‘Air Bud’ creator faces health decline, homelessness: ‘We’re almost having to start over’

Watch Dan Plante’s report for KUSI on Kevin DiCicco and his story in the player above.

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Kevin DiCicco never thought he would end up effectively homeless. The San Diego native had been the driving force behind the wildly popular Walt Disney Studios’ film, “Air Bud” and its more than a dozen spin-offs.

DiCicco helped shape the childhoods of a whole generation, inspired by videos of his dog playing basketball that went “viral” before the concept of “viral videos” existed — it was on CNN, ESPN, David Letterman’s “Stupid Pet Tricks,” “America’s Funniest Home Video.”

“I know especially down in [Pacific Beach], you know you see kids that were glued to the set, watched that film a hundred times, are now twenty-somethings,” DiCicco said of the film franchise. “It was always nice to run into them and see how much they enjoy it.”

And yet, the “Air Bud” creator’s life has become one of adversity, slipping into homelessness while battling multiple conditions that have severely deteriorated his health and sunk him deep into medical debt.

How he got to this point is a story not uncommon amongst those currently experiencing homelessness: It started with financial struggles.

Despite the “Air Bud” franchise’s popularity, DiCicco said he never really saw much of the financial benefit, as most of the films were straight to home video and did not achieve a high level of financial profitability.

“They are so cleverly crafted to make sure that these films don’t really ever receive the big money,” DiCicco said. “That’s why we now find ourselves in a position of instead of enjoying those twilight years and sliding into retirement, we’re almost having to start over.”

The difficulty of his financial situation pushed DiCicco into severe clinical depression. Medical marijuana was prescribed to him as an antidepressant, and while it was an effective treatment, he says it led to him developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, an irreversible condition that makes it hard to breathe.

It was manageable until 2022, when he contracted pneumonia. Multiple hospitalizations later, including a recent one from a COVID-19 infection, DiCicco is dependent full-time on an oxygen tank and unable to cover the costs of his health care needs.

“It threw me into the hospital for about four weeks, just recently getting released,” DiCicco said of his recent COVID infection. He is now living in a northern San Diego County recuperative care center for those who cannot return to their own homes after being discharged from a hospital.

DiCicco’s friends have now turned to the goodwill of his fans, setting up a GoFundMe fundraiser for him to raise money to cover the costs of getting him into an assisted living facility where he can receive the ongoing, long-term care he needs.

As of Wednesday afternoon, a total of $1,160 has been raised towards his $200,000 goal.

“It’s humbling,” he said. “At this point now, I need to get into some kind of assisted living to get healthy and get back into the saddle.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.