Biography
Luke Perry was born Coy Luther Perry III on October 11, 1966 in Mansfield, OH. After graduating from high school in 1984, Perry sought work as an actor, making his debut in the music video for Twisted Sister's "Be Chrool to Your School" from the album Come Out and Play (1985) and then going on to star in an arc on the soap opera "Another World" (NBC 1964-1999). Shortly afterward, Perry landed a starring role in the teen drama series "Beverly Hills, 90210" (Fox 1999-2000), on which he played the moody Dylan McKay, the role for which he would always be best known. During his time on the series, Perry appeared in the movies "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1992), "Normal Life" (1996), and "The Fifth Element" (1997), as well as in animated series like "The Incredible Hulk" (UPN 1996-97) and "The Legend of Calamity Jane" (The WB 1997-87). Following the conclusion of "Beverly Hills, 90210," Perry landed a role on the acclaimed drama series "Oz" (HBO 1997-2003), on which he played a prison reverend, and made his Broadway debut with a role as Brad Majors in a 2001 production of "The Rocky Horror Show." Following mostly guest roles and voice work throughout the 2000s, Perry assumed the role of Fred Andrews, father of Archie Andrews, in the teen drama series "Riverdale" (The CW 2016-). The final film that Perry worked on was Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" (2019). On Mar. 4, 2019, Perry died at age 52 from complications following a stroke.
