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‘Tremors’ Star Fred Ward Has Passed Away at 79
We’ve learned the incredibly sad news this morning (via NPR) that actor Fred Ward has passed away at the age of 79, the actor of course beloved by horror fans for his role in Tremors.
NPR reports that Ward died on Sunday, May 8th. “No cause of death was given.”
Fred Ward played the lovable character Earl Bassett in the original Tremors back in 1990, who along with Kevin Bacon’s Valentine McKee saved Perfection from the deadly Graboids.
While Bacon didn’t return for Tremors II: Aftershocks, Fred Ward took center stage in a solo outing, reprising the role of Earl Bassett for the 1996 sequel to the original classic.
Elsewhere in the horror genre, Fred Ward played Det. Harry Philip Lovecraft in 1991’s Cast a Deadly Spell, a Lovecraftian detective tale that has built up a cult following over the years.
Fred Ward also appeared in Escape from Alcatraz, The Right Stuff, Miami Blues, The Player, Naked Gun 33 1/3, The Crow: Salvation, and Road Trip, as well as “True Detective.”
“The unique thing about Fred Ward is that you never knew where he was going to pop up, so unpredictable were his career choices,” publicist Ron Hofmann said in a statement shared by NPR. “He could play such diverse characters as Remo Williams, a cop trained by Chiun, Master of Sinanju (Joel Grey) to become an unstoppable assassin in Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, or Earl Bass, who, alongside Kevin Bacon, battle giant, worm-like monsters hungry for human flesh in ‘cult’ horror/comedy film, Tremors (1990), or a detective in the indie film Two Small Bodies (1993) directed by underground filmmaker Beth B., or a terrorist planning to blow up the Academy Awards in The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994), or the father of the lead character in Jennifer Lopez’s revenge thriller Enough (2002).”
Fred Ward is survived by his wife of 27 years, Marie-France Ward, and son Django Ward.
There are two men responsible for the creation of beloved character Ernest P. Worrell, of course including the late actor Jim Varney who memorably played Ernest on screen. But it was John R. Cherry III who created the Ernest character that Varney ended up making famous, and we’ve learned the sad news this week that Cherry has passed away at the age of 73.
The official Ernest P. Worrell Facebook page wrote over the weekend, “Unfortunately, I have some devastating news to share with you all. Our beloved John Cherry passed away this morning after a long and well-fought battle with Parkinson’s disease.”
The tribute post continues, “Buster, as his friends lovingly knew him by, was probably the most brilliant man I’ve ever met. Even as Parkinson’s began to rob him of some things, that creative mind of his was always going full-force to the best of its ability. He was kind, amazingly funny, generous and had a heart of gold. In addition to being a brilliant writer, he was also an amazing artist, a skilled fisherman, and an all-around amazing human being.”
John Cherry directed Jim Varney in Ernest movies including Ernest Goes to Camp, Ernest Saves Christmas, Ernest Goes to Jail, Ernest Rides Again, Slam Dunk Ernest, Ernest Goes to Africa, and Ernest in the Army. It was Cherry who also directed Ernest Scared Stupid, which made Ernest P. Worrell the star of his own spooky horror-comedy involving villainous trolls.
Back in 2013, John Cherry wrote Keeper of the Clown: My Life with Ernest, a book that dove deep into the creation and enduring legacy of the character he and Varney brought to life.
All of us here on BD send our deepest condolences to John Cherry’s family and friends.
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