Actor Peter Fonda dies at 79

A countercultural icon from the 1960s died Friday. Actor Peter Fonda succumbed to complications related to lung cancer at his Los Angeles home, according to his family. He was 79. Fonda’s third wife, Margaret DeVogelaere, and a son, Justin, and daughter, Bridget, from his first marriage to Susan Brewer survive him.

Who was Peter Fonda? The son of actor Henry Fonda and younger brother of actress Jane Fonda, he became famous in his own right after writing and starring in the 1969 hippie biker classic Easy Rider. His mother, Frances Ford Fonda, committed suicide when he was 10. Fonda narrowly escaped death himself at the age of 11 after accidentally shooting himself. The story reportedly inspired John Lennon to write the Beatles’ “She Said She Said.” Fonda became best known for playing countercultural roles, often as a hippie, biker, or drug user. While nominated for an Academy Award twice, once for Easy Rider and again for Ulee’s Gold (1997), he never took home the award.