James Darren, a former teen idol and pop singer known for his roles in movies and TV shows like “Gidget,” “Star Trek” and “T.J. Hooker,” died Monday, Sept. 2, The Hollywood Reporter reported. He was 88.
Darren died in his sleep at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, his son Jim Moret told the outlet.
Darren went to the hospital for an aortic valve replacement, but was deemed too weak to have the surgery, The Hollywood Reporter said.
“He was a good man. He was very talented,” Moret said, according to Variety. “He was forever young.”
Darren first rose to fame as the surfer Moondoggie in the 1959 teen movie “Gidget,” also starring Sandra Dee and Cliff Robertson. Darren also sang the title track for the Malibu-set film and appeared in sequels like “Gidget Goes Hawaiian” and “Gidget Goes to Rome.”
Darren was a regular on “T.J. Hooker,” playing Officer Jim Corrigan opposite William Shatner and Heather Locklear on the 1980s television series. In later years, he memorably played Vic Fontaine, a holographic lounge singer on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.”
Other notable credits included “The Guns of Navarone,” “Venus in Furs,” “The Gene Krupa Story,” “The Love Boat,” “Fantasy Island,” “Melrose Place,” “All the Young Men,” “Beverly Hills 90210,” and “Because They’re Young.”
Darren was also known as a singer, releasing more than a dozen albums and scoring a gold record with “Goodbye Cruel World” in the 1960s. He also sang in many of his acting roles and performed standards like “Come Fly With Me” and “Let’s Fall in Love.”
Darren is survived by his wife, sons and five grandchildren, among other loved ones.
