Martin Short Discusses Daughter Katherine's Suicide Death at 42

Martin Short discussed the recent suicide of his daughter Katherine Short during a May 10 appearance on CBS Sunday Morning.

The 76-year-old actor and comedian described coping with the loss of Katherine, who died at age 42 in February. Short shared Katherine with his late wife Nancy Dolman, who died after battling ovarian cancer in 2010.

"It's been a nightmare for the family," Short said of Katherine's death.

"But the understanding [is] that mental health and cancer, like my wife's, are both diseases, and sometimes with diseases they are terminal," he added. "And my daughter fought for a long time with extreme mental health, borderline personality disorder, other things, and did the best she could until she couldn't."

Katherine died by suicide on Feb. 23, Fox News Digital confirmed. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner listed her residence as the place of death and a gunshot wound of the head as the cause.

"It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short," a family representative said in a statement to Fox News Digital at the time. "The Short family is devastated by this loss, and asks for privacy at this time. Katherine was beloved by all and will be remembered for the light and joy she brought into the world."

Short postponed dates on his comedy tour with Steve Martin after Katherine's death.

Katherine was the eldest of three children Short adopted with Dolman. The couple also shared sons Oliver, 40, and Henry, 36. They had been married for more than three decades before Dolman's death.

Before her death, Katherine worked as a licensed clinical social worker in Los Angeles. She focused on therapy and mental health advocacy after earning a psychology degree from New York University and a master's in social work from the University of Southern California. She practiced in private settings and community outreach for mental health services.

Short has spoken openly about private tragedies despite his comedy career, from playing Franck in Father of the Bride to his role in the Emmy-winning Only Murders in the Building.

Early in life, Short lost his older brother David in a car accident in 1962 at age 12. His mother Olive died after a cancer battle in 1968, and his father Charles suffered a fatal stroke in 1970.

After Dolman's death, Short said his children faced tough years. "It's been a tough two years for my children," he told The Guardian in October 2012.

"This is the thing of life that we live in denial about, that it will ever happen to us or our loved ones, and when it does you gain a little and you suffer a little. There's no big surprise."

In 2019, he told AARP that grief evolves. "It’s tough," he said. "I still communicate with her all the time. It’s ‘Hey, Nan,’ you know?"

He added, "I believe that when people die, they zoom into the people that love them. This idea that it just ends, and don’t speak of them — that’s wrong. That’s based on denial that we’re all going to die. So to me, she’s still here."