It’s been three decades since beloved character actor John Candy died from a heart attack at age 43.
On March 4, Candy’s two children shared touching messages to honor their late father on the anniversary of his death.
“30 years ago today .. feels like both a lifetime with and without you. Miss you and love you forever,” Jennifer Candy-Sullivan, 44, captioned her Instagram.
"He was the best dad," Jennifer tells TODAY.com. "He'd say, 'Don't worry what people think about you. Just be your authentic self.'"
"The other thing about my dad, is that he was the ultimate family guy," she continues. "That's the reason he didn't want to do 'Saturday Night Live'. He knew the lifestyle wasn't going to be healthy for him. He was smart in that way."
Jennifer named her 5-year-old son, Finley John William, after his grandfather.
"He definitely looks like a Candy. He has my dad's hair for sure," Jennifer says, noting that the little boy also resembles his paternal grandfather.
Anniversaries of a loss can be difficult, but Jennifer says she is "feeling strong" today.
"My childhood best friend passed away last month. We grew up together, she knew my dad. And her death triggered me missing my dad," Jennifer says.
Jennifer's brother Christopher, 39, also shared a tribute to their dad on Instagram on March 4. In the snap, Candy sports his signature Hawaiian print.
“All my love to my father today,” Chris, 39, wrote.
Both of Candy’s kids followed him into the entertainment business. Chris and Jennifer are both writers and actors.
Candy was best known for his roles in ‘80s comedies including “Uncle Buck” and “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.” He was married to his wife, a ceramicist and abstract painter, Rosemary Margaret Hobor, for 15 years.
“He was your everyday kind of guy and a great dad and very lovable,” Jennifer told Entertainment Tonight in 2015. “Very much similar to the characters that he was on film.”
Candy died in Mexico while shooting the 1994 film “Wagon’s East.”
“I was 9. It was a Friday,” Chris said during a conversation with the Hollywood Reporter in 2016. “I remember talking to him the night before he passed away and he said, ‘I love you and goodnight.’ And I will always remember that.”
Jennifer, who was 14 when Candy died, also recalled her last call with her dad.
“So I was talking to him on the phone, and, I hate this, but I was slightly distant because I was studying,” she told the publication. “So I was like, ‘Yeah, OK, I love you. I will talk to you later. Have a great night.’ Then I hang up, and I go back to studying.”
According to Jennifer and Chris, heart disease runs in their family.
“He always worked on his weight and his health,” Chris said while speaking to the Hollywood Reporter. “And fortunately, he helped us to figure that out for ourselves."
Jennifer and Chris don’t mind when they people point out the resemblance between themselves and their dad — they see it, too.
“Both my brother and I look like my dad at different times,” Jennifer explained to the Hollywood Reporter. “If you look at him when he was younger, that’s Chris. And my dad slightly older, it’s my face. For me, it was being in touch with my feminine side when people would say, ‘You look just like your dad,’ and I was like, ‘Thank you …?’ And then they would say, ‘But you’re much prettier than your dad!’ Sometimes my laugh is exactly like my dad.”