'Time Machine' Star Rod Taylor Dead at 84

By
MGM

Actor Rod Taylor, star of The Birds, passed away Wednesday at 84.

An Australian actor who transitioned into a Hollywood leading man with his breakthrough role in the 1960 sci-fi thriller The Time Machine, Taylor's career spanned nearly six decades.

He is perhaps best known for his role in Alfred Hitchcock's 1963 horror classic The Birds, as well as celebrated performances in Seven Seas to Calais, Sunday In New York, and Young Cassidy.

VIDEO: In Memoriam: Stars We Lost in 2014

Taylor's most recent appearance was a cameo in Quentin Tarantino's 2009 war film Inglorious Basterds playing Winston Churchill.

Taylor died Wednesday night after suffering a heart attack in his Los Angeles home, according to his daughter, former CNBC anchor Felicia Taylor, who confirmed her father's passing to CNN.

"My dad loved his work," she said in a statement to People. "Being an actor was his passion – calling it an honorable art and something he couldn't live without."

Taylor is survived by his wife Carol Kikumura, and his daughter Felicia.