Martin Short's daughter Katherine's close friend reveals years-long struggle with depression amid tragic death: ‘She was battling with that stuff’

Katherine Short was adopted daughter of Martin Short

• Katherine Short, Martin Short's daughter, died by suicide at 42
• She overcame mental health struggles and aided others via charity.
• Her family and friends mourn her loss and remember her kindness

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Martin Short's daughter, Katherine Elizabeth Short, passed away at the age of 42. She died by suicide, and her close friend has reacted to the tragic news. Katherine’s close friend revealed that Katherine had been dealing with mental health issues in private for years.

She had also checked herself into treatment centres several times before she tragically committed suicide at the age of 42.

In an interview with DailyMail, Rande Levine, founder of Karma Rescue, a dog charity on whose board Katherine served, told the outlet, “She was such a wonderful, giving, loving human being. I'm picturing her face right now, laughing. It's just so devastating to find out she took her own life.”

Levine added, “I knew she was battling with that stuff. But she put her soul into helping others that were experiencing the same things she was.”

Despite battling mental health issues for years, Katherine Hartley Short 'liked to laugh', according to her friend, who was a registered clinical social worker, therapist, and charity volunteer. Her family announced her death on Tuesday.

According to the LAPD, Katherine was discovered dead at her Hollywood Hills residence on Monday night after suffering a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Meanwhile, Katherine’s neighbour told DailyMail, “Katherine pretty much kept to herself. She had been sick, struggling with some sort of physical illness. She must have been in so much anguish to have done this. It’s just so sad.”

For around six years, Katherine had resided in the Hollywood Hills neighbourhood.

As a clinical social worker, Levine's late friend and colleague assisted many people with mental health issues while still finding time to work on mental health and animal charities.

However, the founder of the charity revealed that during the 2010s, Katherine took time off from her charitable activities to check herself into an inpatient mental health institution on multiple occasions when she was experiencing extreme depression.

She added, “She'd say, I won't be around, I'm going away. She'd go check into some place to boost her up again. I knew she was battling with this. She would talk about it. But you would never know based on how she presented herself, and how funny she was.”

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Katherine’s friend also expressed concern for Martin Short, who has been a doting dad and very involved in her life.

She said, “I feel so sad for her dad. They were so close. He was so supportive of her and a big part of her life. When we'd talk on the phone or email, he was always involved with her, being a supportive dad.”

Katherine is one of the three adopted children of 75-year-old Martin Short and his late wife, Nancy Dolman, who passed away from ovarian cancer in 2010.