‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ Actor John Saxon Dead at 83
Written by SOURCE on July 26, 2020
Hollywood has lost another legend.
Veteran actor John Saxon, best known for his role in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, died Saturday in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, at the age of 83. Saxon’s wife, Gloria, confirmed the tragic news to The Hollywood Reporter, stating he had died of pneumonia.
Saxon began his film career back in the 1950s, when he appeared in a number of projects for Universal Studios. The Brooklyn native would go on to reach teen idol status, starring in films like Teach Me How To Cry and Rock, Pretty Baby. Over the next decade, he amassed a diverse filmography that highlighted his range. Two of his most critically acclaimed roles was as Chuy Medina in the 1966 Western film The Appaloosa starring Marlon Brando, and as Roper in Bruce Lee’s 1973 martial arts flick Enter the Dragon.
“It was really great from the start—and still is. It’s playing, it’s gonna be 40 years,” he said about Dragon during WonderCon 2012.
Saxon would go on to become a staple within the horror genre. In addition to appearing in Nightmare on Elm Street and a number of sequels, he also starred in Black Christmas, From Dusk Till Dawn, and Tenebrae.
You can read some of the tributes for Saxon below.
