Beau Starr, Halloween and Goodfellas Actor, Dies at 81

Beau Starr, the veteran character actor best known for portraying Sheriff Ben Meeker in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and its sequel Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers, as well as the father of Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas, died on April 24 in Vancouver, Canada. He was 81.

Starr passed away peacefully of natural causes at his home, according to his younger brother, Mike Starr, who is also an actor. "He was very unique and special," Mike said, adding that Beau and their other brothers helped raise him alongside their parents and had a tremendous influence on his life. The news was also shared by Starr's former Goodfellas co-star Christopher Serrone, who described him as a son, brother, father, grandfather, actor and former NFL and CFL player.

Born September 1, 1944, in Queens, New York, Starr began his professional career as a football player. He spent three seasons on the New York Jets practice squad from 1966 to 1968 before joining the Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Starr transitioned to acting in 1979 with his debut on the Canadian sketch comedy series Bizarre, which featured performers like Howie Mandel...