American actor Luke Perry has died aged 52 after suffering a stroke, his publicist said in a statement.
ADVERTISEMENTAmerican actor Luke Perry has died aged 52 after suffering a stroke, his publicist said in a statement.
Perry was famous for his role as Dylan in US series "Beverly Hills 90210" and more recently had been starring as Fred Andrews on "Riverdale".
He was taken to hospital in Los Angeles on Wednesday and had been under observation.
Perry was taken ill the same day that Fox television announced it was reviving the “Beverly Hills 90210” series with many of the original cast, including Jason Priestley, Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling. Perry was not among those announced as returning for the limited run of six new episodes this summer.
His publicist Arnold Robinson said in a statement that his children, Jack and Sophie, fiancée Wendy Madison Bauer, ex-wife Minnie Sharp, mother Ann Bennett, step-father Steve Bennett, and his siblings, Tom Perry and Amy Coder, were with him when he passed away.
"The family appreciates the outpouring of support and prayers that have been extended to Luke from around the world, and respectfully request privacy in this time of great mourning," Robinson said.
Tributes from his friends and colleagues have also been posted on social media.
“Riverdale” producers called Perry an “incredibly caring, consummate professional.” Molly Ringwald, one of his co-stars on the show, said: “My heart is broken.”
Perry grew up in Fredericktown in Ohio. After he graduated from high school, he went to Los Angeles to pursue acting while working in construction and in a factory.
In the late 1980s, he took on soap opera roles and television commercials in New York before landing the “Beverly Hills 90210” part which launched his career.