‘The Breakfast Club’ and ‘Risky Business’ actor was 87

Ron Dean, actor known for his roles in “Risky Business” and “The Breakfast Club,” died on October 5. He was 87 years old.

The cause of death is unknown. Dean’s partner, Maggie Neff, announced the news.

“He passed away at exactly 4 p.m., after his beloved sisters said goodbye to him,” Neff said. “He held on like a warrior to say goodbye to his little sisters. Then we were alone, and in my arms, I held his hand, and he trusted me when I told him it was okay to let go. What an honor!”

Born in Chicago, Dean began his career playing cops and military personnel. One of his first roles was in “Risky Business”, where he appeared alongside Tom Cruise. Dean also appeared in “The Package” with Tommy Lee Jones and Gene Hackman, and worked alongside William Shatner in “TJ Hooker.” Dean also had a role in John Hughes’ “The Breakfast Club,” as Andy’s (Emilio Estevez) father, and appeared in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight.”

Dean was a frequent collaborator of director Andrew Davis. He starred in several of his films, including “Code of Silence”, “Above the Law”, “Steal Big Steal Little”, “Chain Reaction” and “The Guardian”.

Dean has appeared in various television roles in series such as “Murder, She Wrote”, “Frasier”, “ER”, “Chicago Hope”, “NYPD Blue”, “The West Wing”, “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation”, “Without a Trace”, “Numb3rs”, “Cold Case” and “Still Standing”.

Dean was nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award in 1996 for Supporting Actor for “Supple in Combat” with the Steppenwolf Theater Company. He frequented Chicago-based stage productions, such as the Goodman Theater’s 1982 production of David Mamet’s “Lakeboat.”