For decades, millions of viewers felt as though they knew Tom Selleck.

They knew the mustache. They knew Thomas Magnum. Later, they knew him as Frank Reagan on Blue Bloods.

But the man behind those characters remained remarkably private.

When Selleck finally sat down to tell his own story in his memoir You Never Know, he admitted that opening that door wasn’t easy. He had spent much of his career carefully separating the public star from the private man.

And there was plenty fans never knew.

Long before Magnum, P.I. made him a household name, Selleck endured years of disappointment. His career was filled with unsuccessful pilots and small opportunities, and he didn’t become a major television star until he was in his 30s.

Even after fame arrived, something about Hollywood never completely suited him.

Selleck eventually realized that protecting his life away from the cameras mattered more than constantly chasing the next level of celebrity.

In 1988, as Magnum, P.I. came to an end, he bought a ranch in California and built a quieter existence with his wife, Jillie Mack, and their family.

The ranch became more than a home.

It became his escape.

Selleck has described his family, relationships and life on the land as the things that kept him grounded while Hollywood continued moving around him.

That’s why writing his memoir was such a departure.

Selleck acknowledged that telling his story meant revealing private things he’d rarely discussed before. But even then, he drew a line. He didn’t want to settle old scores or expose other people simply to make his book more sensational.

Perhaps that explains why fans have always sensed there was more to Tom Selleck than what appeared on television.

Behind one of Hollywood’s most recognizable faces was a man who spent decades trying to hold on to something fame can easily take away:

a life that still belonged to him.