Aimee Walker
Sons of Anarchy star William Lucking, who played Piney Winston in the hit show, has died, aged 80, at home in Las Vegas.
News of the actor’s death was announced by his wife Sigrid Insull Lucking and distributed by his friend and fellow actor, Stephen Macht.
Describing his friend, Macht penned: “Bill [William] truly was a ‘lion,’ and his memory will always be a blessing.”
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In her eulogy, Lucking’s wife asked fans to celebrate his legacy.
She began: “Born in Michigan in 1941, William moved with his family to California in the early 1950s.
“Upon graduation from UCLA with a degree in literature, he completed advanced studies in theatre arts at the Pasadena Playhouse. He went on to have a long and enduring career in film and television.”
Describing his film accolades, she continued: “William’s Hollywood roles were diverse.
“He played a roughneck in Oklahoma Crude (1976) alongside Faye Dunaway and George C. Scott, the original Colonel in NBC’s The A-Team (1980s), a green Bajoran on Star Trek Deep Space 9 (1990s), and most recently, Piney Winston, an aging biker, on the illustrious FX Network series Sons of Anarchy (2008 to 2011).”
Giving an insight into his life off-camera, she described him as ‘an elegant man with a brilliant intellect,’ despite him his roles usually being ‘toughs and strong men’.
She also spoke of his love for ‘art and fine poetry,’ and the fact he ‘loved to argue about politics and current affairs’.
“He was a giant of a man with the soul of a poet,” she continued. “One who ‘contained a tension of sorts within his being like a boulder teetering on a hill, or a balloon expanding towards its extreme,’ as one friend put it.
She concluded by talking about the star’s family, saying: “William is survived by his wife of 25 years, Sigrid Insull Lucking, a former costume designer, with whom he shared many fine adventures.
“He is also survived by his two daughters, Marjet Lucking and Juliana Ryan, along with Juliana’s husband and two daughters, Quinlan and Lilian. William’s sister, Ellen Founier, also lives in Las Vegas.
“William’s much loved first wife, Mimi, was the mother of his children and she died of cancer in 1996.
“The family requests you toast his memory and celebrate his legacy.”
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