Ryan O’Neal was best known for his many roles in movies such as Love Story, A Bridge Too Far, What’s Up Doc, Paper Moon, and countless more.
His son Patrick broke the news of his father’s passing via Instagram on Friday saying, “So this is the toughest thing I’ve ever had to say but here we go. My dad passed away peacefully today, with his loving team by his side supporting him and loving him as he would us.”
O’Neal’s cause of death remains unknown but he did have a prostate cancer diagnosis in 2012 and battled chronic leukemia in 2001. O’Neal is best remembered as not only a prominent actor of the 1970s but a major heart throb.
He was nominated in 1970 for a Best Actor Oscar for Love Story. O’Neal was also famously partnered to Farrah Fawcett from 1979-1997, later reconnecting in the 2000s. Patrick said, “Ryan never bragged, but he has bragging rights in Heaven. Especially when it comes to Farrah. Everyone had the poster, he had the real McCoy. And now they meet again.”
On top of his history with Fawcett, O’Neal had no shortage of flings which included the likes of Ursula Andress, Barbra Streisand, Bianca Jagger, Jacqueline Bisset, Joan Collins, and Diana Ross.
O’Neal is survived by his four children and five grandchildren. His passing is only the latest to a long string of actors and stars who have bid us farewell this year, such as Matthew Perry, Andrea Fay Friedman, Peter White, and Tyler Christopher, among others.