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Actor Paul Walker, who shot to fame as star of the high-octane street racing franchise “Fast & Furious,” died Saturday in a car crash in Southern California. He was 40.<\/p>\n Actor Paul Walker, who shot to fame as star of the high-octane street racing franchise “Fast & Furious,” died Saturday in a car crash in Southern California. He was 40.<\/p>\n
Walker’s publicist Ame van Iden confirmed his death, but said she could not elaborate beyond statements posted on Walker’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts.<\/p>\n
Walker was a passenger in a friend’s car and both were attending a charity event for his organization, Reach Out Worldwide, in the community of Valencia in Santa Clarita, about 30 miles north of Hollywood.<\/p>\n
The website for the charity said the Saturday event was intended to benefit victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.<\/p>\n
The crash took place about 3:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. ET), about 300 yards from the office park where the event was held.<\/p>\n
The Santa Clarita Valley Signal, citing a sheriff’s deputy at the scene, said a red Porsche appeared to have lost control.
\nFirst responders gather evidence at the scene of the crash. First responders gather evidence at the scene of the crash.
\nPhotos: People we lost in 2013 Photos: People we lost in 2013<\/p>\n
Deputies arrived at the scene to find a vehicle on fire, the sheriff’s department said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Once fire crews put the flames out, they found two occupants, both of whom were pronounced dead at the scene.<\/p>\n
Saturday evening, all that remained was the burnt mangled metal of the car and a light pole that had been knocked down.<\/p>\n
Box office success<\/p>\n
Walker’s career began on the small screen, first with a commercial for Pampers when he was 2, and then with parts in shows such as “Highway to Heaven” and “Touched By An Angel.”<\/p>\n
His first few movie roles were as supporting characters in teen flicks, most notably in “Varsity Blues.”<\/p>\n
His career really took off when he was cast as undercover cop Brian O’Conner infiltrating a street-racing gang in 2001’s “The Fast and the Furious.”<\/p>\n
The box-office success of the surprise summer hit yielded numerous sequels. And along with Vin Diesel, Walker was one of the franchise stalwarts.<\/p>\n
At the time of his death, Walker was working on the seventh film of the franchise, due out next year.<\/p>\n
On his verified Twitter account, Walker described himself as “outdoorsman, ocean addict, adrenaline junkie … and I do some acting on the side.”<\/p>\n
Walker also is the star of “Hours,” an independent film scheduled to be released December 13 about a father struggling to keep his newborn infant alive in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.<\/p>\n