John Beasley Dead At 79

Star of 'Everwood' and 'Walking Tall,' John Beasley has died at the age of 79. The news was broken by his son. No cause of death has been revealed.

“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.”

Although he has been a familiar face for the last three decades, he didn't start acting until he was in his 40s.

“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 has also appeared in 'The Mighty Ducks,' 'Little Big League,' and 'Rudy.'

He noted his big break was in 'The Apostle' which also starred Robert Duvall.

He started the John Beasley Theater & Workshop in Nebraska in the early 2000s, and had a role in 'The Soul Man.'

He has also appeared in 'The Purge: Anarchy' and was on the first episode of 'The Mandalorian.'

He had performed in regional theatre for decades, starring in 'The Notebook' last year in Chicago, before being sidelined after getting a severe case of Covid-19.

In 2020, he was honoured as a Legends recipient at the Empowerment Network's African-American Leadership Conference.

“I don’t consider myself a legend. I’m honoured that there are those that think of me in that way.”

He is survived by his wife, and two sons, Mike and Tyrone.

His grandson Malik has spent seven seasons in the NBA.