Hollywood actor John Heard, who played dad in ‘Home Alone’ movies, Dies at 72
John Heard, best
known as Peter McAllister in the “Home Alone” movies who appeared in a wide
range of TV and film roles, has died at 72 in Palo Alto, Calif.
He was found dead in a hotel where he was reportedly
recovering after undergoing back surgery. The Santa Clara Medical Examiner’s
office confirmed his death.
In the 1990 “Home Alone,” Heard stars as the father who
forgets his son, played by Macauley Culkin, when making a business trip to
France. After “Home Alone” became a big hit, Heard returned to star in “Home
Alone 2: Lost in New York.”
He also appeared in “Cat People,” “After Hours,” “Big,”
“Beaches,” “Gladiator,” and on TV in “Miami Vice” and “The Sopranos,” for which
he won an Emmy nomination for outstanding guest actor.
Born in Washington, D.C., Heard started out acting off-Broadway. His first
major role came in the romantic comedy “Chilly Scenes of Winter” in 1979.
His memorable roles in the 1980s included starring in
“Cutter’s Way,” playing Nastassja Kinski’s lover in the 1983 remake of “Cat
People,” and starring alongside “Home Alone” actor Daniel Stern in 1984’s
“C.H.U.D.” In Martin Scorsese’s “After Hours,” he played the bartender Tom
Schorr. His other films during that period included “The Trip to Bountiful,”
“Heaven Help Us” and “The Milagro Beanfield War.”
In 1988, he starred as Elizabeth Perkins’ jilted
boyfriend in “Big” and co-starred with Bette Midler in “Beaches.”
His other roles included “Gladiator,” “Awakenings,”
“Radio Flyer,” and “The Pelican Brief,” in which he played an FBI agent.
On television, he played Commander Barry Garner on
“Battlestar Galactica” and had recurring roles on “CSI: Miami” and “Prison
Break.” More recently he had numerous guest roles on shows including “Modern
Family,” “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “MacGuyver.”
Heard was married to actress Margot Kidder – for just six
days — and had a son from a relationship with actress Melissa Leo. He is also
survived by a daughter from a later marriage.
