Veteran actor John Beasley passed away suddenly Tuesday after his health “took an unexpected turn for the worse,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 79.
The “Everwood” star died after being hospitalized in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, after undergoing testing on his liver.
Beasley’s son Mike was the first to announce the news, calling his late father his “hero” in a tribute posted to social media.
“Man…you know this is a part of life…but that doesn’t make it any easier,” he wrote on Facebook.
“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.”
Mike ended his statement by thanking the “Soul Man” star “for everything” and hoping he made him “proud.”
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Beasley’s first acting credit stems back nearly three decades to 1989, but his career didn’t take off until he nabbed a role in “Brewster Place,” a show led by Oprah Winfrey.
He went on to shine in “Rudy” as the role of the assistant coach, but also appeared in “The Mighty Ducks” and “The General’s Daughter.” One of his biggest star turns, however, was on the 2002-2006 TV series “Everwood” with Chris Pratt, in which he played Irv Harper.
Upon the series’ conclusion, Beasley joined Cedric the Entertainer in the 2012 series “The Soul Man.”
Beasley’s final role was on the stage in Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s musical adaptation of “The Notebook” in October. He was set to go to New York in August to workshop the musical for Broadway while producers landed on a theater, his son told THR.
“To be a working artist is the highest calling, and I appreciate wherever it takes me,” he told American Theatre. “If I never got to Broadway, I would still feel I’ve had a pretty successful career.”
He established the John Beasley Theater and Workshop in Omaha and ran it for 13 years.
“We changed the lives of a lot of people just through the theater,” he said in 2020.
Beasley is survived by his wife 58 years, Judy; his sons Mike and Tyrone; daughter-in-law Katie; and grandchildren Evan, Miles, Olivia, Mika, Darius and NBA player Malik Beasley.
