go to better help those with mental health issues, especially for those who are neurodiverse or disabled.
May Jason David Frank rest in peace and may the power protect him always!!
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Catch you all later!!
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