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Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Billy Joel tried to kill himself twice before realizing he could channel his sadness into music
Previously untold details of Billy Joel's life are revealed in the two-part documentary "Billy Joel: And So It Goes," which premiered last week and hits HBO in July. (Evan Agostini / Invision / Associated Press) Billy Joel's life is awash in revelations these days — some bad, some worse. Last month, the "Only the Good Die Young" singer-songwriter canceled all his upcoming concerts, revealing he was struggling with a brain disorder that causes a potentially reversible kind of dementia. Then last week, he divulged that he attempted suicide twice in his 20s after falling in love with his bandmate's wife and causing the downfall of the band itself. Advertisement Read more: Billy Joel cancels all of his upcoming shows after revealing brain disorder diagnosis "I felt very, very guilty about it. They had a child. I felt like a homewrecker,' Joel says (via People) in the first half of the two-part documentary "Billy Joel: And So It Goes," which premiered last Wednesday and hits HBO Max in July. 'I was just in love with a woman and I got punched in the nose, which I deserved." Joel said both he and his friend and Attila bandmate, Jon Small, were upset by what happened while Joel was living with Small and Small's then-wife, Elizabeth Weber. So upset that Attila — a Led Zeppelin-inspired metal band, according to the New York Times — broke up and Joel started boozing, which sent him into a tailspin. 'I had no place to live," Joel says in the documentary. "I was sleeping in laundromats, and I was depressed, I think to the point of almost being psychotic. So I figured, 'That's it. I don't want to live anymore.'" Advertisement He tried twice to end his life in the early 1970s, according to the documentary. First, he took the entire lot of sleeping pills that his sister, then a medical assistant, had given him to help him sleep. That put him in the hospital. Read more: Christie Brinkley details turbulent marriage with Billy Joel: 'I hesitated to put that scene in the book' "He was in a coma for days and days and days," Judy Molinari says in the program. She thought she had killed her brother. Joel says in the doc that he woke up in the hospital still suicidal, hoping to do it "right" the next time. His sister said he wound up drinking "lemon Pledge" furniture polish. That time, an unlikely person took him to the hospital: Small, his then-estranged best friend. Advertisement "Eventually," Small says in the documentary, "I forgave him." As for those impulses to harm himself, they wound up paying off for Joel after he checked out of a facility he had checked himself into after the second suicide attempt. Read more: 'We apologize': CBS vows to air Billy Joel milestone concert again after ending is cut off "I got out of the observation ward and I thought to myself, you can utilize all those emotions to channel that stuff into music." Joel reconnected with Weber about a year after that, wrote about her in the 1973 song "Piano Man," and married her from then until 1982. Marriages to Christie Brinkley, Katie Lee and current wife Alexis Roderick would follow. Advertisement The first part of the documentary covers Joel's childhood and runs through his 1982 motorcycle accident, according to the New York Times. He doesn't meet his "Uptown Girl," Brinkley, until Part 2. Get notified when the biggest stories in Hollywood, culture and entertainment go live. Sign up for L.A. Times entertainment alerts. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Billy Joel tried to kill himself twice before realizing he could channel his sadness into music
Billy Joel's life is awash in revelations these days — some bad, some worse. Last month, the 'Only the Good Die Young' singer-songwriter canceled all his upcoming concerts, revealing he was struggling with a brain disorder that causes a potentially reversible kind of dementia. Then last week, he divulged that he attempted suicide twice in his 20s after falling in love with his bandmate's wife and causing the downfall of the band itself. 'I felt very, very guilty about it. They had a child. I felt like a homewrecker,' Joel says (via People) in the first half of the two-part documentary 'Billy Joel: And So It Goes,' which premiered last Wednesday and hits HBO Max in July. 'I was just in love with a woman and I got punched in the nose, which I deserved.' Joel said both he and his friend and Attila bandmate, Jon Small, were upset by what happened while Joel was living with Small and Small's then-wife, Elizabeth Weber. So upset that Attila — a Led Zeppelin-inspired metal band, according to the New York Times — broke up and Joel started boozing, which sent him into a tailspin. 'I had no place to live,' Joel says in the documentary. 'I was sleeping in laundromats, and I was depressed, I think to the point of almost being psychotic. So I figured, 'That's it. I don't want to live anymore.'' He tried twice to end his life in the early 1970s, according to the documentary. First, he took the entire lot of sleeping pills that his sister, then a medical assistant, had given him to help him sleep. That put him in the hospital. 'He was in a coma for days and days and days,' Judy Molinari says in the program. She thought she had killed her brother. Joel says in the doc that he woke up in the hospital still suicidal, hoping to do it 'right' the next time. His sister said he wound up drinking 'lemon Pledge' furniture polish. That time, an unlikely person took him to the hospital: Small, his then-estranged best friend. 'Eventually,' Small says in the documentary, 'I forgave him.' As for those impulses to harm himself, they wound up paying off for Joel after he checked out of a facility he had checked himself into after the second suicide attempt. 'I got out of the observation ward and I thought to myself, you can utilize all those emotions to channel that stuff into music.' Joel reconnected with Weber about a year after that, wrote about her in the 1973 song 'Piano Man,' and married her from then until 1982. Marriages to Christie Brinkley, Katie Lee and current wife Alexis Roderick would follow. The first part of the documentary covers Joel's childhood and runs through his 1982 motorcycle accident, according to the New York Times. He doesn't meet his 'Uptown Girl,' Brinkley, until Part 2.
New York Post
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Billy Joel reveals he tried to ‘end it all' with two suicide attempts after affair with best friend's wife
He was an angry young man. In his new documentary, 'Billy Joel: And So It Goes' — which had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on Wednesday night – the piano man, 76, opened up about a dark time in his past. When he was in his early 20s, Joel was in a band called Attila with his then-best friend, Jon Small. 10 Billy Joel and wife Elizabeth Weber circa 1981 in New York City. Getty Images During that time, Joel fell in love with Elizabeth Weber, who was Small's then-wife. Joel attempted suicide over the affair – twice. 'I was just in a lot of pain .. so I just thought I'd end it all,' he said on-screen. 10 Billy Joel performs on stage at the MCG on 10th December 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. WireImage After surviving, he quipped, 'You can't even do yourself in.' The 'Uptown Girl' singer has previously revealed his suicide attempt as early as 1990, but he went into more detail in the documentary. 'Bill and I spent a lot of time together,' Elizabeth shared in the doc. Small recalled that Joel told him, 'I'm in love with your wife.' 10 Billy Joel and drummer Jon Small of the rock band 'Attila' pose for a portrait in 1970. Michael Ochs Archives 'I felt very, very guilty about it. They had a child. I felt like a homewrecker,' Joel said. The 'Vienna' singer added, 'I was just in love with a woman and I got punched in the nose which I deserved. Jon was very upset. I was very upset.' In the fallout, Attila broke up, their friendship ended for a long time, and Joel had a downward spiral. 10 Elizabeth Weber and Sean Weber-Small attend the 'Billy Joel: And So It Goes' Opening Night Premiere at Beacon Theatre on June 04, 2025 in New York City. Getty Images for Tribeca Festival 10 Billy Joel with Elizabeth Weber in 1979. Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images 'I had no place to live. I was sleeping in laundromats and I was depressed I think to the point of almost being psychotic,' he said. The 'Only the Good Die Young' singer added, 'So I figured, 'That's it. I don't want to live anymore.' I was just in a lot of pain and it was sort of like why hang out, tomorrow is going to be just like today is and today sucks. So, I just thought I'd end it all.' His sister, Judy Molinari, was working as a medical assistant at the time and gave him sleeping pills. 10 Billy Joel attends MSG Entertainment and Billy Joel special franchise announcement at Chase Square at Madison Square Garden on June 01, 2023 in New York City. Getty Images 'Billy decided that he was going to take all of them… he was in a coma for days and days and days,' she said in the documentary. She emotionally recalled, 'I went to go see him in the hospital, and he was laying there white as a sheet. I thought that I'd killed him.' The 'We Didn't Start The Fire' hitmaker said that he was 'very selfish' at the time. 10 Billy Joel with his wife Alexis Roderick and daughters Della Rose Joel and Remy Anne Joel attend the 66th GRAMMY Awards at Arena on February 04, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. FilmMagic 10 Billy Joel, at home in front of some of his gold discs, New York City, 25th January 1978. Getty Images He recalled waking up in the hospital thinking he wanted to do it again — but this time 'right.' The next time, he drank a bottle of 'lemon Pledge,' Molinari said. Small took him to the hospital, which ultimately caused the two men to mend fences. 10 Billy Joel circa 1969. Redferns 'Even though our friendship was blowing up, Jon saved my life,' Joel said. Small explained, 'He never really said anything to me, the only practical answer I can give as to why Billy took it so hard was because he loved me that much and that it killed him to hurt me that much. Eventually I forgave him.' Following his suicide attempts, Joel got back together with Weber, who went on to become his manager. They were married from 1973 to 1982. She was the first of his four wives. His other exes include Christie Brinkley, Katie Lee, and his current wife, Alexis Roderick, whom he married in 2015. 10 Billy Joel appears on SiriusXM with John Mayer at SiriusXM Studios on October 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Getty Images for SiriusXM Meanwhile, Small took the high road after Weber inspired Joel's 1971 debut, 'Cold Spring Harbor.' 'You could tell from the lyrics that he was really in love with Elizabeth,' Small said of songs such as 'She's Got a Way.' The music legend was absent from his big night after revealing his shocking brain disorder diagnosis two weeks ago. However, Weber was in attendance. The two-part documentary will premiere on HBO and HBO Max at an unannounced date later this summer. If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to
