Fast Facts
Born: January 10, 1982 (Hayward, CA)
Died: August 5, 2002 (San Diego, CA)
Mother: Cheryl Evans
Father: Chuck Evans
Brothers: Timothy Michael Evans (1971-1980); James L. Evans
Height: 3'2" (0.97 m)

Josh Evans, affectionately called JRE, best known for his role as Timmy on the NBC Daytime Drama, Passions, died at the age of 20 in San Diego, CA due to complications that resulted from his third open heart surgery.

Josh was born with Achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism. Achondroplasia is a type of autosomal dominant genetic disorder that is a common cause of dwarfism. Achondroplastic dwarfs have short stature, with an average adult height of 131 cm (4 feet 3.8 inches) for males and 123 cm (4 feet 0.6 inches) for females. While there is no known cure, many afflicted with the disorder turn to limb lengthening to improve their appearance.

In contrast, Josh turned his size into an asset. His features gave him the opportunity to play both adults and children. When Josh was 12, he distributed business cards that he had created which said, "Joshua Ryan Evans--kid". He gave these cards to local performers, directors and producers. A Hollywood agent recognized Josh's enthusiasm and perseverance and signed him to a contract. The precocious man felt that he was more recognizable as a dwarf, than if he were to have to compete with all of the regular actors in Hollywood. He was truly unique.

Like many actors, Josh began his career in commercials. His first role was for Baby Genius as a "Dancing Baby". Director Bob Giraldi, a veteran of music videos only needed Josh to do a moonwalk, but redesigned the piece after watching Josh demonstrate his dancing abilities during rehearsal. Josh was then catapulted into stardom!

He felt that being an actor was a great way to escape his own reality of being afflicted with various ailments. He spent many days in the hospital and had three open heart surgeries. The latter proved to be too much for the young thespian. He developed complications from the surgery and died shortly thereafter. Coincidentally, the death scene on Passions (had previously been taped approximately one month prior), aired the same day that he died; the episode was dedicated in his memory. In the scene, Timmy went on a quest to save Charity from imprisonment in a block of ice. In a blast of magical energy, , he and Charity were severely injured. Because Timmy was now a human and no longer a doll, he died of his injuries, and his heart was transplanted into Charity, saving her life. After his death scene, writers intended for the character of Timmy to become an angel and remain a presence on the show. However, the entire storyline was rewritten to excise the character. The final scene, which Josh taped previously, was eventually aired showing Timmy in Heaven, as a sort of coda.

Trivia

• On an episode of Passions, Josh had a line that went, "Timmy could go on a talk show, Timmy could meet Rosie!" and on May 29th 2002, he appeared on the Rosie O’Donnell Show and that footage was shown.
• James, Josh’s brother, is 6'4"— exactly twice Josh's height.

JRE is survived by his mother Cheryl, his father Chuck, his older brother James Evans and his grandparents Belle and Gene Riding. At the family's request, donations may be sent in Josh's name to the Make-a-Wish Foundation in lieu of flowers.