American actor and comedian, Tommy Ford, who is best known for his role as Tommy Strawn in the 1990s sitcom 'Martin', passed away at the age of 52 years on October 12.
Ford's family announced the untimely passing of Strawn saying, "our beloved son, father, brother, husband, and friend Tommy Mykal Ford," reports E! Online.
After being on life support for few days owing to a ruptured aneurysm in his abdomen, the 'New York Undercover' star breathed his last at an Atlanta hospital.
"On behalf of the family, we would like to thank everyone for their love, support and prayers. Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming. Please respect the privacy of the Ford family during our time of grief," the family spokesperson added in a statement.
His public relations firm also announced the sad news on Twitter saying, "This evening at 4:50PM surrounded by family and close friends @BigTommyFord transitioned from this life to life eternal," hash-tagged #tommyford #RIP.
Ford starred in all five seasons of 'Martin' starting from 1992 until 1997. He also appeared in 'Harlem Nights,' 'Across the Tracks,' 'The Parkers' and 'Love Ain't Suppose to Hurt: The Wedding.'
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Tichina Arnold, who played Ford's girlfriend on the series, reportedly 'dropped everything' to be with the actor after hearing of his hospitalisation.
"She just dropped everything to fly out there. She was supposed to be on a carpet, but this is way more important. She's not the only one, the entire Martin cast is getting together to be by his side," a source informed.
Other 'Martin' co-stars took to their social media handles to express condolences to the family.
Martin Lawrence took to Twitter to post a photo of the pair and later tweeted, "Tommy was not only a great costar, but he was a great man and friend. He always brought with him his spirituality, a positive attitude and so much joy. I am sad the world lost a great talent and that I lost a wonderful friend. God bless him and his family."
The 'The Parkers' star was also known as 'The Pope of Comedy' due to exposure as a judge on 'Bill Bellamy's Who's Got Jokes?' which is a comedy competition show on TV One.