In March 1982, McKay sent him to the San Diego Chargers, but suffering from weight loss, aching muscles, and severe skin problems, he retired before the 1983 season.[3]
Death[edit]
Bell died at age 29 of heart failure caused by the disease of dermatomyositis.[1][2][3][4] Mario Van Peebles portrayed the player in the 1991 made-for-television movie, A Triumph of the Heart: The Ricky Bell Story, which was based on the life of Ricky Bell. Bell’s remains were interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.
He was survived by his wife, Natalia; his 10-year-old son, Ricky, Jr., a 3-year-old daughter, Noell, and his mother, Ruth.
That’s the right Ricky Bell. That dermatomyositis is a brutal disease.