“Little House on the Prairie” actor Jack Lilley passed away at the age of 91.
Fellow castmate Melissa Gilbert announced Lilley’s death Friday on Instagram, referring to her late friend as “one of my favorite people on the planet.”
“The little house family has lost one of our own,” she said. “He taught me how to ride a horse when I was just a wee little thing. He was so patient with me. He never said no when I would bound up to him squealing, “Can we go ride? Please, please, please?’” Gilbert wrote on social media.
She memorialized Lilley by recalling some of her most cherished memories with him. Gilbert noted that Lilley played a variety of roles on the iconic series that originally aired on NBC from 1974, to 1983.
“Aside from being Victor French’s photo double, he was featured prominently in many different roles on Little House. You can also see his absolute brilliance in the film Blazing Saddles,” she wrote in her statement.
SANTA CLARITA, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 12: Actor Jack Lilley attends an outdoor special screening of the Spaghetti Western “No Name & Dynamite” at Sable Ranch on February 12, 2022 in Santa Clarita, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images)
Gilbert revealed she had reconnected with Lilley on an ABC pilot more than 20 years ago. She said she was “so bummed when it didn’t get picked up,” but noted that the reunion “brought back fond memories of Little House.”
“Jack always felt like home to me,” she said.
“He lived quite a life. I am so lucky that he was my friend.”
Gilbert sent her love and prayers to Lilley’s family as they process this devastating loss.
SANTA CLARITA, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 12: (L-R) George Sack, Errol Sack, Jack Lilley and Clint Lilley attend an outdoor special screening of the Spaghetti Western “No Name & Dynamite” at Sable Ranch on February 12, 2022 in Santa Clarita, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/Getty Images)
“Oh Jack….sweet prince…may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest,” she wrote.(RELATED: Soap Star Wings Hauser Dead At 78)
The circumstances leading up to Lilley’s death have not been disclosed.
This article was originally published at dailycaller.com
