Luke Perry
Template:Short description Template:Other people Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person
Coy Luther "Luke" Perry III (October 11, 1966 – March 4, 2019) was an American actor. He became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the Fox television series Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. Perry also starred as Fred Andrews on the CW series Riverdale. He had guest roles on shows such as Criminal Minds, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Simpsons, and Will & Grace, as well as a recurring role voicing Rick Jones in The Incredible Hulk (1996–1997) from Marvel Comics, and also appeared in various films, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), 8 Seconds (1994), The Fifth Element (1997), The Final Storm, The Beat Beneath My Feet (2015), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), which was his final feature performance and earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination. He died of a stroke on March 4, 2019, at the age of 52.
Early life
Coy Luther Perry III was born in Mansfield, Ohio, on October 11, 1966,<ref name="James Brady">Template:Cite magazine</ref> the second of three children to Ann Perry, a homemaker, and Coy Luther Perry Jr., a steelworker.<ref name="James Brady"/> He had an older brother, Thomas Perry, and a younger sister, Amy Coder (née Perry).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His parents divorced in 1972.<ref name=nytobit>Template:Cite news</ref> His father died of a heart attack in 1980.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> Perry was raised in Fredericktown, Ohio, and played Freddie Bird, the school mascot for Fredericktown High School.<ref name="Luke Perry Is Dead at 52">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Career
Beginnings
In 1984, Perry moved to Los Angeles shortly after high school to pursue acting.<ref name=":0" /> He worked odd jobs, including for an asphalt paving company and in a doorknob factory.<ref name="Dispatch">Template:Cite news</ref> He appeared in the 1985 music video of "Be Chrool to Your Scuel" for the band Twisted Sister. Perry had auditioned for 256 acting jobs before receiving his first acceptance in 1988.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After moving to New York, Perry's earliest roles were on daytime soap operas: one episode of Loving (1987–1988) and ten episodes of Another World (1988–1989).<ref name="Remembering Luke Perry: Photos from the Actor's Career Before '90210'">Template:Cite web</ref>
Rise to fame: Beverly Hills, 90210 era
In 1990, Perry got the role of the brooding millionaire's son Dylan McKay on Fox's teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210.<ref name=":0" /> He originally auditioned for the role of Steve Sanders but lost to Ian Ziering.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With this role, Perry became a popular teen idol; a riot broke out when 10,000 teen girls attended an August 1991 autograph session at The Fashion Mall at Plantation, causing him to leave after 90 seconds.<ref name="ss19910811">Template:Cite news Alt URL</ref> While starring in 90210, Perry had a supporting role in the original film version of Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also starred in Terminal Bliss in 1992,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and as Lane Frost in 8 Seconds in 1994.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> At 1992 MTV Video Music Awards' Perry presented the award for best Metal Music Video along with Howard Stern dressed as Fartman, generating much press.
In an attempt to find more mature roles, he decided to leave Beverly Hills, 90210 in 1995. That year, he took a part in the Italian film Vacanze di Natale '95, playing himself. Although he announced that 90210 was behind him, his absence lasted for only three years, and he returned to the show in 1998. During this time, Perry starred in the independent film Normal Life opposite Ashley Judd<ref name="Normal Life (1996)">Template:Cite web</ref> and starred in the science fiction television film Invasion (1997)<ref name="Invasion (1997)">Template:Cite web</ref> and Riot (1997), a drama about the 1992 Los Angeles riots.<ref name="Riot in the Streets (1997)">Template:Cite web</ref> He had a small role in Luc Besson's science fiction adventure film The Fifth Element (1997). In 1998, he returned to 90210, where he remained as a permanent special guest star through the show's final season in 2000.<ref name="Luke Perry Is Dead at 52" /> In 1999, he starred in the film Storm.Template:Citation needed
He said of his role on Beverly Hills, 90210 as Dylan McKay, "I'm going to be linked with him until I die, but that's actually just fine. I created Dylan McKay. He's mine,"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but did not reprise his role in the spin-off. He stated: "When you're in the professional acting business, you have to look into all these offers, and I don't mean anything bad about it but creatively it's something I have done before and I don't know how it will benefit me if I do it again."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Perry said that the fact that the show's longtime producer Aaron Spelling was not involved in the revival was critical: "The difference between CW bringing something back and Aaron Spelling doing something is significant. And I cannot do it without Aaron."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth, and Tori Spelling reprised their roles in the 2008 revival of the series.Template:Citation needed
Later work
From 2001 to 2002, Perry starred in the HBO prison drama Oz, as Reverend Jeremiah Cloutier.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> From 2002 to 2004, he starred in the post-apocalyptic television series Jeremiah.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Perry went on to star in a 2002 television film called The Triangle.<ref name="The Triangle">Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2006, Perry co-starred in the ensemble drama series Windfall, about a group of friends who win the lottery. The series ran for 13 episodes during the summer of 2006 on NBC.<ref name="Remembering Luke Perry: Photos from the Actor's Career Before '90210'" /> In 2007, he landed the role of Tommy "Santa" Santorelli on the film The Sandlot: Heading Home, and he appeared in the 2008 western A Gunfighter's Pledge.<ref name="The Pledge (2008)">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="The Sandlot: Heading Home">Template:Cite web</ref> Perry also appeared in the 2007 HBO series John from Cincinnati.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> He also starred in the Swedish film Äntligen Midsommar (Finally Midsummer), which was released in the summer of 2009.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Perry did considerable voice-over work for various animated series, usually playing himself. He played himself (as Krusty the Clown's half brother) in "Krusty Gets Kancelled", an episode of The Simpsons (1993).<ref name="A Star is Burns / 4 Jan 2010 2:43 PM PST Top 25 Simpsons Guest Appearances">Template:Cite web</ref> He voiced himself in an episode of Johnny Bravo, giving Johnny dating advice after Johnny saved him from a stampede of fan girls. Perry parodied himself in "The Story on Page One", an episode of Family Guy, in which he sues Peter Griffin for calling him gay in a newspaper article.<ref name="The Story on Page One">Template:Cite web</ref> His other voice work includes The Incredible Hulk as Rick Jones, Biker Mice from Mars (which also starred fellow 90210 co-star Ian Ziering), Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, and The Night of the Headless Horseman.<ref name="btva">Template:Cite web A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.</ref><ref name="Remembering Luke Perry: Photos from the Actor's Career Before '90210'" />
Perry guest-starred as gay characters in the sitcoms Spin City (1997) and Will & Grace (2005); in the former, he appeared as Carter Heywood's ex-boyfriend who subsequently fell in love with a woman, and in the latter he played a birdwatcher who catches the eye of Jack McFarland.<ref name="'Riverdale' star Luke Perry has died at the age of 52">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2005, Perry was reunited with former 90210 co-star Jennie Garth when he guest-starred on What I Like About You in a loose parody of their 90210 characters' relationship.<ref name="What I Like About You">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2008, Perry guest-starred as rapist Noah Sibert in the season premiere of the television series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also guest-starred as cult leader Benjamin Cyrus in an episode of Criminal Minds. In late 2009, Perry starred in The Killers' music video for their fourth annual Christmas single, "¡Happy Birthday Guadalupe!".<ref name="Happy Birthday Guadalupe">Template:Cite web</ref>
The same year, Perry participated in Thomas Nelson's audio Bible production known as The Word of Promise. In this dramatized audio, Perry played both Saint Stephen and Judas Iscariot. The project also featured a large ensemble of other well-known Hollywood actors, including Jim Caviezel, Louis Gossett Jr., John Rhys-Davies, Jon Voight, Gary Sinise, Jason Alexander, Christopher McDonald, Marisa Tomei, Stacy Keach, and John Schneider.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Perry appeared on Broadway in 2001 in a revival of The Rocky Horror Show, playing Brad Majors.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2004, he appeared in the London production of When Harry Met Sally ... as Harry, alongside Alyson Hannigan as Sally.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> He played a con man/psychic in a second-season episode of Leverage in 2010,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and then appeared as the American version of Inspector Spacetime in an episode of Community in 2013, titled "Conventions of Space and Time".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later that year he also played Superman in the film Superman: Quest for Steve.
From 2017 until his death in 2019, Perry starred as Frederick "Fred" Andrews, Archie's father and owner of Andrews Construction, on The CW series Riverdale.<ref name="Luke Perry Is Dead at 52" /> All episodes aired after his death were dedicated to him.<ref>Template:Cite tweet</ref> His final film role was as actor Wayne Maunder in the 2019 Quentin Tarantino film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, about 1960s Hollywood around the time of the Tate–LaBianca murders.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Personal life
Perry married Rachel Minnie Sharp on November 20, 1993, in Beverly Hills.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> They had two children, son Jack Perry (born June 16, 1997) and daughter Sophie Perry (born June 7, 2000), before separating in 2003.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jack is a professional wrestler in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) who was formerly known as Jungle Boy.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Perry became an advocate for colorectal cancer testing after undergoing a colonoscopy in 2015 that revealed pre-cancerous growths.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As a result of the scare, he created a will naming his children as the sole beneficiaries.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite magazine</ref> At the time of his death, Perry was engaged<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to Wendy Madison Bauer.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Illness and death
On February 27, 2019, Perry suffered a massive ischemic stroke at his home in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, and was taken to Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank. After a second stroke, his family decided to remove him from life support,<ref name=":1" /> and he died on March 4 at age 52.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He is buried at the Perry Family Farm in Vanleer, Tennessee, where he had owned a home since 1995. Perry was buried in an eco-friendly mushroom burial suit, which the manufacturer states can remove polluting toxins from the body while naturally breaking it down.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In the aftermath of his death, the Reelz channel announced a documentary titled Luke Perry: In His Own Words.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As a result of his death, his Riverdale character Fred Andrews also died, and the fourth season premiere was a tribute episode dedicated to him and his character, featuring his Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star Shannen Doherty.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Voyagers! | Union Prisoner<ref name="Luke Perry, Star of 90210 and Riverdale, Dies at 52">Template:Cite web</ref> | Episode: "The Day the Rebs Took Lincoln" |
| 1988 | Loving | Ned Bates<ref name="Remembering Luke Perry: Photos from the Actor's Career Before '90210'"/> | Unknown episode |
| 1988–1989 | Another World | Kenny<ref name="TV Guide">Template:Cite web</ref> | 10 episodes |
| 1990–1995; 1998–2000 |
Beverly Hills, 90210 | Dylan McKay<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 199 episodes |
| 1993 | Saturday Night Live | Himself (host) | Episode: "Luke Perry/Mick Jagger" |
| The Simpsons | Himself<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Voice, episode: "Krusty Gets Kancelled" | |
| 1994–1995 & 2007 | Biker Mice from Mars | Napoleon Brie<ref name="Luke Perry, Star of '90210' and 'Riverdale,' Has Died at 52">Template:Cite web</ref> | Voice, 7 episodes |
| 1996 | Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm | Sub-Zero<ref name="TV Guide"/><ref name="btva" /> | Voice, 13 episodes |
| 1996–1997 | The Incredible Hulk | Rick Jones<ref name="TV Guide"/><ref name="btva" /> | Voice, 4 episodes |
| 1997 | Spin City<ref name="auto"/> | Spence<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "Kiss Me, Stupid" |
| Riot | Boomer<ref name="TCM"/> | Television film | |
| Invasion | Beau Stark<ref name="TV Guide"/> | ||
| 1998–1999 | Pepper Ann | Stuart Walldinger<ref name="btva" /> | Voice, 4 episodes: "Presenting Stewart Walldinger", "P.A.'s Life in a Nutshell", "Like Riding a Bike" & "Pepper Ann's Day Off-Kilter" |
| 1999 | The Night of the Headless Horseman | Brom Bones<ref name="TCM"/><ref name="btva" /> | Television film |
| 2000 | Johnny Bravo | Himself<ref name="btva" /> | Voice, episode: "Luke Perry's Guide to Love" |
| Family Guy | Himself<ref name="The Story on Page One"/> | Voice, episode: "The Story on Page One" | |
| 2001 | Night Visions | Dr. Michael Sears<ref name="Luke Perry - TV Guide">Template:Cite web</ref> | Episode: "Now He's Coming Up the Stairs" |
| The Triangle | Stu Sheridan<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Television film | |
| 2001–2002 | Oz | Rev. Jeremiah Cloutier<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 10 episodes |
| 2002 | Jackson County War | Harry Hammett<ref name="Johnson County War">Template:Cite web</ref> | Television film |
| 2002–2004 | Jeremiah | Jeremiah<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 35 episodes |
| 2003 | Clone High | Ponce de León<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Voice, episode: "Litter Kills - Literally" |
| 2005 | Will & Grace<ref name="auto"/> | Aaron | Episode: "The Birds and the Bees" |
| What I Like About You | Todd<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 3 episodes | |
| Descent | Dr. Jake Rollins<ref name="Descent (2005)">Template:Cite web</ref> | Television | |
| Supernova | Dr. Chris Richardson<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2006 | Windfall | Peter Schaefer<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 13 episodes |
| 2007 | John from Cincinnati | Linc Stark<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 10 episodes |
| 2008 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Noah Sibert<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "Trials" |
| A Gunfighter's Pledge | Matt Austin<ref name="The Pledge (2008)"/> | Television film | |
| A Very Merry Daughter of the Bride | Charlie<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2008; 2018 |
Criminal Minds | Benjamin Cyrus<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | The Storm | Stillman<ref name="TV Guide"/> | |
| Angel and the Badman | Laredo Stevens<ref name="TCM"/> | Television film | |
| 2010 | Leverage | Dalton Rand<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "The Future Job" |
| Generator Rex | Jacob<ref name="btva" /> | Voice, episode: "The Architect" | |
| FCU: Fact Checkers Unit | Luke<ref name="Luke Perry on 'FCU: Fact Checkers Unit'">Template:Cite web</ref> | 8 episodes | |
| 2011 | Pound Puppies | Fang<ref name="Luke Perry Dead: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="btva" /> | Voice, episode: "Rebel Without a Collar" |
| Goodnight for Justice | John Goodnight<ref name="TCM"/> | Television film | |
| 2012 | Goodnight for Justice: The Measure of a Man | John Goodnight<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| Goodnight for Justice: Queen of Hearts | John Goodnight<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| Raising Hope | Ghost of Arbor Day<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "Arbor Daze" | |
| 2012–2013 | Body of Proof | CDC Officer Dr. Charlie Stafford<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 5 episodes |
| 2013 | Community | American Inspector Spacetime<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "Conventions of Space and Time" |
| 2014 | Major Crimes | Jon Worth<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "Cutting Loose" |
| Hot in Cleveland | Trevor<ref name="TV Guide"/> | Episode: "The Bachelors" | |
| 2015 | Welcome Home | Stewart Paylor<ref name="TCM"/> | Television film |
| Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise | Richard Steele<ref name="Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise (2015)">Template:Cite web</ref> | ||
| Ties That Bind | Tim Olson<ref name="Ties That Bind (2015)">Template:Cite web</ref> | ||
| 2016 | Love in Paradise | Avery Ford<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| The Edge and Christian Show That Totally Reeks of Awesomeness | Himself<ref name="WWE Fans Leave Before Show Ends, 90210 Star On Edge And Christian's Show, Stephanie McMahon Workout">Template:Cite web</ref> | Episode: "The 90s" | |
| 2017–2019; 2021 | Riverdale | Fred Andrews<ref name="TV Guide"/> | 46 episodes (Season 5 Ep 3: Archival footage) |
| 2019 | BH90210 | Dylan McKay<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | (fragment in the pilot series) |
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Scorchers<ref name=Dispatch/> | Ray Ray | |
| 1992 | Terminal Bliss<ref name="Dispatch"/> | John Hunter | |
| Buffy the Vampire Slayer<ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref> | Oliver Pike | ||
| 1994 | 8 Seconds<ref name="auto"/> | Lane Frost | |
| 1995 | Vacanze di Natale '95 (Christmas Holidays '95) | Himself<ref name="TCM">Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 1996 | Normal Life | Chris Anderson<ref name="TV Guide"/> | |
| American Strays | Johnny<ref name="TV Guide"/> | ||
| 1997 | The Fifth Element<ref name="auto"/> | Billy Masterson | |
| Last Breath | Martin Devoe<ref name="TV Guide"/> | ||
| 1998 | Indiscreet | Michael Nash<ref name="TV Guide"/> | |
| 1999 | The Heist | Jack<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| The Florentine | Frankie<ref name="TV Guide"/> | ||
| Storm | Dr. Ron Young<ref name="TCM"/> | Direct to video | |
| 2000 | Attention Shoppers | Mark Pinnalore<ref name="TV Guide"/><ref name="TCM"/> | |
| 2001 | The Enemy | Dr. Michael Ashton<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| Dirt | Attorney<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2002 | Fogbound | Bob<ref name="Fogbound (2003)">Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 2003 | Down the Barrel | David<ref name="Down the Barrel">Template:Cite web</ref> | Direct to video |
| 2005 | Dishdogz | Tony<ref name="Dishdogz">Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 2007 | The Sandlot: Heading Home | Tommy "Santa" Santorelli<ref name="TCM"/> | Direct to video |
| Alice Upside Down | Ben McKinley<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2009 | Äntligen midsommar! | Sam<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| Upstairs | Ward Weaver<ref name="Upstairs 2009">Template:Cite web</ref> | ||
| Silent Venom | Lt. Cmdr. James O'Neill<ref name="TCM"/> | Direct to video | |
| Sam Steele and the Junior Detective Agency | The Cat<ref name="Sam Steele and the Junior Detective Agency">Template:Cite web</ref> | ||
| 2010 | Redemption Road | Boyd<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| The Final Storm | Silas Hendershot<ref name="TCM"/> | Direct to video | |
| Hanna's Gold | Cole<ref name="Hanna's Gold">Template:Cite web</ref> | ||
| Good Intentions | Chester Milford<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2013 | Red Wing | Carl Blanton<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| Scoot and Kassie's Christmas Adventure | Paul Stevenson<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2015 | The Beat Beneath My Feet | Max Stone<ref name="TCM"/> | |
| A Fine Step | Cal Masterson | ||
| 2015 | Black Beauty | James | |
| Dudes & Dragons | Lorash<ref name="TCM"/> | ||
| 2018 | The Griddle House | Older Jack | |
| 2019 | Once Upon a Time in Hollywood | Wayne Maunder<ref name="TCM"/> | Final film role; posthumous release; dedicated in memory |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Artist(s) | Role | Template:Abbr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | "Be Chrool to Your Scuel" | Twisted Sister | Unknown | <ref>[1]: Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 2009 | "¡Happy Birthday Guadalupe!" | The Killers featuring Wild Light and Mariachi El Bronx | The Cowboy | <ref>Archived at GhostarchiveTemplate:Cbignore and the Wayback MachineTemplate:Cbignore: Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref> |
Awards and nominations
References
External links
- 1966 births
- 2019 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- American male film actors
- American male soap opera actors
- American male television actors
- American male voice actors
- Male actors from Ohio
- Male actors from Tennessee
- Neurological disease deaths in California
- People from Dickson County, Tennessee
- People from Fredericktown, Ohio
- People from Mansfield, Ohio