‘Beverly Hills 90210’ Heartthrob Luke Perry Passes Away at 52

‘Beverly Hills 90210’ teen heartthrob Luke Perry has passed away at the age of 52 after suffering a massive stroke. Paramedics responded to a call of someone suffering from a stroke that had come into the fire department. The call came on February 27 at 9:40 am from Perry’s home in Sherman Oaks, California.  At the time he was admitted to the hospital, his rep did not confirm reports of a stroke.

Luke Perry quickly became every teen’s idol after playing Dylan McKay in the TV series 90210 from 1990 to 1995. He again played the role from 1998 to 2000. Surprisingly, he passed away the same day when the new project of ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ was announced. The actor, however, was not part of the new series where former co-stars like Ian Ziering, Jason Priestley, Brian Austin Green, Tori Spelling, Jennie Garth and Gabrielle Carteris would take up new versions of their old roles.

At the time of his death, Perry was surrounded by his loved ones, children Jack and Sophie, fiancé Wendy Madison Bauer, ex-wife Minnie Sharp, mother Ann Bennett, brother Tom Perry, sister Amy Coder and other close friends and relatives.

Beverley Hills 90210

Earlier on Sunday, Luke Perry’s co-star Shannen Doherty who played his love interest Brenda Walsh in the teen drama had been in contact with the actor. When asked about his health condition she stammered and told Entertainment Tonight, “He's gonna — everybody just keep positive, wonderful thoughts, and that's all I'm gonna say.” She said that she cannot talk about him further as she will “literally start crying.” Shannen Doherty who was paired opposite Luke Perry’s character- Dylan in the series were one of the super couples of the show.

Impact of 90210 on Luke Perry’s life

In an interview in 1993, Luke Perry discussed the impact of the popular series in his life. He revealed that life has never been the same after he began acting in Beverley Hills 90210. The series gave him an opportunity to explore his talent. Through this teen drama, he also got the opportunity to work with people he liked and he enjoyed it. After a certain period, though he didn’t like discussing ‘90210’ as he felt that it was not relevant to his current work anymore, he told Fox news. Even after ‘90210’ ended, Luke Perry got steady work. His most recent work was CW’s high school series called ‘Riverdale’, an adaption of Archie comics where he acts as Archie Andrews’ father- Fred Andrews.

The TV icon was known to be humble, kind hearted and genuine to all his colleagues, friends, family and fans. Since Perry’s acting career spanned over several years, his fans both young and old remembered him and have shared memories of him on social media. Especially youngsters have paid their tributes to their favourite on-screen “Riverdale Dad.”

One fan by the name of Jennifer Quirino from California shared photographs of her with the teen heartthrob. It was way back in 1997. When she and her mom heard that Perry was scheduled to come to local K Mart, they rushed to the store immediately. Jennifer revealed, “He saw me crying and jumping up and down and walked over to me and hugged me and wiped my tear and said, ‘Honey don't cry, people will be afraid to come to K-mart.’”

Luke Perry has appeared in several movies like the ‘The Fifth Element’, ‘8 Seconds’, and ‘American Strays.’ He has lent his voice to cartoons like ‘The Incredible Hulk’ and the ‘Mortal Kombat.’ He has appeared in HBO’S hit called ‘Oz.’ He will soon appear in Quentin Tarantino’s mystery crime ‘Once Upon A Time in Hollywood’ set during the famed ‘Manson murders.’ The movie includes big names like Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt.

Luke Perry’s family has appreciated the outpour of tributes and prayers from all over the world. They have requested privacy at this time of “great mourning.” The entertainment industry will surely miss this great television icon who was well known for his talent in work and goodness in nature.