Clarence Gilyard, actor of Die Hard and Top Gun, died at 66

Clarence Gilyard Jr., a popular supporting actor whose credits include hit movies die hard and Upper gun and the hit TV series Matlock and Walker, Texas Rangerdied at the age of 66.

His death was announced this week by the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, where he taught theater and film. Additional details were not immediately available on Tuesday.

« Professor Gilyard was a beacon of light and strength to all around him at UNLV, » the school’s film president, Heather Addison, said in a statement.

« Whenever we asked him how he was, he would happily say, ‘Blessed!’ But we are truly the ones who have been blessed to be his colleagues and his students for so many years. »

Gilyard was from Moses Lake, Washington. He had a prolific career as an actor, beginning in the 1980s with appearances in Different shots, The facts of life and other shows.

He then appeared in two of the biggest films of the decade: Upper gunin which he played Sundown, a radar intercept officer, and die hardwhen he was introduced as a naughty IT maven, Theo, one of whose stunt doubles included « You didn’t bring me in for my lovely personality. »

In the 1990s, he was on the side of law enforcement in Matlockplaying opposite Andy Griffith, and Walker, Texas Rangerwhich starred Chuck Norris.

His other credits include The Karate Kid: Part IIa staging of Driving Miss Daisy and an appearance alongside die hard star Bruce Willis in an advertisement for DieHard batteries.