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'Rest in peace, Dylan': Fans react to '90210' star Luke Perry's death at age 52

Jonathan Rumley


A star on one of the most popular TV shows of the 1990s has died.

American actor Luke Perry died Monday in Burbank, Calif., after suffering a massive stroke last Wednesday. The 52-year-old heartthrob was best known for his role as Dylan McKay on Beverly Hills, 90210. He also played Fred Andrews on the hit TV show Riverdale.

A rep for the actor told Yahoo that Perry was “surrounded by his children Jack and Sophie, fiancé Wendy Madison Bauer, ex-wife Minnie Sharp, mother Ann Bennett, step-father Steve Bennett, brother Tom Perry, sister Amy Coder, and other close family and friends.” The family is asking for privacy at this time.

Perry’s sudden death was met with shock by many online, who responded to the news with heartfelt words of condolences. One of the most-liked tributes came from fellow actor Colin Hanks, who shared a story of the two on a plane trip to Mexico. According to Hanks, Perry came to the rescue with a balloon when two young brothers wouldn’t stop disrupting other passengers.

“Guy seemed like a true gent,” Hanks wrote. “Gone way too soon.”

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I only met him once but the story is too good not tell given todays sad events. My wife and I are on a plane back from Mexico. Couple of rows ahead of us, these two brothers, young kids, are beating the hell out of eachother. Their poor parents are powerless to stop the crying, yelling and screaming. If you’re a parent you understand. Sometimes there’s nothing you can do. It was like this for close to two hours. Then about 10 minutes before landing it starts to get real bad. Out of no where, a man comes from first class. Hat, beard, sunglasses, blowing up a balloon. He ties it off, hands it off like he’s holding out a sword to a king. Kneeling, Head down, arms up. Kids calm down in milliseconds. Plane damn near bursts into applause. 15 minutes longer and it probably would have started WWIII, but we landed before that could happen. We get off the plane, are waiting on line in customs. Finally get a good look at the guy and I say to my wife “Holy shit. I think that balloon man/hero” is Luke Perry”. As luck would have it we end up standing next to each other. Out of the blue he turns to me and says some kind words about Fargo, which kinda blew my mind. I start singing his praises about how long I’ve admired him and also about the move with the balloon. “That’s a pro move! You can’t teach that!” I say. He tells me he always flies with a couple of balloons for that very reason, to give to screaming kids. Don’t know if that’s true, but have no reason to believe it wasn’t. Guy seemed like a true gent. Gone way too damn soon. Also, I’ll be damned if I don’t start traveling with some spare balloons 🎈🎈🎈 #promove #rip #lukeperry #truegent

A post shared by Colin Hanks (@colinhanks) on Mar 4, 2019 at 6:34pm PST

Others agreed with Hanks and expressed their sorrow over the loss of the Ohio native on social media.

Several famous stars in the entertainment world also shared their thoughts on Perry, who started his television career at the age of 16.

Perry played memorable roles on the big and small screens since making his TV debut in 1982, including appearances on The Incredible Hulk, Spin City, Pepper Ann, Oz, Jeremiah, Will & Grace, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Criminal Minds, Pound Puppies, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, 8 Seconds, The Fifth Element and many others.


Perry was nominated for two TV Land Awards, a Kids’ Choice Award and People’s Choice Award over a period of 16 years, according to the online database IMDB.

Luke Perry, seen here in Beverly Hills, Calif., in August 2018, suffered a stroke last week and later died at the age of 52. He is best known for his role as Dylan McKay on the 1990s TV hit series “Beverly Hills, 90210.” Photo from The Associated Press.
Luke Perry, seen here in Beverly Hills, Calif., in August 2018, suffered a stroke last week and later died at the age of 52. He is best known for his role as Dylan McKay on the 1990s TV hit series “Beverly Hills, 90210.” Photo from The Associated Press.