Tim Curry, the English actor celebrated for The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Clue and It, has died at 80 in North Hollywood.
Police responded to a death investigation involving a man in his 80s in North Hollywood at 11:20 p.m. Tuesday, the Los Angeles Police Department said.
The Los Angeles Fire Department separately confirmed that emergency personnel attended a medical event at the same address at 10:42 p.m., where an adult male was pronounced dead.
An immediate cause of death was not disclosed. Curry suffered a major stroke in 2012 and experienced health problems in the years that followed.
Born Timothy James Curry on April 19, 1946, in Grappenhall, England, Curry studied theater and began his professional career in a production of Hair. His breakthrough came when writer Richard O’Brien cast him in the stage production of The Rocky Horror Show in 1973.
Curry became internationally recognized as Dr. Frank N. Furter in the 1975 film The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
The production initially struggled commercially but later became a major midnight movie phenomenon, with audiences attending screenings in costume and participating in established traditions.
He later built a diverse career beyond Frank N. Furter. Curry played Wadsworth in Clue, the Lord of Darkness in Legend and Pennywise in the 1990 miniseries It. His other work included television, music, stage productions and voice acting.
His stage career remained significant. In 2005, he played King Arthur in Monty Python’s Spamalot, a musical that received 14 Tony nominations and won best musical.
Curry’s portrayal of Frank N. Furter became so closely associated with him that he initially worried the role could be difficult to escape. He later largely avoided discussing the film for years while pursuing theater, film and television opportunities.
His work as villains and unconventional characters became a defining part of his career, but his performances also extended into comedy, musicals and voice roles, including Darth Sidious in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
