LOS ANGELES – PETER Fonda, the star, co-writer and producer of the 1969 cult classic Easy Rider, has died at the age of 79.
In a statement, his family said he suffered respiratory failure due to lung cancer, and died peacefully at home in Los Angeles, US media are reporting.
His older sister Jane Fonda added: “I am very sad. He was my sweet-hearted baby brother. The talker of the family.
“I have had beautiful alone time with him these last days. He went out laughing.”
According to the BBC, Peter Fonda was part of a veteran Hollywood family. As well as being the brother of Jane Fonda, he was also the son of actor Henry Fonda, and was married to Bridget, also an actor.
Easy Rider, in which Fonda appeared alongside its director Dennis Hopper and a young Jack Nicholson, became a cult classic and earned Fonda an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay, the BBC said.
