British actor Kenny Baker, who played R2-D2 in the first six Star Wars films has died at the age of 83, after a long illness according to a report in The Guardian, which quoted a statement from Baker’s niece.
The niece, Abigail Shield, told The Guardian of her uncle’s death, “It was expected, but it’s sad nonetheless. He had a very long and fulfilled life. He brought lots of happiness to people and we’ll be celebrating the fact that he was well loved throughout the world. We’re all very proud of what he achieved in his lifetime.”
“When he was a child, he was told that he probably wouldn’t survive through puberty, being a little person in those times, they didn’t have a very good life expectancy,” Shield said of the actor, who grew to 3 feet, 8 inches tall. “He did extremely well in his life. He was very ill for the last few years so we had been expecting it. He had been looked after by one of his nephews, who found him on Saturday morning.”
LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 16: Kenny Baker attends the European Premiere of “Star Wars” The Force Awakens at Leicester Square on December 16, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Fred Duval/FilmMagic) Photo cred: Getty
Shield explained that Baker met his wife Eileen after an appearance on the Michael Parkinson TV show. She wrote in, saying she was also a little person and wanted to meet him. “They got married soon after,” Shield said, adding that Eileen died of epilepsy about 20 years ago.
Shield added: “He had problems with his lungs and was often in a wheelchair. He was very poorly for a long time. He was asked to go out to LA for the new Star Wars premiere but he was told he was too ill to travel. Luckily he did manage to meet George Lucas again when he came to Manchester.”
Baker was also able to attend the London premiere of the latest Star Wars film, The Force Awakens.
Baker first played R2-D2 in the first Star Wars film in 1977. He went on to reprise the role of the droid in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi as well as the three Star Wars prequels George Lucas directed from 1999 to 2005. In addition to the Star Wars films, Baker also appeared in The Goonies and Flash Gordon.
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SOURCE: AOL
