Tim Curry Dies at 80

Actor Tim Curry, best known for playing Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Pennywise in It, has died at 80, according to reports. TMZ first reported his death. The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to PEOPLE that officers responded to a call at a home in North Hollywood late Aug. 25 and conducted a death investigation involving a man in his 80s.

Born in the U.K. on April 19, 1946, Curry began his career on the London stage. He appeared in the original West End production of Hair in 1968 and went on to build a successful theater career in London and New York.

Curry became internationally famous as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the 1975 film The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a role he also performed on stage. He later appeared in films including Annie, Clue and Muppet Treasure Island.

His television work included the role of Pennywise the Clown in the 1990 miniseries It. He was also a prolific voice actor and won a Daytime Emmy in 1991 for Peter Pan and the Pirates. His theater career earned him three Tony Award nominations and two Laurence Olivier Award nominations.

Curry suffered a major stroke in 2012 and subsequently used a wheelchair. He largely stepped away from on-screen acting but continued working in voice roles. In 2016, he returned to the Rocky Horror world as the narrator and criminologist in the television remake The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again.

Curry never married and had no children. He received a lifetime achievement award at the Actors Fund Tony Awards Viewing Party in 2015.

His career spanned more than five decades and included stage, film, television and voice work, with performances that made him a distinctive figure in both comedy and horror.