Prolific actor John Beasley has sadly passed away aged 79.
Beasley was admired by many, having played roles in various movies and TV series - including Everwood, The Soul Man, The Mighty Ducks, and Losing Isiah.
News of Beasley's passing was confirmed by his son Tyrone to The Hollywood Reporter, who revealed that the actor passed away on Tuesday (May 30) in a hospital in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, where he had been undergoing tests on his liver.
"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," Beasley's other son, Mike, wrote on Facebook.
Beasley didn't make his acting debut until the age of 45, with one of his first acting credits being Mr. Willie on the 1990 ABC series Brewster Place starring Oprah Winfrey. Years later, he told WOWT that he didn't pursue an acting career until later in life because his family and children always came first. "I was raising my family. I have two sons that I'm very proud of and I thought that being a father and watching these kids grow up was more important," he said.
More recently, Beasley had appeared in the stage production of The Notebook in Chicago, which was set to head to Broadway later this year. The production is based on the 2004 movie of the same name, which starred Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.
Rewatch the trailer for 1992's The Might Ducks:In an interview with the American Theater last year, Beasley said that he and his wife Judy flew to New York soon after he found out he might have a role in the production. "I said to Judy, 'I know this is Broadway, but at this point in my career I'm looking for good material.' It wasn't about the money. It wasn't even about Broadway. I was prepared to turn it down if the script was not as good as the script I was going to do in Indianapolis.
"I finally read it on the plane, and by the time we landed in New York I was sobbing," he added. "My wife handed me a tissue and I told her, 'I've gotta do this. If I get in that room, it's mine.' I told that story to the cast here and they said, 'And it is.'"
Beasley also reflected on his life as an actor, saying: "To be a working artist is the highest calling, and I appreciate wherever it takes me. If I never got to Broadway, I would still feel I've had a pretty successful career."
Beasely also started and ran the John Beasley Theater and Workshop in Omaha, which he revealed to WOWT in 2020 "changed the lives of a lot of people just through the theater."
Our thoughts are with the family, friends, and fans of John Beasley at this devastating time.