Eric Dane's posthumously released memoir, "My Book Of Days: A Memoir of Moments," details a fiery confrontation he had with actor Josh Duhamel on the set of the NBC series "Las Vegas" in 2004. Dane, who died earlier this year at age 53 from ALS, described the incident in a chapter titled "the day I lost my mind on camera."
According to Dane's account, he had requested that Duhamel not grab his tie during a fight scene they were filming. Despite the agreement, Duhamel pulled on Dane's tie during the first take. Dane, who was suffering from a herniated cervical disc in his neck at the time, felt a jolt of pain and asked to stop the scene. After an apology from Duhamel, the scene was reset, but Duhamel again grabbed Dane's tie.
Frustrated, Dane instructed the director to "rein in" Duhamel. When the scene was shot for a third time, Duhamel once more pulled on the tie. This final action led Dane to remove his suit coat and challenge Duhamel, using expletives and calling him a "son of a bitch" actor. Dane wrote that he balled his hands into fists and advanced on Duhamel, with the camera continuing to roll and no one calling cut. He expressed regret for his actions, acknowledging that to the audience, he appeared to be the aggressor. He later apologized to Duhamel years after the incident, stating they are now "cool."
Dane, who gained widespread recognition as Dr. Mark Sloan, or 'McSteamy' Sloan on "Grey's Anatomy," was a guest star on "Las Vegas," playing Leo Broder during the show's second season. Duhamel starred as Danny McCoy in the series, which aired from 2003 to 2008. Dane's memoir also touches on his battle with addiction, his relationship with ex-wife Rebecca Gayheart, his daughters, and his misdiagnosis before receiving his ALS diagnosis.
Dane was diagnosed with ALS about a year before his death on February 19. He and Gayheart, married in 2004, share two daughters, Billie and Georgia. Though they separated in 2017 and Gayheart filed for divorce, they never finalized the proceedings and called off the divorce shortly before Dane announced his ALS diagnosis. Gayheart remained a supportive co-parent throughout his illness.