Michael Parks Cause Of Death: 'Kill Bill' Actor Dies At 77

Veteran actor Michael Parks, a favorite of directors like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith, died in Los Angeles on Tuesday, his agent confirmed. He was 77.

His agent, Jane Schulman of Vesta Talent Agency, did not reveal the cause of death but USA Today reported her saying, “life,” when she was asked how he died. His “Tusk” and “Red State” director Smith announced his death on social media, calling him a “bonafide genius” and his “cinematic muse.” The director also referred to Parks as “the best actor I’ve ever known.”

“I hate to report that my cinematic muse #michaelparks has passed away. Michael was, and will likely forever remain, the best actor I’ve ever known. I wrote both #RedState and @tuskthemovie FOR Parks, I loved his acting so much,” Smith wrote in a post on Instagram.

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Born in Corona, California on April 24, 1940, Parks began his six-decades-long acting career in the 1960s with anti-establishment films like “Wild Seed,” “The Happening,” and “Bus Riley’s Back in Town.” Parks was also a singer and recorded a number of songs, including the closing theme song for the 1969 series “Then Came Bronson,” where he played a motorcycle-riding newsman.

His most well-known parts, however, came in the 1990s after directors like Tarantino, Smith and Robert Rodriguez gave him a number of important supporting roles in their projects. Tarantino cast him in both parts of “Kill Bill” and “Grindhouse,” while Rodriguez got Parks to play Texas Ranger Earl McGraw in “From Dusk Till Dawn.”

Parks was also a part of Ben Affleck’s Oscar-winning film “Argo.” In an interview with USA Today in 2012, Affeck said, “He was like James Dean. He’s sexy and amazing and a really good actor. I saw him in Kevin Smith’s Red State as this crazy preacher.”

While Parks’ parts had to be trimmed, Affleck said he tried to keep as much of his scenes as he could because, “I couldn’t bear to lose it.”

Parks’ agent said he was referred to as “an actor’s actor by his peers with a breadth of astonishing range that has allowed him to portray stunning contrasts — sometimes in the same film, like in 2014’s 'Tusk,’ starring in dual roles as an erudite serial killer opposite Justin Long and as a feeble rube opposite Johnny Depp.”

In his long and emotional tribute to Parks, Smith recounted a number of memories he had of the veteran actor.

“I was so f------ blessed to have worked with this bonafide genius,” Smith wrote in his post. “But really, I was just lucky to have known him at all. My heart goes out to James (Michael’s son), Oriana (Michael’s wife), Quentin Tarantino (Michael’s biggest fan) and any movie or music lover who was ever dazzled by the talents of Michael Parks. Farewell, old friend. I'll see you farther along...”

Parks was married for a short period when he was 16 years old, the Associated Press reported. He had a daughter with his then wife Louise Johnson. He is survived by his wife Oriana Parks — whom he married in 1997 — and his son James Parks, also an actor.