Iconic '80s movie The Goonies told the tale of a bunch of misfits who discover an ancient map that leads them to treasure.
At at the head of the operation was Sloth - the badly-deformed son of evil Mama Fratelli, who caused his injuries by dropping him on his head as a child.
Played by actor John Matuszak, it took five hours in the makeup chair every day to complete the transformation into the vulnerable character, with a whole generation largely unaware of what he looked like off-screen.
At 6ft 9 and weighing 20st, John was an imposing presence and was a hit with the ladies. He even did a raunchy shoot for Playgirl.
Before finding success in Hollywood, the hard-partying John built up a fanbase as a football player for the Houston Oilers and Washington Redskins.
From 1976 to 1981 he was with the Oakland Raiders, winning two Super Bowls with the team.
But the sport left him plagued by chronic pain. His first injury happened in college when he suffered a shoulder separation while playing for the University of Missouri.
And it was a series of back injuries and subsequent surgery in the early '80s that saw him retired to the reserve list before he quit for good in 1983.
His parents, Marv and Audrey Matuszak, believed that his chronic pain contributed to his untimely death from an accidental drug overdose in 1989. He was just 38.
In a statement, they said: "We are not unmindful of the problems our son had in his battle against chronic pain and his resulting use of drugs, both prescription and otherwise."
According to his former girlfriend, Stephanie Cozart, John turned to drugs to cope with the trauma of losing not one, but two brothers at a young age to cystic fibrosis.
"The man was in a lot of emotional pain. He had a lot of childhood stuff to deal with," she told the LA Times in 1989. "He had a lot of present-day stuff. He was a therapist's dream."
Despite his mental health issues, John fought hard to keep his addictions under control, with Stephanie telling how he battled to stay on track after retiring from football.
"He was trying really hard to keep things under control. He was in AA - Alcoholics Anonymous - and he was trying his damnedest to succeed," Cozart told the Orlando Sentinel.
Indeed, in his 1987 autobiography, Cruisin' With the Tooz, he revealed how he had once lived on the 'breakfast of champions' - vodka and valium - but turned his back on drugs after hitting rock bottom.
"I abstain from cocaine, and any other foreign substance, entirely now. I take nothing, not even sleeping pills. I've hit damn near bottom. I don't ever want to go back," he wrote.
But Stephanie believed that despite the departure from his wild days, the damage had already been done.
"It's no secret that at one time he had an excessive lifestyle, and it might have taken its toll physically," she told the Orlando Sentinal.
John was found ill at home on June 17, 1989 and rushed to St. Joseph Medical Centre in Burbank, California. Sadly, doctors were unable to save him and he died at 9:39pm
*Frank offers confidential advice about drugs and addiction (email frank@talktofrank.com, message 82111 or call 0300 123 6600) or the NHS has information about getting help.
The Goonies airs today on Channel 5 at 4.50pm.
