CelebrityJames Averyfresh prince of bel airjames avery dead

James Avery Dead: 'Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air' Actor Dies At 68

'Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air' Actor Dies At 68
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"Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" actor James Avery died in a Los Angeles hospital last night (Dec. 31), according to TMZ. He was 68.

His publicist confirmed the news of his death to CNN, as did his former co-star Alfonso Ribeiro, who tweeted, "I'm deeply saddened to say that James Avery has passed away. He was a second father to me. I will miss him greatly."

Avery had recently undergone open heart surgery and reportedly died from complications from the operation.

A classically trained actor and poet, Avery grew up in Atlantic City, N.J., where he was raised by a single mother. He served in the Navy during the Vietnam War and first appeared onscreen as a dancer in an uncredited role in the 1980 film "The Blues Brothers."

Avery also voiced characters for many animated series, most notably for 1987's "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and the 1990s "Iron Man" series. He will, of course, be remembered for playing Phillip Banks, the stern but loving uncle to Will Smith's character on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated that James Avery was 65 when he died. He was actually 68 years old.

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Before You Go

In Memoriam: Celebrities We've Lost In 2014
L'Wren Scott(01 of63)
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L'Wren Scott, fashion designer and Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger's longtime girlfriend, was found dead in NYC on March 17, 2014 of an apparent suicide. (credit:Getty)
David Brenner(02 of63)
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David Brenner, the lanky, toothy-grinned "Tonight Show" favorite whose brand of observational comedy became a staple for other standups, including Jerry Seinfeld and Paul Reiser, died on March 15, 2014. He was 78. (credit:Getty)
Harold Ramis(03 of63)
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Comedy legend Harold Ramis died on Feb. 24, 2014. He was 69. (credit:Getty)
Sid Caesar(04 of63)
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The comedy legend died on Feb. 12, 2014. He was 91. (credit:Getty)
Shirley Temple(05 of63)
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Shirley Temple Black, iconic child star and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia, died on Feb. 10, 2014 in California, The Associated Press reported. Her cause of death was not released. She was 85. (credit:AP)
Philip Seymour Hoffman(06 of63)
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Hoffman was found dead of an apparent heroin overdose on Feb. 2, 2014 in New York City. He was 46 years old. (credit:Getty)
Pete Seeger(07 of63)
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The American troubadour, folk singer and activist Seeger died Jan. 27, 2014, at age 94. (credit:AP)
James Avery(08 of63)
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Avery died at the age of 68 from complications following open heart surgery in a Los Angeles suburb hospital on Dec. 31, 2013 (credit:Getty)
Ray Price(09 of63)
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Price died on Dec. 16, 2013 at his Texas home after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 87. (credit:Getty)
Peter O'Toole(10 of63)
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The legendary actor of the stage and screen died on Dec. 14, 2013 following a long illness. He was 81. (credit:Getty)
Nelson Mandela(11 of63)
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After suffering from a prolonged respiratory infection, Mandela died on Dec. 5, 2013 at the age of 95. (credit:Getty)
Paul Walker(12 of63)
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Walker died in a car crash on Nov. 30, 2013, his rep confirmed. He was 40. (credit:Getty)
Lou Reed(13 of63)
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Reed died of a "liver-related ailment" on Oct. 27, 2013 at the age of 71. (credit:Getty)
Marcia Wallace(14 of63)
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Wallace died of complications due to pneumonia on Oct. 25, 2013 at the age of 70. (credit:Getty)
Ed Lauter(15 of63)
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Veteran character actor Lauter died of mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer most commonly caused by asbestos exposure, on Oct. 16, 2013. He was 74. (credit:Getty)
Patsy Swayze(16 of63)
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Choreographer and dance instructor Patsy Swayze, the mother of late actor Patrick Swayze, died Sept. 16, 2013. She was 86. No cause of death was given. (credit:Landov)
Jackie Lomax(17 of63)
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Jackie Lomax, a singer-songwriter who worked with The Beatles and enjoyed a long solo career, died Sept. 15, 2013 following a brief illness. He was 69. (credit:Getty)
Lee Thompson Young(18 of63)
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"The Famous Jett Jackson" star was found dead in his apartment by his landlord in Los Angeles on Aug. 19, 2013. Young's rep confirmed that he took his own life. He was 29. (credit:Getty Images)
Lisa Robin Kelly(19 of63)
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The former "That '70s Show" actress died at the age of 43 on Aug. 14, 2013. According to TMZ, Kelly died in her sleep at a rehab facility in California. (credit:Getty Images)
Gia Allemand(20 of63)
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"The Bachelor" star died from an apparent suicide on Aug. 14, 2013. She was 29. (credit:Getty Images)
Michael Ansara(21 of63)
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The "Star Trek" actor died on July 31, 2013 at the age of 91. (credit:Getty Images)
Kidd Kraddick(22 of63)
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Radio personality David "Kidd" Kraddick died July 27, 2013 at age 53. (credit:Getty Images)
JJ Cale(23 of63)
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Cale, the singer-songwriter and producer known as the main architect of the Tulsa Sound, died on July 26, 2013. His manager, Mike Kappus, said he died of a heart attack. He was 74. (credit:Getty Images)
Dennis Farina(24 of63)
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The "Law & Order" star died on July 22, 2013 at the age of 69 after suffering a blood clot in his lung. (credit:Getty Images)
Cory Monteith(25 of63)
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Cory Allan Michael Monteith, a Canadian actor best known for playing Finn Hudson on the hit Fox TV show "Glee," was found dead on July 13, 2013 in a Vancouver hotel room. He was 31. (credit:Getty Images)
James Gandolfini(26 of63)
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James Gandolfini, best known for his role on "The Sopranos," died in Italy on June 19, 2013 after suffering from a heart attack. (credit:Getty Images)
Slim Whitman(27 of63)
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The high-pitched country singer who sold millions of records through ever-present TV ads in the 1980s and 1990s and whose song saved the world in the film comedy "Mars Attacks!," died June 19, 2013 at a Florida hospital. He was 90. (credit:Getty Images)
Jeanne Cooper(28 of63)
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Jeanne Cooper, who played Katherine Chancellor on the daytime soap opera "The Young and the Restless," died on May 8, 2013. She was 84. (credit:Getty Images)
Jeff Hanneman(29 of63)
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Hanneman, a founding member of Slayer, died May 1, 2013 of liver failure. He was 49. (credit:Getty Images)
Chris Kelly(30 of63)
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Chris Kelly, one-half of the 1990s rap duo Kris Kross, died May 1, 2013 of an apparent drug overdose. He was 34. (credit:Getty Images)
George Jones(31 of63)
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The country music legend died at 81 on April 26, 2013 at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. He was hospitalized April 18 with fever and irregular blood pressure. (credit:Getty Images)
Richie Havens(32 of63)
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The folk singer and guitarist, who was the first performer at Woodstock, died on April 22, 2013 at age 72. He died of a heart attack in New Jersey, his family said in a statement. (credit:Getty Images)
Chrissy Amphlett(33 of63)
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The raunchy lead singer of the Australian rock band Divinyls whose hit "I Touch Myself" brought her international fame in the early 1990s, died at her home in New York City on April 21, 2013. She was 53 years old."Christine Joy Amphlett succumbed to the effects of breast cancer and multiple sclerosis, diseases she vigorously fought with exceptional bravery and dignity," her musician husband Charley Drayton said in a statement. (credit:Getty Images)
Richard LeParmentier(34 of63)
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Character actor Richard LeParmentier, who as a young Death Star commander learned the hard way that Darth Vader brooks no disrespect, died April 16, 2013. He was 66. (credit:Getty Images)
Jonathan Winters(35 of63)
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The comedic film and TV actor died on April 11, 2013 at the age of 87. He passed away of natural causes, surrounded by friends and family. (credit:Getty Images)
Annette Funicello(36 of63)
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Former child star Annette Funicello died on April 8, 2013 at the age of 70. The actress, who is best remembered for her time as a Mouseketeer on "The Mickey Mouse Club" from 1955 to 1957, died from complications related to multiple sclerosis, which she was diagnosed with more than 20 years ago. (credit:Getty Images)
Roger Ebert(37 of63)
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Legendary film critic Roger Ebert died April 4, 2013, at the age of 70. Two days prior, Ebert revealed on his blog that his cancer had returned and that he would be reducing his reviewing duties at the Chicago Sun-Times. (credit:Getty Images)
Shain Gandee(38 of63)
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The 21-year-old "Buckwild" star was found dead in a truck in Sissonville, W. Va., along with two other bodies, on April 1, 2013. It was later said Gandee had died of carbon monoxide poisoning while “mudding," or off-roading through mud, in his 1984 Ford Bronco. (credit:Getty Images)
Phil Ramone(39 of63)
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A masterful Grammy Award-winning engineer, arranger and producer whose platinum touch included recordings with Ray Charles, Billy Joel and Paul Simon, Ramone died March 30, 2013 of complications stemming from heart surgery. He was 79. (credit:Getty Images)
Richard Griffiths(40 of63)
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One of the great British stage actors of his generation, also known for playing grumpy Uncle Vernon in the fantastical "Harry Potter" movies. Griffiths died March 28, 2013, from complications following heart surgery. He was 65. (credit:Getty Images)
Clive Burr(41 of63)
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Former Iron Maiden drummer Clive Burr has died March 12, 2013. He was 56. Burr passed away in his sleep and had suffered poor heath for years after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. (credit:Getty Images)
Claude King(42 of63)
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A country singer-songwriter and original member of the Louisiana Hayride, King was best known for the 1962 hit "Wolverton Mountain." He died on March 7, 2013, at 90 years of age. (credit:AP)
Peter Banks(43 of63)
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Peter Banks, the original guitarist for the British band Yes, died on March 7, 2013, at the age of 65. A post on his official website stated that Banks died from heart failure and was found in his London home after he didn't show up to a recording session.
L-R: Peter Banks, Tony Kaye, Chris Squire, Bill Bruford, Jon Anderson - posed, group shot (Photo by Gilles Petard/Redferns) (credit:Getty)
Alvin Lee(44 of63)
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The British rock guitarist and founder of the band "Ten Years After," who burst to stardom with a memorable Woodstock performance, died March 6, 2013. He was 68. A statement posted on Lee's official website said he died unexpectedly from complications following a routine surgical procedure. Lee's manager, Ron Rainey, said the guitarist died in Spain. (credit:AP)
Bonnie Franklin(45 of63)
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Bonnie Franklin, the pert, redheaded actress who won fame as a divorced mom on the long-running sitcom "One Day at a Time," has died March 1, 2013 due to complications from pancreatic cancer. She was 69. (credit:Getty Images)
DJ Ajax (Adrian Thomas)(46 of63)
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Australian producer Adrian Thomas, better known as DJ Ajax, died on the day of his 42nd birthday, Feb. 28, 2013. The Sydney Morning Herald reported DJ Ajax died after he ran out onto a Melbourne road and was hit by an oncoming truck. (credit:MySpace)
Richard Street(47 of63)
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Former Motown vocalist Richard Street (top R), a member of the Temptations for 25 years, died on Feb. 27, 2013 at a hospital in Las Vegas after a short illness. He was 70. (credit:Getty)
Dale Robertson(48 of63)
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Dale Robertson, an Oklahoma native who became a star of television and movie Westerns during the genre's heyday, died Feb. 26, 2013 Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, Calif., following a brief illness. He was 89. (credit:Getty)
Dan Toler(49 of63)
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Former Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dan Toler has died on Feb. 25, 2013, at the age of 65. He passed away in his sleep after a two-year battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. (credit:Everett Collection)
Lou Myers(50 of63)
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Myers, the actor most known for playing Mr. Vernon Gaines on the NBC sitcom "A Different World," died on Feb. 19, 2013 at Charleston Medical Center in West Virginia after undergoing a heart-related emergency and falling into a coma. He was 76. (credit:Getty Images)
Damon Harris(51 of63)
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Harris (far right), a one-time member of legendary Motown group The Temptations, died on Feb. 18, 2013. According to the Baltimore Sun, Harris (born Otis Robert Harris, Jr.) lost his 14-year-long battle to prostate cancer after spending the last three months in the hospital. He was 62.Also in the photo: Richard Street, Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams and Dennis Edwards in 1972.
Mindy McCready(52 of63)
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The country singer was found dead in her Heber Springs, Ark., home on Feb. 17, 2013. The Cleburne County sheriff said in a statement that preliminary autopsy results from Arkansas' state crime lab show McCready's death was a suicide from a single gunshot wound to the head. (credit:Getty Images)
Rick Huxley(53 of63)
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Bass player Rick Huxley, one of the founding members of the Dave Clark Five, died on Feb. 11, 2013, at the age of 72. Though the band broke up in 1970, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. (credit:Getty)
John Kerr(54 of63)
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John Kerr, the stage and film actor whose credits include the movie "South Pacific," the thriller "The Pit and the Pendulum" and a Tony Award-winning turn in "Tea and Sympathy," died on Feb. 9, 2013, at the age of 81. He passed away due to heart failure at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, Calif. (credit:Getty)
Mark Balelo(55 of63)
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Mark Balelo, an auction house owner featured on the A&E reality TV show "Storage Wars," was found dead on Feb. 11, 2013. He was 40. His death has been declared a suicide. (credit:YouTube)
Donald Byrd(56 of63)
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Jazz musician Donald Byrd, a leading hard-bop trumpeter of the 1950s who collaborated on dozens of albums with top artists of his time and later enjoyed commercial success with hit jazz-funk fusion records such as "Black Byrd," died on Feb. 4, 2013. He was 80. No details have been released regarding his death. (credit:Getty)
Robin Sachs(57 of63)
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The British actor died on Feb. 1, 2013, just four days shy of his 62nd birthday. He is best known for playing villainous character Ethan Rayne on the hit series "Buffy The Vampire Slayer," but boasts a full resume and will also be remembered for his roles on "Babylon 5" and "Star Trek: Voyager." (credit:Getty)
Mary O'Connor(58 of63)
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O'Connor, Hugh Hefner's longtime secretary who appeared on the reality series "Girls Next Door," died on Jan. 27, 2013. (credit:YouTube)
Robert F. Chew(59 of63)
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The actor, best known for his role as drug kingpin Proposition Joe on the critically acclaimed HBO series “The Wire,” died January 17th, 2013, of apparent heart failure in his sleep at his home in Northeast Baltimore. He was 52. (credit:HBO)
Pauline Phillips(60 of63)
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Pauline Phillips, who as Dear Abby dispensed snappy, sometimes saucy advice to millions of newspaper readers around the world, died Jan. 16, 2013, in Minneapolis after a long battle with Alzheimer's. She was 94. (credit:WikiMedia)
Conrad Bain(61 of63)
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Conrad Bain, who was best known for his role as father Philip Drummond on the hit series "Diff'rent Strokes," died Jan. 14. He was 89. (credit:Getty)
Freddy E(62 of63)
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Seattle rapper Freddy E (real name Freddy E. Buhl) died on January 5, 2013, of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The 22-year-old is believed to have live tweeted the moments leading up to his apparent suicide. (credit:Freddy E/Twitter)
Ned Wertimer(63 of63)
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Ned Wertimer (here seen on the left), who appeared on 11 seasons of "The Jeffersons" as Ralph The Doorman, died January 2, 2013, at the age of 89. Wertimer died following health complications at the Sherman Village Health Care Center in California. (credit:Getty Images)
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