Burt's Biggest Heartbreak: Star Never Healed Rift With Only Son Quinton

Burt Reynolds felt his son — who he adopted with second wife Loni Anderson when he was just three days old — was cruelly cut out of his life and poisoned against him by his ex after they split in 1993.

Burt, who died of a heart attack on Thursday, returned to live back in his home state, Florida, but Quinton Anderson Reynolds remained with his mother in California.

Burt wrote in his 2015 memoir, But Enough About Me: "It's been hard because he lives in California, across the street from his mother. I don't think he's heard the greatest things in the world from her about me. We talk on the phone, but its not a great relationship.

“I love him so much and I think he loves me. It's just hard. When I'm in L.A. we have dinner, but we don't get to spend as much time as I'd like to."

It is unknown if Quinton, now 30, was by his father's side when he passed away at the Jupiter Medical Center near his home in the Jupiter Beach area.

Three years after the Smokey and the Bandit star and Loni split, a source said he found it hard to deal with being separated from Quinton.

A source said at the time: "On the outside, he looks great and puts on a brave face. But missing Quinton is an ache that will never go away. He used to spend hours on end with his son, from the time he woke up until he tucked him into bed. Every-other-weekend visits are a poor substitute”

In more recent years Quinton had almost completely severed ties with Burt as he suffered ill health – including undergoing a quintuple heart bypass – and financial troubles, resulting in him having to sell his house.