Rosie O'Donnell Mourns Father's Death; Arrest Made in Connection to Daughter's Disappearance

Our hearts go out to longtime theater lover and Broadway vet Rosie O'Donnell who is mourning the loss of her father, Edward Joseph O'Donnell, who passed away following a battle with cancer. O'Donnell's publicist confirmed to E! News that the 81-year-old died over the weekend.

O'Donnell turned to Twitter on Sunday to express her grief, sharing the music video for Florence + The Machine's 'St. Jude', along with the lyrics: "And I'm learning, so I'm leaving/And even though I'm grieving. I'm trying to find the meaning/Let loss reveal it."

Throughout her career, O'Donnell has been open about her estranged relationship with her father, ever since the death of her mother in March of 1973.

The news comes after a very difficult week for the comedian in which she reported that her 17-year-old daughter Chelsea had left home with her 6-month-old therapy dog, Bear. The teen had stopped taking her medication for an undisclosed mental illness and according to O'Donnell's statement, "is in need of medical attention." Last Tuesday evening, the former 'View' host shared the news that Chelsea had been found, and was with police, tweeting: "Thank u all for the help and light."

Today, CNN reports that the man who was with O'Donnell's missing daughter, 25-year-old Steven Sheerer, a resident of Barnegat, New Jersey, was arrested on Friday on charges of distribution of obscenity to a minor and endangering the welfare of a child. He is currently being held in the Ocean County Jail, with bail set at $40,000. A judge ordered that he have no contact with the girl or her family, according to an official statement. Each third-degree count against Sheerer carries a possible penalty of five years in prison.

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About Rosie O'Donnell:

O'Donnell has hosted the Tony Awards three times and won the Emmy for Outstanding Variety, Music Or Comedy Special for the 52nd annual Tony Awards . Her theater credits include: 'Rizzo' in Tommy Tune's 1994 revival of Grease; Seussical and Fiddler on the Roof; Love, Loss and What I Wore; and the Encores! production of No, No, Nanette. In 2004, Rosie combined her love of Broadway with 80s pop musical sensation Boy George and produced the musical Taboo.

Rosie made her dramatic television debut in CBS's Hallmark Hall of Fame production, Riding the Bus with My Sister, and has made guest appearances on Will and Grace, All My Children, Suddenly Susan, Spin City, Sesame Street, The Nanny, The Larry Sanders Show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Nip/Tuck, Queer as Folk, Happily Divorced, Bomb Girls, and Showtime's Web Therapy. O'Donnell has also executive produced and hosted Stand Up Spotlight on VH1, and hosted Nickelodeon's Kids Choice Awards from 1997-2003. Rosie executive co-produced, co-wrote, and starred in the 2009 Lifetime Original Film, America. Rosie has also been involved in several HBO documentaries. She was the co-executive producer of Rosie's Family Cruise, A Family Is a Family Is a Family: A Rosie O'Donnell Celebration, and "Don't Divorce Me." On the big screen, O'Donnell has starred in A League of Their Own, Sleepless in Seattle, Another Stakeout, The Flintstones, Exit To Eden, Now and Then, Beautiful Girls, Harriet the Spy, Wide Awake, and was The Voice of "Turk" in Walt Disney's Tarzan.

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