
Kenny Baker, who became an international star for portraying R2-D2, the lovable iconic droid in the Star Wars franchise, has died after fighting a long illness, according to CNN. He was 81.
Like Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, Anthony Daniels, or even James Earl Jones in a way, the British-born Baker became a household name to the immense legions of Star Wars fans, who span almost 45 years of generational adoration for the franchise by donning the instantly recognizable R2-D2 costume. Not many people knew what the diminutive actor looked like in real life, but Star Wars fans wore a proud badge of honor knowing that it was Baker inside the R2 unit, a sort of early trivia nugget before the trivia boom started in the 1980s and never let its grip on popular culture.
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