Luke Perry

Coy Luther "Luke" Perry III (October 11, 1966 – March 4, 2019) was an American actor. He became a teen idol for playing Dylan McKay on the Fox television series Beverly Hills, 90210 from 1990 to 1995, and again from 1998 to 2000. He also starred as Fred Andrews on the CW series Riverdale. He had guest roles on notable shows such as Criminal Minds, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Simpsons, and Will & Grace, as well as a recurring role as Rick Jones in The Incredible Hulk (1996-1997) from Marvel Comics, and also starred in several films, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992), 8 Seconds (1994), The Fifth Element (1997), The Beat Beneath My Feet (2016), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), which was his final feature performance. Early life Luke Perry was born on October 11, 1966, in Mansfield, Ohio, the second of three children to Ann Perry, a homemaker, and Coy Luther Perry Jr., a steelworker. He had an older brother, Thomas Perry and a younger sister, Amy Coder (nee Perry). His parents divorced in 1972. His father died of a heart attack in 1980. Perry was raised in Fredericktown, Ohio, and played Freddie Bird, the school mascot for Fredericktown High School. Career Beginnings In 1984, Perry moved to Los Angeles shortly after high school to pursue acting. He worked odd jobs, including for an asphalt paving company and in a doorknob factory. He appeared in the 1985 music video of "Be Chrool to Your Scuel" for the band Twisted Sister, and by 1988, Perry auditioned for 256 acting jobs before receiving his first acceptance. After moving to New York, Perry's earliest roles were on daytime soap operas: one episode of Loving (1987–1988) and ten episodes of Another World (1988–1989).