Martin Short's Tragic Daughter Found Dead After Worried Star Made Frantic Call to Check on Welfare
Martin Short made a panicked call to a friend of his daughter Katherine to check on her welfare before she was found dead.
May 27 2026, Published 9:34 a.m. ET
Martin Short made a panicked call to check on the well-being of his daughter before she was found dead.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the veteran entertainer was fraught with concern over 42-year-old Katherine, whose life was plagued by mental health issues.
Friend's Wellness Check
Short's call to Katherine's close friend prompted a check on her house.
According to new details released by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's autopsy report, Short, 76, called a close friend of Katherine's after not hearing from his daughter in over 24 hours, prompting the friend to perform a wellness check.
Upon the friend's arrival at Katherine's house, the report stated that "multiple notes were located at the scene, believed to have been left" by her, before her friend discovered a missive "posted to the door" and called 911.
After the police forced Katherine's door open, they discovered her body lying in her bed. Her death was ruled a suicide by authorities.
'Devastated By This Loss'
The veteran actor released an emotional statement after Katherine's tragic passing.
Short and his family shared an emotional statement in the wake of her death, which read: "It is with profound grief that we confirm the passing of Katherine Hartley Short.
"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."
The comedian, who lost his wife, Nancy Dolman, to ovarian cancer in 2010, shared on CBS Sunday Morning that he hoped people would take mental health issues more seriously.
'She Did The Best She Could Until She Couldn't'
Short opened up about his daughter's mental health issues during a TV interview.
"The understanding (is) that mental health and cancer, like my wife's, are both diseases, and sometimes with diseases they are terminal," he said.
"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."
"So, (Nancy's) last words to me were, 'Martin, let me go.' And what (Katherine) was just saying (was), 'Dad, let me go.'" The father of three said that he wanted to bring mental health "out of the shadows" so that people weren't "ashamed" of discussing it.
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Katherine was one of Short's adopted children, alongside sons Henry and Oliver.
"Not hiding from the word suicide, but accepting that this can be the last stage of an illness," he said. Short has dealt with unimaginable tragedy throughout his life, having lost his father, mother and brother all before the age of 20, and his wife in 2010.
"I did have an understanding from my childhood [that] the end of life was going to happen to all of us, and (for) some, it's too early," he said. "It's a simple fact that loss is something to negotiate. It's going to happen to all of us."
"We have to celebrate and be lucky enough the experiences that we've had with them…Just to think of them, they've just gone into the next room for a while." Short is also a father to sons, Oliver, 30, and Henry, 36, whom he adopted with Nancy.
