Billy Joel attempted suicide twice after having an affair with his friend’s wife.
The “Piano Man” singer opened up about the painful period of his life in the new documentary, “Billy Joel: And So It Goes,” which premiered Wednesday.
The Grammy winner, 76, recalled falling “in love” with pal — and Attila bandmate — Jon Small’s wife, Elizabeth Weber, while living in their home in his 20s (via People).
“Bill and I spent a lot of time together,” Weber said of their “slow build” romance.
When the infidelity came to light, Joel felt “very, very guilty” and “like a homewrecker,” especially since the couple “had a child.”
The musician felt he “deserved” it when “upset” Small “punched [him] in the nose.”
Joel was also “very upset” with “no place to live,” so he began “sleeping in laundromats.”
He remembered, “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.’
“I was just in a lot of pain,” Joel continued. “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.”
When his sister, Judy Molinari, provided sleeping pills to help him rest, Joel “took them all.”
Molinari tearfully told viewers, “He was in a coma for days and days and days. I went to go see him in the hospital, and he was lying there white as a sheet. I thought that I’d killed him.”
Joel attempted to end his life a second time by drinking a bottle of lemon Pledge — and it was Small who took him to the hospital that time around.
“Even though our friendship was blowing up, Jon saved my life,” the songwriter gushed.
He subsequently checked himself into an observation ward and realized he could “utilize all those emotions to channel that stuff into music.”
Small, notably, forgave Joel, who later reconnected with Weber and was married to her from 1973 to 1982.
The pianist has been married three other times to Christie Brinkley, Katie Lee and his current wife, Alexis Roderick.
Brinkley, 71, recently discussed their time together in her April memoir, “Uptown Girl.”
The following month, Joel revealed he suffers from a rare brain disorder called normal pressure hydrocephalus. He was also notably absent from his documentary’s Tribeca Film Festival premiere.
“Billy Joel: And So It Goes” will stream on HBO Max later this summer.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.
Read the full article here
