Eric Dane's Memoir to Detail ALS Battle, Addiction, and Family Life
The late actor's posthumous memoir, 'My Book Of Days,' scheduled for release in November 2026, reveals the early signs of his illness and personal struggles.
Actor Eric Dane's upcoming memoir, 'My Book Of Days: A Memoir of Moments,' will offer a posthumous look into his battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), his struggles with addiction, and his family relationships. The book is set to be released on November 3, 2026.
Dane, who died at age 53 from ALS earlier this year, described the initial symptoms of his illness in an excerpt obtained by People. He recalled a family dinner with his daughters when he first experienced difficulty using chopsticks with his right hand, initially attributing the tingling and numbness to excessive texting.
"I'm eating sushi with my kids and suddenly I can't work the chopsticks with my right hand. My hand tingles, and then my fingers feel numb," Dane wrote. The symptom recurred less than a month later with greater intensity, prompting a nine-month diagnostic journey.
The memoir also addresses Dane's addiction struggles, which contributed to the breakdown of his marriage to Rebecca Gayheart. "My work hours, my addiction complications, the times I'm away, the times I'm here but not here," he listed as factors in their marital difficulties. Dane and Gayheart married in October 2004, separated in September 2017, and called off their divorce proceedings in March 2025.
Gayheart expressed gratitude for the memoir, telling People, "I'm grateful he did, because it gives my girls the opportunity to know their dad as a human being." She added that upon learning of his diagnosis, she assured him, "I'm here, we'll fight this together, I'm not going anywhere."
Dane's diagnosis was shared with Gayheart after a doctor's appointment, which he described as "what we feared." He recounted Gayheart's emotional response over the phone and his determination to be strong for their daughters, Georgia, 14, and Billie, 16.
"I'm going to take this on. I'm going to fight. I'm going to show my girls how to walk through this life with grace and dignity, no matter what. I am going to FIGHT," Dane wrote. "This has become my purpose. My reason. This is now my job."
Despite their separation, Dane and Gayheart maintained a familial love and close co-parenting relationship. Gayheart, in a December 2025 essay for The Cut, described their relationship as complicated but rooted in a deep familial bond, emphasizing her continued support for him.