James Darren has left the entertainment industry mourning at the age of 88.
The veteran actor, who was famous for his character in the 1959 film Gidget and a TV role on T.J. Hooker, passed away on Monday.
As per a statement on his website, James died in his sleep at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Sept. 2.
His son Jim Moret recently told The Hollywood Reporter that the late actor had to go to a hospital for an aortic valve replacement but could not get the surgery done due to weakness.
"I always thought he would pull through because he was so cool. He was always cool," Jim noted.
In 1957, he starred in Operation Mad Ball, The Brothers Rico and The Tijuana Story, and in 1958, he appeared in Gunman's Walk.
James previously told People, "One time in San Francisco, I was on a dance-party TV show and hundreds of girls mobbed the studio, took the glass door right off, dragged me outside, down on the ground, pulling hairs out of my head for souvenirs.”
He added, “I was terrified. Tears were streaming down my face from the pain of having my hair pulled out."
James was born in Philadelphia in 1936, and at the age of 16, he started pursuing acting.
