While the actor was starring in a hit TV show, his newborn daughter was fighting for her life. She needed two open-heart surgeries — and her family faced a terrifying ordeal that would forever change them.
Mark Feuerstein may be best known for playing charming, composed doctors on television, but nothing in his acting career prepared him for the real-life crisis that hit his family shortly after he landed his starring role on “Royal Pains.”
While the cameras rolled in New York, his youngest daughter was in a hospital in Los Angeles battling a rare and life-threatening heart condition, leaving her famous father to balance long days on set and emergency flights across. So, what happened to the little girl?
From Stage Lights to ICU Nights – How Mark Feuerstein Balanced Stardom and His Daughter’s Fight for Life
Mark grew up in New York City, the son of a lawyer and a teacher. His parents, both devoted theatergoers, surrounded him with the arts from an early age.
They took him to everything from musicals like “Cats,” “Phantom of the Opera,” and “Les Misérables,” to visits to MoMA and performances of “The Nutcracker.” He was exposed to opera and theater with the hope that something would spark a passion within him.
However, although the environment was rich with artistic influence, he didn’t immediately fall in love with performing. “I wanted to be a lawyer, not an actor,” he admitted.
But over time, the arts began to speak to him in a different way — not through passive appreciation, but through hands-on experience. The moment that changed everything came during a kindergarten play at the Horace Mann School Nursery Division.
Cast as a strongman in a circus-themed show, Mark stood onstage in a blue leotard, straining to lift a paper mache dumbbell. “It took me a good half hour to raise it from the floor up to its full height,” he said.
As his face turned red with mock effort, the crowd — made up of parents who were lawyers and doctors — erupted in laughter and applause. Mark recalled:
“That may have been the beginning of the addiction.”
His career flourished from there, and behind the scenes, he had found equal success in his personal life. He married Dana Klein, a television writer and producer with a formidable résumé that included shows like “Friends,” “Becker,” and “Jessie.”
Over the years, the two collaborated professionally as co-creators and executive producers of a comedy series, bringing their family dynamic into the material they produced. “She’s fantastic,” Mark said. “She knows my family. Who knows this material better than my wife?”
He also joked about the dynamic of their relationship, saying with a laugh, “Working with Dana was a natural progression. I’ve worked for her in my household for the last 15 years, so we just brought it to the workplace.”
Away from the cameras, the couple also built a life in Los Angeles and raised three children — Lila, Frisco, and Addie, each with a distinct personality.
Lila, described by her famous father as a soulful and sensitive young woman, embraced both the arts and academics. Frisco became an athlete, an illustrator, and a passionate WWE fan.
Mark once took him to a “Hell in a Cell” match, and the experience left him ecstatic. Addie, the youngest, quickly became known as the brightest spark in the room. Mark said:
“Addie is just the funniest person I know. She lights up every room she’s in, makes amazing friends, is artistic, and is fascinated by letters and words right now.”
Sadly, Addie’s early days were marked by a medical emergency that shook the entire family. A few years after her birth, Mark opened up publicly about what had happened. “A few years ago my daughter Addie was born with a rare congenital heart defect,” he said in 2015.
When Addie was just six months old, Mark and Dana noticed something wasn’t right. Initially, they chalked it up to parental anxiety. Multiple doctors dismissed their concerns or offered misdiagnoses as well.
But when they finally met David Ferry, MD, a cardiologist at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, the gravity of Addie’s condition became clear. She had been born with ALCAPA — anomalous left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery — a rare and potentially fatal congenital heart defect.
At the time, Mark was appearing in nearly every scene of “Royal Pains,” which meant he could only take the occasional day off.
“Had we waited another week or two, she would not be with us,” Mark revealed. She was immediately admitted to the Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit.
“[…] [She] spent 89 days in the intensive care unit,” Mark recalled. “She was truly close to death’s door — her heart was in failure. It was the worst time of our lives.”
The first surgery corrected the defect, but two months later, Addie required a second procedure to repair her mitral valve. It was this second operation that ultimately saved her life.
While Dana remained by their daughter’s side at the hospital, Mark was navigating the demands of a new television role. He had just begun filming “Royal Pains,” which was shot in New York, while his family stayed in Los Angeles. Mark said.
“It was by far the most difficult time in my whole life. It was exacerbated by the fact that I couldn’t be there for my wife and my daughter 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
At the time, Mark was appearing in nearly every scene of “Royal Pains,” which meant he could only take the occasional day off while Dana stayed by Addie’s side at the hospital every night.
“The crazy thing about our business is that it doesn’t take a hiatus when emergencies come into the mix,” he explained. He recalled being on set with Henry Winkler and Christine Ebersole, filming at a beautiful home in the Hamptons when he received the call about Addie’s second heart surgery.
Overwhelmed, he stepped outside, looked out at the Atlantic, and shouted an expletive before calling Dana back to process the moment. That same night, he flew to Los Angeles to be by Addie’s side. “All this is just to say that life can get complicated,” Mark reflected, “yet we were able to make it through that.”
When he couldn’t fly back to Los Angeles, Mark relied on FaceTime during the week to stay connected. “I was the absentee dad,” he admitted. “Dana was creating TV shows while raising three children.”
During filming, Mark stayed at his parents’ New York apartment — conveniently located next to the one he grew up in. “So every morning my father would come in in his tighty-whities, ‘Mark, what do you want for breakfast? Eggs? French toast?'” the actor joked in an interview.
“And at night, after a 15-hour day of shooting, my mom would be waiting by the door in her nightgown like a gunslinger. ‘Would you like to come in for a salad? Maybe a black and white cookie from Pick-a-Bagel?'” he continued. “It was practical, and because I’m so close with my family, it was fine,” the star remarked.
The family’s appreciation for medical staff turned into advocacy and fundraising for the hospital that gave Addie another chance at life.
Despite the surreal mix of sitcom-worthy moments and emotional strain, Mark and Dana held their family together. Addie’s strength became a beacon of hope. “Lucky for our family, it was discovered and treated, and she’s doing great today,” he said in 2015.
In a conversation with their famous father, Lila asked, “Do you remember when [our little sister] Addie was sick?” Frisco responded, “She wasn’t sick. She had a broken heart!” Mark chipped in, “That’s right. […] And Addie is better now, right?”
“Yes. She just has a scar,” Frisco answered. “We call it her line of courage. It was a true miracle,” the “Royal Pains” star added. The family now regularly visits the blood bank — a personal tradition born from the fact that Addie needed blood during surgery. The Hollywood star said:
“[…] Never have I appreciated doctors and nurses more. They are forever my saviors.”
The family’s appreciation for medical staff turned into advocacy and fundraising for the hospital that gave Addie another chance at life.
When Lila asked, “Is that why we raise money for the hospital?” Mark answered, “Yes. And that’s why we show up at the blood bank every year, because Addie needed blood when she was on the operating table, and it helped save her life.”
Years later, Addie blossomed into a thriving kindergartner with an infectious love of life. “She makes her mom and me laugh every single day,” Mark shared.
She also began exploring her own creative voice, following in her father’s footsteps with acting classes. Her breakout moment came when she was cast as Miss Hannigan in her acting academy’s production of “Annie.” “She’s a natural,” Mark said proudly.
Over the years, he has shared other public updates about his family. In a 2017 interview, he mentioned that Lila, like Addie, had taken a liking to performance and was aspiring to become an actress.
By 2024, Mark revealed another milestone — Lila was heading off to college, a moment of pride and reflection for the entire family.
In July 2024, the actor celebrated his 19th wedding anniversary with Dana on Instagram. “To my amazing wife @danaklein16 These have been the greatest 19 years of my life!!” he wrote.
“I’m the luckiest guy in the world to be on this incredible journey with you and our three precious kids @lilafeuerstein @friscof333 @addiefeuerstein Happy Anniversary❤️🎉❤️🎉❤️Couldn’t love you more😘😘😘,” the post continued.
Through Addie’s fight for survival, long filming days, and cross-country commutes, Mark and Dana held their family together. And today, that strength lives on in their children — especially the little girl who once had a broken heart and now steals the spotlight.
