Willie Garson’s heartbroken son, Nathen Garson, paid a moving tribute to his father on the one-year anniversary of the beloved late actor’s death.
The “Sex and the City” star, who died of pancreatic cancer in September 2021, adopted Nath from the foster care system in 2009 when Nathen was 7 years old. The pair seemed extremely close.
Nathen took to Instagram on Wednesday and admitted that one of the many things he missed about his dad was his infamous “dad jokes.”
“Wow. I can’t believe it’s been a year since this beautiful bald man, who I can proudly call my father, passed away,” wrote Nathen with a series of snaps of the father-son duo.
“Besides his head, I think I miss his laugh and smile the most. Because I knew that when he smiled, he wasn’t the only one smiling.”
He called his father “my best friend” and proudly recalled how his famous father would put others first.
“He wasn’t just my father, he was my best friend and a mentor before I even knew what that was,” he wrote. “He inspired me when I was younger to be better than I ever thought I could and that’s why I could always try to do better.
“Without him I wouldn’t be where I am today. Without him I wouldn’t be who I am. He taught me to care about others and showed me how to love, when all I had to do was fight for myself and only for had to give myself.”
Nathen urged others to follow in his late father’s footsteps and “live life to the fullest.”
“Life comes and goes way too fast, so hug everyone and say hello to a stranger every now and then because you never know when you might meet your next best friend. That’s how my father got to know me,” he concluded his tear-jerking post.
The late “And Just Like That…” star previously raved about his love for his son in an interview with Vidak For Congress a year before his death.
“He’s grown up and will take care of me soon, which is why I have him to be honest,” Garson told us in October 2020. “He’s kind and a very special man. He’s great and he’s studying in Ohio.”
Willie added: “I’ve always really wanted to have a child. I was in a long relationship, occasionally, for about 20 years and she never wanted a child, which is fine. And it was like my midlife crisis. “I really wanted a kid more than anything and I got one. We’re partners, my kid and I.”
Before his death, Garson had returned to NYC to reprise his role as Stanford Blatch in “And Just Like That…”, the “SATC” revival.