US actor and playwright Sam Shepard dies age 73

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US actor and playwright Sam Shepard has died at the age of 73.

Shepard wrote over 40 plays and starred in films like Black Hawk Down as well as co-writing Paris, Texas.

He won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1979 for the Buried Child and was also nominated for the best supporting actor Oscar for 1983’s The Right Stuff.

He died at home in Kentucky on Thursday from complications related to motor neuron disease (ALS), a family spokesperson said.