Reynaldo Rey was born to make people laugh.
The veteran entertainer, who spent years opening for Redd Foxx and then became best known for playing the father of one of Ice Cube‘s bumbling pals in Friday, died Thursday morning, EW.com reports. He was 75.
Per TMZ, which was first with the sad news, Rey passed away at a Los Angeles hospital where he was being treated for complications of a stroke he suffered last year.
Rey stole his scenes as the nameless dad of DJ Pooh‘s Red (“Red’s father” was the part) in the hit 1995 comedy Friday and he would reunite with Ice Cube later in 2008’s First Sunday.
The Oklahoma-born comedian’s big-screen credits also included White Men Can’t Jump, House Party 3 and Harlem Nights, and he had a recurring role on the sitcom 227. His final film credit was Pawn Shop in 2012.
Rey’s first TV credit was on Sanford in 1981, and he’s said to have counted Foxx, who of course played the cantankerous Fred G. Sanford, as a mentor.
Survivors include his wife, Evelyn.
Source: EW.com
