Fred Ward, Star of ‘Tremors’ and ‘The Right Stuff,’ Dies at 79

Veteran actor Fred Ward, who parlayed rugged everyman looks into a lengthy career playing everything from historic American heroes to a monster-fighting repairman, has died, his representative said Friday.

Ward was 79 when he passed away on Sunday. The cause of his death was not immediately revealed.

The San Diego native and Air Force veteran had stints as a short-order cook, boxer and Alaskan lumberjack before finding his true calling as an actor in the 1970s, Ward’s manager Ron Hoffman said in a statement.

For more on this story, go to NBC News.