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Frank Pesce dead – Top Gun and Beverly Hills Cop star dies aged 75 after dementia battle

Frank Pesce has died at the age of 75 following a battle with dementia.

His girlfriend Tammy Scher shared the heartbreaking news to Deadline as she explained he passed away on 6 February in Burbank, California, following complications with the condition.

"They make movies about guys like me," was a quote by the late star and, according to the publication, his girlfriend will include it in his epitaph.

The star was born on 8 December 1946 in New York City and went on to become one of the most respected actors in Hollywood.

After making his debut on the screen in the 1976 TV series Police Story, he got his first big break starring in Kojak, in which he played Jerry Gerson.

1984 CBS Photo Archive Frank Pesce has died at the age of 75

He also starred in the early Sylvester Stallone films Rocky and Paradise Alley.

Frank later bagged a role in both the first and second Beverly Hills Cop films as well as Top Gun.

He continued to act all the way up until 2018, when he played the role of a sheriff in a short film titled Nasty.

The Tinseltown actor also starred in a movie titled 29th Street that was based on his early life story.

2013 Getty Images Frank starred in everything from Top Gun to Paradise Valley

David Permut, who is an Oscar-nominated producer, shared a short anecdote about the star prior to his death.

He said: "One of the most memorable experiences I had was producing 29th Street, a film based on Frank’s early life in NYC when he wound up with a winning lottery ticket.

"I had sold Frank’s real-life story to United Artists and hired George Gallo to write the script, only to find out afterward that Frank also had sold his exclusive life rights to Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer at Paramount at the same time!"

He went on to tell Deadline that at the time he "exploded at Frank".

2013 Getty Images Frank sold the rights to his life story to another company

David said: "I called Don Simpson, who fortunately I had a good relationship with, and he actually laughed, and let it go.

"Thank God, because to this day, I never shared the story with John Goldwyn, who made the development deal with us at UA while he was head of production."

Fans flocked to Twitter to share their sadness over his passing as one person wrote: "R.I.P. ACTOR Frank Pesce YOU WILL BE MISSED."

Another shared: "Damn. Always oddly fascinated with Frank Pesce after I saw 29th STREET. RIP."

While a third added: "This is a huge bummer. Frank Pesce was a real one. I only met him a few times, but I'll never forget the most memorable special feature I ever shot: Frank and @william_lustig chatting KILLER FISH over a nice pasta dinner. #RIP". 

Reference: OK : Ayla Soguksu