John Ashton, ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ Co-Star, Dies At 76

by · Forbes
HOLLYWOOD, CA - 1989: Actor and co-star of the hit "Beverly Hills Cop" movies, John Ashton, poses ... [+] during a 1989 Hollywood, California, photo portrait session. Ashton also starred in "Midnight Run" and "M*A*S*H." (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)Getty Images

John Ashton, the actor who reached a career zenith as detective John Taggart in the Beverly Hills Cop film franchise, died at his Fort Collins, Colorado home on Friday after a battle with cancer. He was 76.

Born February 22, 1948 in Springfield, Massachusetts, John Ashton’s early film credits included An Eye For An Eye (1973), Breaking Away (1979), Borderline (1980), Honky Tonk Freeway (1981), and Last Resort and King King Lives, both in 1986.

Ashton bowed on television in episodes of dramas Kojak, Emergency! and Columbo in 1974, and build his acting resume with later appearances on series like Phyllis, Police Story, Barnaby Jones, Police Woman, Wonder Woman, MASH, and Starsky and Hutch. In 1978, Ashton made the first of six appearance as Willie Joe Garr on Dallas. And, in 1984, he rose to fame in the original Beverly Hills Cop film opposite Eddie Murphy and Judge Reinhold.

LOS ANGELES - DECEMBER 5: The movie "Beverly Hills Cop", directed by Martin Brest. Seen here from ... [+] left, John Ashton as Det. Sgt. John Taggart, Eddie Murphy as Det. Axel Foley and Judge Reinhold as Det. William 'Billy' Rosewood. Initial theatrical release December 5, 1984. Screen capture. Paramount Pictures. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images)CBS via Getty Images

Ashton later starred in three of the four other Beverly Hills Cop films, most recently in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, the sequel that dropped this past summer on Netflix.

Earlier, he had a regularly scheduled role on the crime drama Hardball, which aired in the 1989-90 TV season.

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Ashton’s other film roles included Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), Midnight Run (1988), I Want to Go Home (1989), Little Big League (1984), In the Living Years (1994), Hidden Assassin (1995), For Which He Stands (1996), Meet the Deedles (1998), Instinct (1999), Sweet Deadly Dreams (2006), Middle Men (2009) and Uncle John (2015).

Ashton is survived by his wife of 24 years, Robin Hoye; children Michelle Ashton and Michael Thomas Ashton; step-children Courtney Donovan, Lindsay Curcio and Ashley Hoye; grandson Henry; sisters Sharon Ann Ashton and Linda Jean Ashton; and brother Edward Richard Ashton.