Inside Buck Rogers star Gil Gerard’s food addiction that saw him balloon to 350lbs as he dies at 82

Buck Rogers In The 25th Century icon Gil Gerard has died at 82 at his Georgia home following a brief battle with cancer, his wife Janet confirmed as tributes pour in from fans

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 Gil Gerard has passed away aged 82(Image: Discovery Health)

TV star Gil Gerard has passed away at the age of 82.

The Buck Rogers In The 25th Century legend’s wife, Janet, has announced he died at his Georgia home on Tuesday following a short battle with cancer. “Early this morning Gil – my soulmate – lost his fight with a rare and viciously aggressive form of cancer,” Janet shared in a Facebook post.

She continued, “From the moment when we knew something was wrong to his death this morning was only days. No matter how many years I got to spend with him it would have ever been enough. Hold the ones you have tightly and love them fiercely.” Janet also shared Gil’s heartbreaking final message, which he had left in a note for when he passed away.

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Erin Gray as Colonel Wilma Deering, and Gil Gerard as Captain William “Buck” Rogers

Prior to his role on Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Gil played Dr Alan Stewart on a total of 303 episodes of The Doctors from 1973 until 1976. The Arkansas-native star appeared in all 32 episodes of the series, which ran for two seasons from 1979–1981, and was broadcast on NBC.

Buck Rogers In The 25th Century was intended to capitalize on the popularity of Star Wars, incorporating more comedic elements. The show also starred the likes of Erin Gray, Felix Silla, Tim O’Connor, Eric Server, and legendary voiceover artist Mel Blanc

After Gil had recovered from his surgery, the show showed his “Buck Rogers” co-star Erin Gray, having a tearful reunion with him nearly a year after he went under the knife, by which time he had shed a whopping 140 pounds.

Looking back, Gerard asked, “If I hadn’t had this surgery, where would I be? If I was lucky,” he answered, “I’d be dead because I wouldn’t want to be living the life I would have been living a year later if I hadn’t had the surgery. I really did not want to die.”

After the news of the beloved star’s death broke on Tuesday evening, fans have since dashed to social media to pay their respects by praising his talents onscreen and his humility offscreen.

One fan shared, “RIP Gil Gerard – aka Buck Rogers, My older brother and I had a chance to meet him at a con once and he gave us his undivided attention. Pleasure to meet him.”

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Gil Gerard starred in a doc that followed his weightloss journey(Image: Getty Images)

Another user penned, “When I was growing up, I had 3 favorite TV shows that I used to record on my cassette recorder: Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica & Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Buck Rogers was one of my heroes & I’m sad to hear about the passing of GIL GERARD at the age of 82.”

A third person added, “So sorry to hear about the great Gil Gerard,” adding that the late actor and his co-star Erin were “wonderful people” when he met them at a convention.

“Farewell to Gil Gerard. I loved Buck Rogers when I was little & thought he was the coolest cat in the 25th century. I still occasionally hum the theme song,” someone else chimed in, prompting a fifth to say, “Bidi-bidi-bidi. You’re the best, Buck,” in a Buck Rogers reference.