John Beasley has died aged 79 (Picture: Getty)
Everwood and The Soul Man actor John Beasley has died aged 79.
In a touching post on Facebook paying tribute, his son Mike W. Beasley wrote: ‘Man…you know this is a part of life…but that doesn’t make it any easier.
‘I lost my best friend today.
‘They say you shouldn’t ever meet your heroes because they don’t turn out to be who you thought they were.
‘That is so wrong. My hero was my father.
‘Thank you for everything. I hope I made you proud. Love you more.’
His son paid tribute, writing: ‘My hero was my father’ (Picture: Michael Tran/FilmMagic)
Fans flooded to the comments to pay tribute, with one writing: ‘He was like a big brother to us and we were saddened to hear this today. We are praying for the family.’
Another penned: ‘Oh Mike I’m so sorry to hear that. This is a real shocker! Your hero was a hero to many. My deepest sympathies to you and your family.’
Beasley was born in Nebraska in 1943, and turned to acting in his 40s.
Beasley played a regular role in Everwood, appearing in 89 episodes of the programme, between 2002 and 2006.
His other notable role was in The Soul Man, in which he played a retied pastor and the father of Cedric the Entertainer’s father, in episodes running across the five seasons from 2012 to 2016.
Beasley’s most recent role was in horror film Firestarter (Picture: Photo Credit: Ken Woroner/Universal Pictures)
He starred in films including Big League in 1994, Rudy in 1993, in which he played Assistant Coach Warren, and Untamed Heart also in 1993.
His films credits also include The Purge: Anarchy in 2014, The General’s Daughter in 1999 and Spell, 2020.
He also made appearances in TV shows including Brewster Place in 1990 and Laurel Avenue in 1993, as well as the likes of CSI: Miami, NCIS, and The Mandalorian.
His final acting credit was horror film Firestarter, in 2022.
Beasley’s death comes just before he was set to make his Broadway debut, ahead of turning 80.
This would have come after Beasley’s appearance in a Chicago stage adaptation of The Notebook, of which the 2004 film saw Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.
As well as his son Mike and daughter-in-law Deena, Beasley is survived by his other son Tyrone and daughter-in-law Katie, and his wife of 58 years, Judy, as well as his grandchildren.
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Everwood and The Soul Man actor John Beasley has died aged 79.
